Ready meals

I wouldn’t say it’s not acceptable as each to their own but personally I wouldn’t. Have you ever tried them? They’re so boring and I feel like the majority all taste the same. It’s much easier to just give them what you’re having and I feel it’s more enjoyable for them

As a one off, it's fine but every night, not really. I often batch cook and set aside portions for my son. There's also some meals that we don't like reheated (mac & cheese for example) so I make a bit more so I've got extra just for him. Then I've always got easy meals to hand if I need them and I know they are homemade. There's definitely better alternatives to ready meals

Have you seen the toddler meals in Tesco? By little kitchen and annabel karmel? These are a better alternative with less salt for little ones.

Acceptable is an odd choice of wording. Would you survive just fine on ready meals every night? Yes. But is it very nutritious? No. I think especially for young babies and children that are developing so fast we should be making an effort when it comes to their nutrition.

I wouldn't every night. Once in a while is ok

Tbh not really, you should focus on whole food not processed food

Tbh, no, because they're boring and taste so bland! Plus, that gets super expensive! Get yourself a decent baby cookbook and make things yourself, as you can freeze portions

I wouldn't even that myself let alone my child

@Alex my 2 year old loves these especially the mac and cheese bolognese

I don’t understand- do you mean actual ready meals or baby pouches / baby food? X

The little kitchen ones and annabel as mentioned above are better. The best thing is your baby/toddler is fed so I guess if you're asking as that's your only means of being able to feed your child then of course x

I wouldn't, I mean if I'm cooking for myself anywhere she'll just eat that, or have left overs from the night before.

I keep some in my freezer incase my son doesn’t want to eat what we’re having & he absolutely loves them! If your in Nz at woolworths you can buy little meals that are delicious & full of veg

I usually have a couple little dish or Annabel Karmel meals in the freezer just incase but not an everyday thing x

For dinner last night my 16 month old had an adults portion of microwave spaghetti bolognaise & my 5 year old had an adults portions of microwave chicken & bacon pasta. In all honesty I don’t care as long as they have a warm meal in their tummy before bed. I give them a microwave meal maybe once/twice a week depending on how I feel🤷🏼‍♀️

Salt. Eek

How is this even a question…!? I am actually horrified that is the food plan of some parents for their little babies. Poor babies who are subjected to this…( esp at such advanced age too what is wrong with cooking actual meals? Even simple home cooked options cost less, are nutritious, low salt and sugar, not ultra processed, interesting to eat and enjoy and take no time at all to prepare once you are on a roll doing it daily… or stored in freezer for when there is no time to cook… to me it’s pure laziness of parents to think this is acceptable((( I wouldn’t be able to imagine eating like that myself let alone a quickly developing small child who needs a serious amount of nutrients at such age and balanced healthy meals

@Masha I’m a lazy parent then 👍🏻 but you also have no idea what my kids eat throughout the day & the rest of the week. Judging just from 1 meal is outrageous!

@Jasmine considering the way your post asks the question it’s not just a one meal - it’s an everyday dinner option… i wouldn’t have a problem with one off meal like that but everyday… I don’t think i want to imagine what your kids eat if you ask such questions.

@Masha haha ok hun. But my kids eat ready meals once or twice a week (at a push) & are both very healthy & have home made meals the rest of the time. I personally don’t think it really matters as long as a child has a warm meal in their tummy before bed 🥰

@Masha jasmine didn’t actually write the post - incognito did.

@Liv hang on. Yeah I’ve just re-read what she said. wtf I didn’t write it😂😂

@Jasmine had to say something because you could feel the judgeyness from a mile away 🤣

@Liv thank you so much x

Sorry I accidentally clicked yes, personally for me it’s a no, but I would meal prep your own meals and pop them in a freezer for convenience x

Thank you for your responses, I’d just like to clarify this is NOT about me or what I feed my child. I went incognito because the ‘friend’ is also on here, although I’m sure it wouldn’t have taken a genius to figure out who I was on about😅 I was trying to explain to her that she shouldn’t give ready meals everyday and she said she thought it was okay as long as her child was eating.

@Liv @Jasmine so why respond like you wrote the post and got offended? If you didn’t write the post meaning my comment was not directed at you at all (esp if you manage to feed your kids well), so why should i need to have any ideas in the first place on what your kids eat during the day if you aren’t the one writing this post or contributing anything meaningful to the conversation. A comment of ‘I’m a lazy parent then’ would have been sufficient and self explanatory and created less confusion for you both. In any case it doesn’t even matter. I don’t think a ‘warm UPF high salt high sugar meal in child’s tummy before bed’ is any good. Once in a while yes ok, not every night - that was my point in this whole conversation.

if it's all you can do, it's okay

@Masha didn’t create any confusion for me lol, was just telling you Jasmine didn’t create the post 🤷🏻‍♀️

My concern would be salt/sodium content, because too much salt can damage their fragile, developing baby kidneys. Check the nutrition facts and consult with a pediatrician for sure. A super quick, super healthy microwavable dinner option for toddlers are steam-in-bag frozen vegetables, served with rice:) no need to be fancy. And in the case of a toddler rejecting vegetables, simply introducing and reintroducing the same vegetables about nine times, WITHOUT pressure (literally just put it in front of them, with a backup dinner for if/when they reject the veggies), and within a month long period, almost always results in them finally trying it and liking it! There is a TON of research on this. Keep at it! It can have a huge impact on their future health, academic performance, emotional wellbeing and relationship with food.

@Masha you’re a stay at home mum. Not a full time working mum. Don’t be so judgemental until you’ve been in a position. You might have time to make meals everyday but that doesn’t stop you being a role model to your child to be a nice person.