Cooking With Your Kids: Easy Recipes & Tips

Brierley Horton, M.S., RD is a dietitian nutritionist, content creator and strategist, and avid mental health advocate. She is co-host and co-creator of the Happy Eating podcast, which breaks down the connection between food and mental wellness.

As a dietitian, I know that cooking with kids is a great way to teach them about food, give them some baseline cooking skills, and potentially have better success introducing them to new-to-them foods.

As a mom, however, cooking with kids, no matter how easy the recipe is, can be an exercise in patience (for me!) and almost always leaves me with more dishes to be washed than if I had cooked solo. But when your kid flips their first (whole wheat) pancake, cracks their first egg (successfully!), or preps the veggies for dinner, the missteps along the way (like crushed cupcake sprinkles in the carpet or muffin batter littered with egg shells) feel like they were worth it.

So if you want to get your kids cooking in the kitchen with you, here are a few of my tried-and-tested general tips. Keep reading and you’ll find more specific cooking tips for preschool-aged kids through teenagers.

Start slow

Don’t do like I did and attempt a “cool” (aka intricate) baking project as your first joint cooking venture. Choose easy recipes that appeal to both their shorter attention span and limited skill-set. Then assign tasks as you go to keep them focused.

Teach food safety early

This is a great time to reinforce the importance of good handwashing! I also use this opportunity to teach my kids about how to handle raw meat, seafood, and eggs. We talk about cross-contamination (e.g., don’t use that cutting board with raw chicken on it to slice your fruit or vegetables).

Plan for spills and messes

Full disclosure: this is the most challenging part for me when I’m cooking with my kids. The extra mess can really press my buttons. But I try to keep in mind that when they make a mess or spill something, it’s an opportunity to teach them how to clean up! And most importantly they’re having fun and we’re making memories.

Pick a recipe you’ll actually eat

Plain and simple—if you’re going to spend the time in the kitchen and do all the dishes, you ought to be making something that you will actually eat afterwards. And, the kids will experience the fruits of their labor.

Relax and have fun

Or at least try to. I know it’s easier said than done.

Cooking with Preschool Aged Children

Simple, hands-on activities are perfect for this age group. These pint-sized chefs need easy recipes that fit within their shorter attention span, yet also flex their motor and fine motor skills. This is also the age where if you involve them in the planning and preparation, they’re more likely to eat the food.

Have preschool aged children help in the kitchen with:

Wiping tables
Opening packages
Stirring or whisking ingredients in a bowl
Washing fruits and vegetables

Cooking with Elementary School Aged Children

These junior chefs have more dexterity and precision than their younger selves and are developing their math skills, so recipes that involve measuring, using a blunt knife, and even learning how to operate some kitchen appliances are all within reach.

Work together with your elementary school aged children to:

Cut softer foods with a blunt knife (think: avocado, strawberries, some cheeses, etc.)
Measure ingredients
Use a blender, mixer, or microwave
Plan meals and shop for ingredients

Cooking with Tweens and Teens

These two age groups have much more independence around their food choices and dietary patterns than younger kids. It’s also when they begin to establish dietary habits that they’ll likely carry into adulthood. But their brains are still developing and some experts say that this stage of life is when kids' cognitive function and mood can be particularly vulnerable to the effects of their diet. So this is the time to teach them more advanced cooking tasks, particularly around healthy food preparation and meal planning.

Give teens and tweens recipes that teach them:

How to use the stovetop and oven
Sharp knife skills
Meal timing (e.g., which dishes at what stage)

Recipes to Make with Kids

Pita Pizza or Pizza Bagel

These recipes are great for kids of all ages. Younger kids can help top the pitas or bagels, older kids can make the entire recipe from start to finish.

Chocolate Sour Cream Brownie Cake

A sweet treat recipe always gets my kids in the kitchen with me! And this one is perfect for littles because they can help mix and pour; elementary aged kids can work on their measuring skills; and teens can learn how to tell when a baked good is done!

Strawberry Oat Muffins

Here’s another easy baking recipe for kids and they’ll love it! Kids of all ages will enjoy mixing the streusel topping in their fingers. And elementary aged kids can practice their fine motor skills by drizzling the glaze on.

Blueberry Yum Yum Smoothie

Want a quick recipe! This is it! When my kids were little they found watching the blender turn whole foods into a smoothie fun! And older kids can learn how to safely operate (and clean!) a blender.

Mini Taco Cups

Parents or teens can make the taco meat and younger kids can help with the taco cup assembly! If you have picky eaters, get creative with your taco cup toppings and let kids top them at the table.