Buzz
Whenever possible, mothers should exclusively breastfeed their babies for the first 6 months before introducing solid foods. Initially, start with one meal per day and gradually increase as the baby becomes accustomed.
Mothers can use either breast milk or formula milk to mix into the baby's food. After steaming and mashing the food, let it cool slightly before adding any breast milk.
Note:
- Encourage the baby to sit while eating
- Avoid forcing the child to eat
Discover the perfect menu for your 6-month-old son during his first 38 days of weaning:
Day 1: Steam and mash Dutch beans, peel, mix with breast milk + steam and mash ripe apple, mash with breast milk.
Day 2: Mix baby food powder with breast milk + steam and puree white cauliflower, mash with a fork and mix with breast milk.
Day 3: Steam and puree carrots, grate and mix with breast milk + a little bit of steamed corn, blend and mix with breast milk.
Day 4: Weaning porridge (powder mixed with breast milk) + steam Dutch beans, peel, puree with breast milk. He finished everything and demanded more, causing dad to lift him away from the dining table.
Day 5: Mix baby food powder with breast milk + steam ripe red bell peppers, finely chop + a bit of beef cooked with breast milk.
Certainly, everyone may wonder why only recently started weaning and the mother has already started giving Tim meat. The mother was also very surprised when she asked the doctor what to start feeding Tim and was told: 'Everything, except for some things that should not be fed to children under 1 year old as written in the Swedish Food Agency's guidance book'. The mother found out that previous weaning guidelines mainly involved giving children fruits and vegetables for a while before introducing meat because back then children were introduced to solids as early as 3-4 months old, when their digestive system was still very immature. By 6 months, the digestive system had improved significantly, so it was entirely possible to introduce meat from the start, and meat is essential as it contains a lot of iron, which animal-based iron is much easier to absorb than plant-based iron.
Day 6: Steam sweet potatoes until soft, mash with a spoon, mix with breast milk + pureed cauliflower (previously frozen) + a little mashed egg yolk mixed with breast milk.
Day 7: Porridge made from sweet potatoes and peas cooked in breast milk + chicken cooked in breast milk.
Chicken cooked in breast milk. Ingredients: 1 chicken breast or 2 boneless chicken thigh pieces 400ml breast milk 1 carrot, peeled and sliced 1 stalk (60g) celery, sliced. Instructions: Bring breast milk to a boil, reduce heat to low. Add chicken, carrots, and celery and cook for about 15-20 minutes. Remove chicken and check for doneness by cutting the chicken pieces in half; the juices should run clear from the meat with no pink color. Let cool, then grind/shred/cut according to the child's texture preference. For the carrot, celery, and milk mixture: Simmer until almost dry, let cool. Grind or mash/cut the carrots and celery according to the child's texture preference, use remaining breast milk to adjust thickness. Freezing: Freeze chicken and vegetables separately. When serving, they can be combined or paired with other dishes. The smell of breast milk when boiled... is quite pungent. However, after cooking and blending with vegetables, it will smell like vegetables, and the child will still eat it.
Day 8: Mixed vegetables cooked in breast milk (cooked together with beef from the previous day) + steamed yellow bell peppers, diced small. After eating, rinse the mouth with a little water.
Recipe for meat cooked in breast milk: Can use beef, pork, lamb... Meat: 0.5kg Breast milk: 500ml (freshly expressed or frozen) Carrots: 100g, sliced Green beans: 30g Parsnip: 1/4, sliced Whole peppercorns: 4 cloves Bay leaf: 1, torn Bring 500ml of breast milk to a boil. Reduce heat, add meat, vegetables, and whole peppercorns. When the meat is cooked, turn off the heat, remove the meat to cool. Meat portion: Place in a blender or finely chop, depending on the child's age. Vegetable and breast milk portion: Simmer until almost dry, remove peppercorns, let cool. Place vegetables in a blender or chop finely according to the child's texture preference, mix with remaining breast milk in the pot to adjust thickness, consistency. In the picture is the vegetable portion from this recipe, served with yellow bell peppers. Freezing: Freeze meat and vegetables separately. When serving, they can be combined or paired with other dishes.
Day 9: Today marks the beginning of my journey towards a healthier lifestyle. I've decided to incorporate an additional breakfast into my routine. Breakfast consists of a blend of diced apples with mashed bananas, and I'm taking the initiative to feed myself (or rather, explore with the spoon). For lunch: Baby food mixed with mother's milk + steamed and mashed red carrots.
Day 10: Lunch: 15ml of pureed carrots + 10ml of tomato and breast milk sauce with salmon.
Salmon is rich in omega-3, beneficial for the baby's brain development. Method for cooking salmon with tomato sauce: Score the tomatoes, blanch in boiling water, then peel off the skin and remove seeds. Chop finely and put in a pot, simmer until soft. If the sauce gets too thick, add a little breast milk to cook together (I used about 15ml of breast milk). Add the diced salmon into the pot and cook until the fish is done. Salmon can be served with baby porridge or separately with vegetables. Sprinkle some herbs if desired.
Day 11: Lunch: Baby food + purple yam cooked in breast milk, tomatoes and beef + steamed corn.
Today, the whole family went out for lunch, so I prepared food for my baby to enjoy with us. Learning from the experience of yesterday's dinner when my baby cried for home-cooked food upon seeing what we were having at the restaurant.
Day 12: Lunch: Baby food mixed with breast milk + beef and broccoli soup.
Porridge is a comforting bowl of goodness, especially when it's made with mother's milk. For a delightful twist, pan-fry some salmon with a hint of oil, sauté finely chopped onions until fragrant, add the salmon and cook until golden brown, sprinkle a bit of garlic powder, and it's done. Salmon porridge has been a staple in our family for years, a dish I prepared for guests three years ago and they still reminisce about it.
Day 22: Lunch: Infant cereal mixed with mother's milk + pan-seared chicken with brown champignon mushrooms (not sure about the Vietnamese name for these mushrooms?).
This dish is a symphony of flavors, with the savory goodness of chicken and the sweetness of mushrooms. Yesterday, Pappa went to the market and splurged on fresh chicken thighs, which I prepared and stored for later use. Using one thigh, I cooked it in mother's milk, and another I coated with a mixture of bell pepper powder and garlic before pan-searing. After cooking, I cut the pieces into large chunks and froze them, ready to be minced into smaller pieces when needed. The cooking process is incredibly simple, yet it yields a dish that even adults would find delicious (Pappa even sneaked a taste. Chicken thigh preparation: Debone, remove fat and skin, season with a bit of garlic powder and dried bell pepper powder (you can skip the bell pepper powder if unavailable), pan-sear until golden brown on both sides. Minced finely according to the child's eating ability. Mushroom part: Finely chop and cook in a non-stick pan until done. When serving, mix chicken and mushrooms together. Freezing: After pan-searing the chicken, cut into large pieces and freeze according to the child's meal portion (for easy adjustment of texture as the child progresses with solids). Mushrooms: Cut into small pieces, cook evenly in a non-stick pan until done, freeze. When the child eats, thaw and mince according to the desired texture for each meal.
Day 23: Breakfast: Pureed vegetables
This dish is a blend of steamed carrots, steamed sweet potatoes, and red lentil porridge, each in a separate serving.
Day 24: Breakfast: Apple porridge.
Porridge mixed with mashed apple and breast milk.
Day 25: Lunch: mashed baby food mixed with breast milk + chopped Dutch peas.
Day 26: Breakfast: mashed baby food mixed with breast milk + kiwi.
Day 27: Lunch: steamed sweet potatoes with breast milk + beef cooked with breast milk. Starting today, I'm letting my baby self-feed during lunch, so I'm preparing more variety of food for him/her.
Day 28: Lunch: Mashed baby food mixed with breast milk + shrimp cooked with breast milk + steamed bell peppers. I'm starting to let my baby practice holding food, biting, and swallowing on his/her own! (My laziness level as a parent is increasing day by day).
Day 29: Breakfast: mashed baby food mixed with breast milk + finely chopped peaches.
Day 34. Lunch: Rice porridge cooked with mother's milk + mashed carrots + honeydew melon.
Today, I had the pleasure of using a new plate for my meal. I found it more intriguing than the food itself. After playing with it for a while, I finally decided to eat. The rice porridge cooked with mother's milk is made from clean rice, drained and cooked with mother's milk to make porridge. The ratio of rice to water varies according to the baby's age. The porridge in the picture consists of 50ml of rice + 500ml of mother's milk. Despite the 1:10 ratio, the porridge seems quite thick, probably depending on the type of rice.
Day 35. Breakfast: Golden kiwi.
Day 36. Lunch: Potato porridge with fish (store-bought from Semper) + mango.
Mom continues her quest to collect jars for making yogurt for me, so today I get to enjoy store-bought food again.
Day 37. Breakfast: Chia porridge + orange.
Chia pudding for kids is slightly different from the adult version. Here's how to make Chia pudding for kids: Grind Chia seeds finely and soak them in breast milk overnight in the fridge (use about 1/2 teaspoon of Chia seeds soaked in 30ml of breast milk). The next morning, heat up the milk and mix in baby food powder. As for the adult version of Chia pudding, soak 3 tablespoons of Chia seeds in 100ml of milk (soy, cow's, almond, etc.) overnight in the fridge, and enjoy it with fruits the next day.
Day 38. Lunch: Steamed pureed cauliflower + steamed pureed sweet potato + banana. Today, I made the food thicker for the baby, so I only pureed the food without adding breast milk.
Wishing all our little ones happy eating!
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