More meat.

This is a common thing with toddlers, and probably not a cause for concern if the doctor isn't concerned (especially if she eats veggies!), but a few ideas: - try different, softer meats (ground beef, chicken, etc) - mince the meat and hide it in more palatable foods (mashed potatoes, spaghetti Bolognese) - blend it in soups - soft, flaky fish may be easier to handle / chew - give the kiddo a heads up, like 10-15 mins, that mealtime is coming, and keep it pleasant. Don't fight with them over it and let them decide if they eat or not. Those tricks aside, if she is just not a natural meat eater, that's fine! This is common. You can get extra protein in through lots of foods, including milk, cheese, beans, pulses, hemp seeds, and nut butters, the latter of which also carry a lot of healthy fats. They can get iron from iron-rich veggies like spinach and kale. My 1yo loves smoothies, and I add nut butter, hemp, and spinach or kale to it every day.

@Melissa I’m just glad she eats veggies without a problem. We had spinach and mushroom pizza with an Alfredo sauce and she ate that right up. She eats small amounts of chicken or ground beef (with spaghetti) but not as much as I would’ve expected. She just turned 1 in dec and gets plenty of yogurt and milk throughout the day.

That all sounds totally fine to me! I actually have a B. Sc. In food & nutrition, so there was some infant / child nutrition included in that. It sounds like she gets what she needs, and the meat thing is typically a phase that will pass with time. Just keep offering it with meals, but you would be surprised the weird kinds of diets toddlers (and people) can exist on. I've seen them live on goldfish crackers and cheerios. 🤣

@Melissa she used to not have a problem with meat when I started her at 4 months old with purées and solids. Then fully solids when she didn’t want purées anymore.

Again, totally normal. She's developing tastes and independence. Just let her choose when and what she wants to eat. You give her options, she decides whether or not to eat it. Which leaves you in control of what she's eating, but she still gets the independence to explore her tastes.

Toddlers typically have a phase where they go on “meat strike” my running theory from once being a child myself is it’s a texture related thing lolol But everything Melissa said + just keep offering meat when it’s made incase their more willing to try it in that moment

@Parker 又 I just gave her steak which she ate without a problem so I’m thinking it’s just chicken she doesn’t like.

Can you make dishes that incorporate everything together? My daughter loves things like chili (shredded chicken, beans, onions, corn, and spices), nacho meat (ground beef with black beans, tomatoes, onions, spices and cheese), high protein Mac and cheese like red lentil or chickpea pasta with shredded chicken and broccoli, etc.

@JL I’m not comfortable with giving her chili tbh. But as my comment above reads that I was able to give her steak and she ate it without a problem. I think it’s the chicken she has an issue with.

@Parker 又 personally I don’t think it’s about texture. I’ve been giving her solids since she was 5 months old and never had a problem with anything I gave her. Not all kids have issues with texture

@Rosemary McMurray yeah I didn’t say it absolutely was texture causin the issue, I said my running theory had been texture lol