meat puree??

[1sttimemamma]

Hi - my DS is 7 months old. He isn't too crazy about purees, but he's so far liking peas, carrots and green beans the best. My pediatrician says he's fine to try meats, etc. I'm just unsure how to prepare meats. We do a lot of ground beef, but I don't think he could ever swallow those pieces. So, do I make meat purees?? Like grind up the chicken or beef? Seems gross to me

[*happy*]

Was coming to post the same question!

[creations]

I didn't do purees so I can't really answer exactly what you are asking. However I did on occassion try to whizz chicken to make some smoother burger type things. Almost burnt out my whizzer though and the effort didn't seem worth it.  Others may be able to give you tips on pureeing meat though.

Babies can take chunks of meat from 6 months as finger food. They don't need teeth as their gums are very hard and can gnaw away at a hunk of meat for a good while, sucking all the goodness out, chomping bits off which they then either gum around and spit out or gum around and swallow. A lot of the goodness from the meat can be got at without eating the entire thing the way an adult does. At 6 months mine was given a hunk of roast beef in a restaurant (bug enough to grasp in a fist and still be able to get some in the mouth) and chomped away until just a thin bit of gristly sort of fat was left which he dropped on his tray.
Chicken or turkey etc can be given the same way - for info the leg/thigh has more iron than the breast (I'm assuming you're after some iron rich foods)

With ground meat I would probably prepare a burger or sausage type shape and fry or oven cook it so it become a finger food.  Mine wasn't keen on these as he never really liked the texture of ground meat but again many babies do like this.

Liver is a great source of iron, can be given from 6 months, and if your LO doesn't want to eat a hunk of liver then pate is good for spreading on fingers of toast or in a sandwich.  I used to do home made pate so that there was no salt as anything shop bought will have salt in.  it's super easy and can be frozen.

Other sources of iron
http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/food-sources-of-iron.php
I made lots of bean and lentil burgers/fritters when DS was that age which he loved. There's a list of beans and their iron content in the above link.

[1sttimemamma]

lentil burgers! how do you make that?

so if I make chicken breasts for dinner. Do I just give him a hunk? Or would it be better to give him bones with some chicken on it?

[creations]

I would just give a hunk of the chicken.  If he does nothing but sniff and fiddle with it it's ok, he will be learning many things and becoming familiar with this new 'stuff', familiarity helps when it comes to trying new foods.  I had a Kenyan friend many years ago who told me they give their kids chicken bones as teethers - but I don't think this would be advised in the UK for fear of the bone splintering.

Lentil burgers.  I used canned lentils as I am lazy Drain and rinse in fresh water, take off excess water with absorbent kitchen paper.  Or pre-cook dried lentils as per pack instructions and drain.  Then just stir in an egg and some flour to bind the lentils together, add any seasoning you think LO would like or which you have already tried him with (I'd avoid salt at this age but garlic, tumeric, paprika, tomato puree, mixed herbs, anything like that to give some flavour), give it all a good stir and form into patties, fry. If the mixture is too slack to form into patties just cook like fritters (ie blobs of mixture) or if it is really thin cook like American pancakes (a dollop of the mixture into a hot pan and flip it over).
You can make these smoother by mashing or whizzing the lentils, I sometimes did a mix of some mashed some whole.
You can add any left over veg from the day before too. Or you can finely chop onion and mushrooms and fry them off before adding to the mix.
You can also fill (or half fill) a mini muffin tray and cook them like mini meat loaves in the oven.
TBH I used to make it up every time, you just need to bind them together really.

If lentils don't go down well it's worth trying a range of beans. For instance mine really didn't like red kidney beans or butter beans but loved all others, it must have been a taste/texture thing because once they are cooked as patties I don't think he could tell visually they were any different.

[1sttimemamma]

I haven't given him any seasonings yet. He's only had bananas, pears, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, summer squash and peach. Should I just try one seasoning?

Also - do I mash the beans a bit before I try - meaning like black or garbanzo or pinto?

[lauradj]

It's really easy to make meat purees.  All you need to do is make the meal and then pop it in the cuisinart (or whatever you use).  The meat is still in little tiny pieces but it's really easy for babies to swallow.  I've done this with stews, spaghetti sauce etc. and my DS has consistently eaten them.  I've used seasonings for quite some time; oregano, basil, rosemary with no issues 

[scruffymax]

I do meat in purees! I pop all the veggies, rice, meat in a big pot with enough water to just cover, simmer until everything is cooked, drain the water then purée everything with my stick mixer thing. I cut the meat into chunks before cooking. I've done this with chicken (breast or thigh), beef (steak) and lamb (cut the meat off chops). 7mo DS loves it but then again he loves solids and hates milk.  DD loved it too when she was at the purée stage. I'm one who makes up big pots of baby food a few times per week and freeze them in portions. My current favourite is freezing in a silicone muffin tray as it's really easy to pop the servings out.

[creations]

Also - do I mash the beans a bit before I try - meaning like black or garbanzo or pinto?

Yes, you can either whizz them which will make them wet and smoother and more like a pancake mix sort of consistency or mash them down a bit.
You could also follow a falafel recipe if you prefer to follow a proper recipe. Reduce or leave out the chilli powder if you aren't sure about it. I used a falafel recipe given to me which was intended for LOs and it still had a small amount of chilli in it (I've lost the recipe or I'd post it).
My LO was fine with spices and herbs. He had a skin reaction to garam masala on potato wedges which made him red and blotchy on his hands and face where it touch him, I gave him a good wash as soon as I saw it. But he was not ill in any other way, just a contact reaction.  Introduce one herb/spice at a time if you want to go slowly.

Finger Foods (6 months+)
the last post on the finger food thread has chicken nuggets.

Recipes for babies and toddlers
and there are some pork balls here, first post.