How to cook chicken and meat?

[~Alexa~]

Ok so today the doc said we can start Patrick on chicken and meat, but I have no idea on how to cook it.  Could you share your experience and ideas on how to cook chicken and meat?

Thanks

[imaayafa]

when my kids were weaning, i bought organic chicken breasts (bc it has much less chemicals, antibiotics and toxins in it) and cooked a big pot of soup with mixed color vegetables and a tiny pinch of salt and the chix, and used a hand blender to make it into a puree. (in the beginning a total puree and that add texture as they learn to chew). for veggies, i used onions and garlic (great for the immune system), sweet potatoes or yams or orange squash, and peeled zucchini. sometimes i also added other greens or organic potatoes (reg potatoes have one of the highest loads of pesticides). the whole family could eat the chix soup, while the baby got the puree. delish! over time you can also introduce some herbs and mild spices for flavor...i also often added a dash of xtra virgin olive oil at the serving. i guess you can use any meat in a soup with veggies, as long as it can be blended and is without bones.... later when they can handle a little texture, my little ones loved meatballs, either made with ground chicken and herbs, or made with meat and some tomatoe sauce. by the way i also served fish, my baby loved mackerel from the can in olive oil! good omega-3s and low in mercury....

[jana224]

At 6.5-7 months I started pureeing lean meats mixed with breastmilk (or you can substitute formula) in the blender.  No real recipe, just mixed enough so it was "soupy" and gradually make it thicker.  I made enough to freeze in 2-4 tablespoon servings.  I purposely kept the meat separate from the veggies so that I could always offer different vegetables with the meat when I served it.  The nice thing about making enough to freeze is that is keeps safely for 6-8 weeks in the freezer, so I'd make as much as possible.  I only gave lean cuts of chicken and turkey in the beginning, no salt or herbs or butter added.  Once my DD got a good taste for different food, I started adding herbs/garlic/olive oil, but personally I'd stay away from salt and butter because they just don't need it.

Once DD was doing better with finger foods, around 8-9 months, I switched to ground cuts of chicken and turkey.  I'd pan fry the ground meat and then freeze in 3-4 tablespoon portions.  Bigger pieces of the ground meat, I'd chop down a bit smaller, but DD was a very skilled self-feeder at a young age.  At this same time I introduced small portions of lean smoked turkey or chicken from the deli counter.

At 10 months I introduced tuna -- just drained right from the can.  She can pick up the flakes easily, and sometimes I mix it with a bit of mayo and make her a toast n' tuna sandwich.  Around the same time, I did a huge crockpot of small/mini meatballs (turkey or beef), and let them simmer till they were very soft, then I sectioned them off and froze individual portions.  They're so tender that they break apart very easily.

I'm a big fan of making in advance and freezing ahead of time because it is so convenient to just grab a container of meat when we're going somewhere for dinner, going out, whatever.  I will gradually start offering her whatever we're eating, but I love the convenience of having her meats prepared ahead...

Good luck!