Affiliate links on this article may earn us commissions, at no extra cost to you. This doesn’t influence our ratings, and the opinions are our own. Learn More.
Once the baby is six months of age, it’s time to start eating solids. This stage is exciting and scary for the new mom because it can go extremely well or go south from the first spoon. Moms are plagued by a myriad of questions regarding the best weaning recipes or what to start with, what’s right for the baby, what’s outright taboo, and what the best weaning practices are. Read on for the ultimate baby weaning guide with all the tips to wean your baby and amazing weaning recipes for a smooth weaning transition.
It’s vital and recommended that a baby be weaned when they are 6-months old. Exclusive breastfeeding is the best way to provide nutrition for the baby from birth. Between 0 and six months, the baby should be fed exclusively breast milk or formula. Once the baby hits the 6-month mark, solids may be introduced gradually.
If you’re faced with a situation where you have to wean your baby before five months or less, have a conversation with your pediatrician about it and let them advise you on the best course of action. Do not wean a baby four months or less; if they can’t have breastmilk, give them formula until they are at least five months old.
Read more: Parenting hacks to make your life easier
When to Start Weaning
While six months is the ideal weaning stage, sometimes a mother may choose to wean a baby a few weeks before the baby hits the 6-month mark. This may be advised for many reasons, such as a decline in the mother’s milk, medical reasons, or a perpetually hungry baby.
You will know that your baby is ready to eat if he’s always reaching out for other people’s food. If a baby who was sleeping throughout the night starts to wake up more in the night, he may be getting hungry and ready for solids. The baby must also hold her head upright before you can introduce solids.
Related article: 12 Best Food to Wean a Baby
How to Prepare for Weaning
If you’re approaching the 6-month mark, you should get ready to introduce the solids. But, what exactly does getting ready to wean your baby look like?
Get the Feeding Equipment
Before we get to weaning recipes you need to get the necessary equipment. You will need to purchase and disinfect the baby’s feeding equipment in advance. Some of the essential baby weaning equipment are:
This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission when you buy at no extra cost to you. Disclosure Policy.
Thermal Spoon
If you misjudge the baby’s food’s exact temperature, you may end up scalding the baby, and they may not forgive you for a long time. A thermal spoon ensures that you’re correctly estimating the baby’s food temperatures. You can purchase a spoon that changes color with temperature or one with an actual thermometer that tells you the food’s temperature in digits.
Munchkin® White Hot® Safety Baby Spoons, BPA Free, 4 Pack
Baby Bowls
Choose baby bowls made of non-breakable materials; babies love to hot bowls and play with their food. Ensure that the plastic you choose is one that is BPA-free. If you can, get non-spill bowls and bowls with a non-slip pad to help them stick to the feeding table.
Munchkin Stay Put Suction Bowls for Babies and Toddlers, 3 Pack, Blue/Green/Purple
A Feeding Chair
Transitioning a baby from the breast to more controlled feeding with a spoon is likely to be met with a little resistance. A feeding chair helps a baby know that feeding time and feeding time are serious. Get a baby feeding chair with straps to keep the baby secured.
Cosco Simple Fold High Chair, Posey Pop
Other Feeding Essentials
Your weaning process will be more painless if you have a steamer to steam the vegetables for making purees. You can designate a regular pot to be exclusively for the baby. A blender will also come in handy.
There will be lots of spilling; to avoid messing up the baby’s clothes (and your own), get easy to wipe feed cloths or bibs.
Likely, your baby will only eat a few spoons when you start feeding them; get an airtight container to store the rest of the food in-between feeds. This weaning tip will save you lots of wastage.
Related article: How to Sterilize baby bottles
Foods to Avoid During Weaning
The baby’s food doesn’t have to be bland and tasteless, but there are ingredients and foods that you must avoid when weaning the baby. Remember, the baby’s digestive system is still developing, do not shock it to submission with harsh foods and spices. Keep the following things from your baby’s weaning recipes.
1. Salt
Do not add salt to the baby’s food. Too much salt is terrible even for grown-ups; the baby’s kidneys are still relatively underdeveloped, and they can’t handle salt yet. Don’t worry; the baby can’t tell that the food is saltless because they have never had salt before.
Besides, babies get enough sodium from breast milk and other foods such as potatoes, fish, eggs, and vegetables.
2. Processed Spices
Spices are very likely to irritate your baby’s stomach leading to tummy upsets. Do not add any of these to your baby’s food, however little. You can use natural spices such as ginger, garlic, or cumin to give the baby’s food taste a twist.
3. Honey
You have probably heard that babies younger than one year should not be given honey. It’s true; they shouldn’t. Honey contains bacteria that can potentially cause a severe illness in children called infant botulism. Honey contains the botulism pores that can produce a dangerous toxin detrimental to a baby’s life.
4. Raw or Undercooked Eggs
Eggs contain the bacteria salmonella and should not be given to babies. If you must feed a baby an egg, hard boil it or scramble it under high heat.
5. Cow’s Milk
Cow’s milk is hyper allergenic and a significant cause of eczema and allergic reactions in babies. Do not cow’s milk to a baby under one. The baby should continue breastfeeding even after weaning.
6. Raw Fish
However much you’d like your baby to have the sushi experience, do not give them raw fish. Raw food contains bacteria that can cause food poisoning. Avoid some shellfish and seafood types as they may cause severe allergic reactions to a baby.
How to Start Weaning a Baby at 6 Months
Weaning isn’t supposed to be as stressful as many moms tend to make it. In the first few days, the baby needs just a few spoons of food as they get introduced to new textures and tastes. A few scoops of one meal per day for the first few days is just perfect. They are also learning to swallow without choking and gagging, and it’s going to take a few spoons to master that skill.
As they were before, the baby should continue breastfeeding and don’t discontinue them. Please do not give them cow’s milk as they start weaning. Ensure that they have a few water sips with their meal to aid in digestion and prevent constipation.
Allow the baby to play with their food; it’s all a part of the exploration. If they are looking at you and wondering why you’re pushing strange objects into their mouths, show them how it’s done. Imitate eating and let them copy you.
Weaning Methods
Once you have everything in place and have taken note of the foods to avoid, how do you wean the baby? You can either start the baby off on pureed food or follow baby-led weaning—the method you chose for your baby I entirely up to you and the baby.
Baby-led weaning is when you start the baby off on finger foods first, allowing the baby to play with the food and pick it up to feed themselves. Baby-led weaning means you don’t have to make the baby some special meal; you play around with different food items and see what the baby is drawn to. You could also let the baby pick food from your plate as you eat.
Get Baby Led Weaning ebook on Amazon: Simple & Safe Baby-Led Weaning: How to Integrate Foods, Master Portion Sizes, and Identify Allergies
You can wean the baby by spoon-feeding pureed food from day one. Weaning your baby has to be gradual, do not plant a mountain of food in front of the baby on day one and order them to clear it, or else …! Give one food item at a time and progress to more once you establish that the baby is not reacting to any of them.
Related article: Ways to deal with the loss of appetite in babies
Best Weaning Recipes
Here’s what to wean your child on for the first few days and weeks include some weaning recipes.
First weaning Meal
Give your baby their first meal at a time when they are most comfortable. You can give your baby the food at mid-day or just about there for the first day. The best meals to start your baby on are pureed root vegetables such as carrots, butternut, and sweet potatoes.
Rice cereal and rice porridge are also excellent first meals for the baby. Rice is great as a first food for the baby since it’s smooth to eat and easy to digest. Rice powder is also one of the least likely foods to cause an allergic reaction.
How to Make Rice Powder at Home
You can make your rice flour at home, which will save you money and time. It also makes sure that you’re feeding your baby food with no preservatives or additives.
To make rice flour, take a cup of white rice and brown rice and thoroughly wash them separately. Once the rice is clean, soak it in water for about 6 hours to help eliminate components that might cause colic. Do not cover it, or else it will ferment. Put it in a well-aerated place.
After six hours, drain the water and rinse the rice, and then spread it on a clean surface or cloth to dry. When it’s dried, put the rice in a pan and roast it for 5 minutes. Once it begins to pop, it’s read. Put it in a blender or grind and grind it to powder. Grind the brown and white rice separately, and feed the baby on the plain white rice flour first; you can give them the brown after a few days.
If you prefer to buy rice flour you can check out this on Amazon.
ADDERENITY Organic Hiami Rice Powder 8oz
#1 Rice Cereal Weaning Recipe
Ingredients
1 tbsp. rice powder
½ cup of water
Method
Mix the rice and water in a bowl and mix until there are no lumps
Put the mixture on a heavy steel pot and cook on low heat.
Stir as it cooks to keep the floor from settling at the bottom
Stir until the right consistency is achieved, and then turn off the heat.
If it’s too thick, make it lighter with breast milk or water.
#2 Root Vegetable Puree
Ingredients
1 Root Vegetable such as butternut squash
Butter
Water
Method
Carefully and thoroughly clean the root vegetable you’re planning to make for the baby.
Chop the vegetable and put it in a pot. Cover the chopped vegetables with water and bring them to a boil.
Add some butter or cooking oil
Cook the vegetables until they are soft; you’ll know it’s ready when it begins to disintegrate.
Turn off the heat and let it cool.
Put the food in a food processor and blitz until it’s soft without any lumps. If it’s too thick, add water or breast milk to soften it.
Extra Weaning Tips
Feed the baby a few scoops at a time. A few spoons for the first day are enough. Feed the baby the same food for three days to determine if they are reacting to it or not. After the third day, move on to another food item on the baby weaning food list.
Second Weaning Recipes
Once you have established that the baby is not developing allergic reactions, move on to the next list of foods. You can add vegetables and legumes in the weaning recipes.
#3 Butternut and Peas Recipe
Ingredients
1 Root vegetable (Squash butternut)
1/2 cup peas
1 Tsp Cooking oil
Method
Carefully wash and rinse the root vegetable and the peas
Put them in a pot and add water until they are immersed
Pour the oil in and bring them to a boil
Simmer until they are soft
Put them in a blender and blend until there are no lumps. Add water or breast milk to soften
Weaning Recipes for Babies 7 months and Older
Once the baby has gotten used to eating solids, you can continue being more creative with their foods. They can now have three meals per day, and you should increase to at least half a cup per meal.
Here are a couple more recipes that you can try your baby on.
#4 Bean Puree
Beans are an excellent source of proteins and healthy fats for the baby; use any beans at your disposal.
Ingredients
1 cup boiled beans
1/3 cup water
Breast Milk (if needed)
Natural spices such as cumin
Method
Put the boiled beans to a blender and add water
Blend until very smooth
Add water or breastmilk if it’s too thick
Add a pinch of cumin for flavor.
Additional Weaning Tips
Brighter-colored beans are less gassy; use butter beans or pinto beans if your baby is prone to gas.
#5 Chicken Noodles
This weaning recipe is perfect for babies eight months and older.
Ingredients
A small onion, peeled and quartered
Medium carrot peeled and halved
100g chicken breast
250 ml boiling water
1 tsp vegetable oil
60g egg noodles (dried)
Method
Slice the onion, carrots, and dice the chicken into small cubes.
Heat oil in a saucepan and add the chicken
Cook until it starts to brown.
Put the onion
Add the water, simmer for 5 minutes
Break the noodles up and add to the pan. Simmer for a further 5 minutes until the chicken, vegetables, and noodles are cooked.
Put the cooked chicken and noodles in a blender and blend until smooth with soft lumps
Let it allow cool before serving.
#6 Crustless Mini Quiche
This meal is suitable for babies above seven months, but the whole family can eat it.
Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Five spring onions
One small tomato
Five medium eggs
2 tbsp full-fat milk
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
Method
Preheat the oven to 200 °C
Grease a muffin tray with butter
Dice the spring onions and tomatoes.
Distribute the vegetables between the muffin tray holes.
Whisk the eggs, milk, and herbs together and pour over the vegetables in the muffin tray.
Bake in the oven until they get puffy and turn a light brown
Cool for a few minutes before serving.
Final Words
Get creative with these baby weaning recipes and enjoy the season. Most of the weaning frustration stems from misinformation and having too many expectations of the baby’s first solid food. When it comes to weaning, approach with caution, and remember that your baby is unique – what worked for your neighbor’s kid may not work for your baby.
Your baby has not had solid food before; weaning will be a learning curve for both of you. While you’re looking forward to and planning your baby’s first meal, remember the little tot has no idea that his palates are about to be hit by an avalanche of tastes and smells. Be patient with the baby.
Read these next:
- Ways to deal with the loss of appetite in babies
- How to sterilize baby bottles
- 12 best food to wean a baby
- Baby weaning problems and how to solve them
References
- https://www.nhs.uk/start4life/weaning/recipes-and-meal-ideas/
- https://www.yummytoddlerfood.com/recipes/baby-food/first-foods-for-baby/
- https://www.motherandbaby.co.uk/first-year/baby/weaning/how-to-start-weaning-your-baby
- https://www.goodto.com/family/baby-weaning-89403
- https://www.yummytoddlerfood.com/advice/starting-solids/baby-food-chart
