Resolving to make your baby homemade food this year instead of leaning on store-bought options? If so, you may be wondering how to get started. Luckily, the process of making baby food from scratch is simple, as long as you have a little know-how and the best utensils for the job.
Homemade baby food options ensure that you’re supplying only the ingredients you want to see in your baby’s belly. You can control whether sugar, salt, or preservatives are added to your concoction, for example, and you never have to question where the food came from.
So, if you’re getting started with making baby food from scratch, these are the supplies you’ll need to have in your kitchen before you start tackling your own baby food creations.
Basic Kitchen Tools
While items like sharp knives, veggie peelers, and cutting boards are staples in many kitchens, it’s important to ensure that you not only have them, but have ones that work well. Trust us, a dull knife or veggie peeler will likely result in a lot of frustration and wasted time during your baby food prep.
You’ll definitely need a serrated utility knife, which will help you slice baby food favorites like sweet potatoes and carrots in an efficient and comfortable way. And a large Y-peeler makes it a breeze to peel butternut squash, while a standard-sized Y-peeler is great for apples and smaller fruits.Finally, any baby food-making kitchen needs quality cutting boards for all of the slicing and dicing that will be going on. Using color-coded cutting boards allows you to designate one board for produce and another for meats, so you can avoid cross-contamination of foods and reduce the risk of potentially exposing your baby to unwanted bacteria.
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A Steamer
Baby food needs to be soft before it’s mashed into a consistency that your toothless little one can tolerate. Using a steamer with an extendable handle allows you to steam almost everything under the sun in a safe way. Because it’s stainless steel, it can be put inside your pot to perfectly cook your pre-mashed baby food ingredients. And once they’re at the right consistency, the steamer can be taken out with the telescope handle to avoid any accidental hand burning.
A Baby Food Mill
A baby food mill turns intact food into baby food in an instant. Place the food in the top of the mill and turn the lever; the solid food will quickly be mashed. This is perfect for making baby food at home or for when you’re on-the-go with your baby in tow. For smaller food quantities, a food masher will get the job done.
Baby Food Storage
Once you’re going through the effort of making your own baby food, it’s natural to want to make extra and freeze some portions for later. Having baby food storage containers on hand allows you to portion out servings and freeze each one individually. (Psst, this guide can help you make sure you’re storing the food properly.)
Got all of your gear? Now it’s time to start cooking. These delicious recipes will get you started.