October 12, 2024

AmericanHummus

Food & Travel Enthusiast

24 Kid-Friendly Recipes – The New York Times

24 Kid-Friendly Recipes – The New York Times

Table of Contents



“What’s for dinner?” Depending how I respond to that question, I’m sure to be met with toddlerlike squeals of delight (chili, nachos) or preteen groans of disgust (almost anything green). While my kids aren’t the pickiest eaters I’ve ever encountered, they both have long, evolving lists of likes and dislikes. My husband and I refuse to be short-order cooks, but we’re not interested in enforcing the clear-your-plate, you-get-what-you-get mentality we grew up with either. And so we are, forever and always, in search of those almost miraculous, unquestionably delicious dishes that please everyone at the table.


In that spirit, I asked readers of our Five Weeknight Dishes newsletter to tell us about the New York Times Cooking recipes their kids request on repeat, the meals that make them do a little happy dance when they hear they’re on the menu. More than 150 parents wrote in, with the dishes their children love — and the things they had to say about them. The 24 recipes that follow are the highlights: Some fall into the typical “kid food” category, others happily don’t. But there’s something for everyone (and, if you’re dealing with especially fickle tastebuds, most are customizable).


There are, of course, no guarantees when it comes to kids. What’s beloved one day might be detested the next, and one kid’s favorite dish could make another gag. But these dishes have gotten at least one kid’s hard-earned stamp of approval, and we think that’s a good place to start. (Get dinner ideas sent straight to your inbox weekly: Subscribe to the Five Weeknight Dishes newsletter.)


See these and more kid-friendly recipes at New York Times Cooking

B
o
l
d

Sheet-Pan

Cajun

Salmon

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.







“Yum.

Pink

fish

is

the

only

good

fish.”





— Adam, now 16, at age 13

Ginger-Lime

Chicken

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth.







“Yum.

Pink

fish

is

the

only

good

fish.”





— Adam, now 16, at age 13

Korean

Barbecue-Style

Meatballs


Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.





m
m
m
M
M
M
m
m
m








— Connor, 2

Sesame

Salmon

Bowls


Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.






“The oldest child recently caught his first salmon, a Coho on the Siletz River, near our family’s house. It was 23 pounds of excellent eating and joyful storytelling. You should hear middle-school kids telling fish stories. They are worse than old men when it comes to blatant lying.”


— Amanda, mom to Lincoln, 12, Eddie, 9






“My son, Ted, 12, and his pickier cousins all love Ali Slagle’s turmeric chicken with asparagus, which we call Golden Chicken. We make it with snap peas or broccoli when asparagus isn’t in season.”


— Jennifer

Turmeric-Black

Pepper

Chicken

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.






“My son, Ted, 12, and his pickier cousins all love Ali Slagle’s turmeric chicken with asparagus, which we call Golden Chicken. We make it with snap peas or broccoli when asparagus isn’t in season.”


— Jennifer

Sheet-Pan

Kielbasa

With

Cabbage

and

Beans

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Chili

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth.






“It

makes

me

feel

like

I’m

about

to

go

to

sleep.”




— Olympia, 8

C
h
e
e
s
y

Cheesy

White

Bean-Tomato

Bake

John Kernick for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.







“Voila,

dinner

is

served!

Pizza

beans!”





— Rachel, mom of Elliott, 3






“Just

the

way

the

cheese

melts

into

your

mouth,

it’s

so

yummy.”




— Amar, 11

Cheesy

Baked

Pasta

With

Sausage

and

Ricotta

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.









“We make this with veggie tofu sausage; if we don’t have ricotta, we stick with mozzarella.”

— Bakirathi, Amar’s mom






“Just

the

way

the

cheese

melts

into

your

mouth,

it’s

so

yummy.”




— Amar, 11









“We make this with veggie tofu sausage; if we don’t have ricotta, we stick with mozzarella.”

— Bakirathi, Amar’s mom

Bean

and

Cheese

Burritos

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgepeth.




Y
e
s
s
s
s
s
s
s
s
s
!







— Frank, 8, every single time he hears these are on the menu









“I skip the white wine and use a cornstarch slurry instead of heavy cream to thicken the liquid. We don’t keep American cheese so I just stick with Cheddar. Also no chives.”

— Amy, mom of Dorothea, 11

Homemade

Hamburger

Helper

Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.









“I skip the white wine and use a cornstarch slurry instead of heavy cream to thicken the liquid. We don’t keep American cheese so I just stick with Cheddar. Also no chives.”

— Amy, mom of Dorothea, 11

Mattar

Paneer

Linda Pugliese for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.






“Just

the

flavors

are

just

like

dancing…

like

they’re

dancing

on

your

tongue

and…

really

just

like

delicious.”




— Emerson, 6

C
r
i
s
p
y

Crisp

Gnocchi

With

Brussels

Sprouts

Andrew Purcell for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.






“It

makes

me

feel

happy.”




— Clara, 5

Crispy

Baked

Fish

With

Tartar

Sauce

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.









“We make one (teeny, weeny!) adjustment: We skip the panko entirely and substitute crushed Doritos. (Pandemic Parenting: Whatever it takes, you know what I’m saying?)”

— Jessicarobyn

Crispy

Sheet-Pan

Noodles

With

Glazed

Tofu

Kate Sears for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.






“Sweet, crunchy, delicious, yummy! The crunchy noodles are super delicious, and I never not like them.”


— Juniper, 6

Crispy

Sour

Cream

and

Onion

Chicken

Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.






“Sweet, crunchy, delicious, yummy! The crunchy noodles are super delicious, and I never not like them.”


— Juniper, 6







“Makes

the

whole

family

swoon

with

happiness.”





— Amanda, mom to Lincoln, 12, and Eddie, 9

C
o
z
y

Dumpling

Noodle

Soup

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth..






“This

is

soooo

good.”




— Adam, now 16, at age 14

Oven-Roasted

Chicken

Shawarma

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth..






“This

is

soooo

good.”




— Adam, now 16, at age 14









“I serve it with basmati that I’ve added turmeric and cumin seed to. And lots of Frank’s hot sauce.”

— Amy

Creamy

One-Pot

Pasta

With

Chicken

and

Mushrooms

Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Michelle Gatton.

Sheet-Pan

Bibimbap

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Judy Kim.






“My daughter Katie, 11, loves the sheet-pan bibimbap recipe by Eric Kim. She would describe it as ‘OP,’ which means overpowered in gaming lingo. She once was going to turn down a sleepover invitation because she knew it was on the menu that night from dinner. (We switched it to a different night.)”


— Jenny







“Mom,

can

we

have

the

shrimp

with

the

lemon

and

little

rice

noodles?”





— Gavin, 5

Shrimp

Scampi

With

Orzo

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.







“Mom,

can

we

have

the

shrimp

with

the

lemon

and

little

rice

noodles?”





— Gavin, 5









“Excellent with skirt steak.”

— Tiffany, mom to Dash, 12

BLT

Pasta

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Ali Slagle.






“I

like

the

pasta

in

the

BLT.”




— Sadie, 7

Dutch

Baby

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff. Prop Stylist: Megan Hedgpeth..









“Excellent with skirt steak.”

— Tiffany, mom to Dash, 12






“I

like

the

pasta

in

the

BLT.”




— Sadie, 7

One-Pot

Japanese

Curry

Chicken

and

Rice

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.






“Remember, Mommy, I’m having the curry rice for breakfast. Do you still have scallions?”


— Ava, 7


Illustrations by Andy Rementer


Produced by Krysten Chambrot, Kim Gougenheim, Margaux Laskey, Rebecca Lieberman and Shannon Lin


Audio produced by Tina Antolini and engineered by Sophia Lanman