As a British Asian mum, I had certain goals when it came to weaning my baby girl:
1. Top-notch nutrition
2. Yummy flavours
3. Culinary heritage
4. Variety of meals
Readily-available baby food recipes covered my first goal – #1 nutrition. But they lacked in #2 flavour, and more specifically, #3 my culinary heritage. Honestly speaking, my little one would mainly be eating a South Asian based diet – so why wean her with tastes and flavours that were entirely different to our palate at home? Boggles the mind!
That said, I LOVE different cuisines – Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Turkish… the list goes on and on, but prepared with my own little South Asian cooking twists. So all of these cuisines made an appearance in my baby’s weaning journey to keep her palate broad, and to fulfil my second and fourth weaning goals – #2 flavours and #4 variety.
Weaning goal #1 goes without saying – nutrition was the most important to give my baby girl the best start in life. So all of the recipes I’ve created are nutritionally balanced and delicious!
Weaning goal #3 culinary heritage, is where this post comes into play. I created tons of nutritionally balanced baby-led weaning curries, to help my baby’s palate get used to the flavours I would regularly feed her when she was ready for the big table. And seeing as I get tons of questions from parents about baby-led weaning curries, I thought I’d pop the best ones into a post for you.
So here are my 21 delicious baby-led weaning curries – easy to prepare and nutritionally balanced. Perfect to introduce after first-tastes have been accepted, with some suitable for slightly older babies and toddlers. Keep it flexible – let baby stick her fingers in the curry sauce and lick her fingers, pick up tender pieces of meat, fish or vegetables and enjoy munching them on her own. You can even offer a spoon – whatever your little one is comfortable with. Just be sure to supervise your baby at all times to keep self-feeding safe.
Enjoy!
1. Mixed Veggies in Coconut Milk – Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Vegan-friendly
Suitable from 7+ months, this delicious creamy curry is full of hidden veggies – parsnips, cauliflower, green beans and sweetcorn. Diary-free, gluten-free and vegan-friendly, this curry is has a low allergy risk, and will help broaden a little palate. The creamy taste comes from the unique taste of the coconut – no cow’s milk in sight. The coconut milk is also a source of lauric acid – known for its immune-boosting abilities. Try the recipe here – Mixed Veggies in Coconut Milk.
