When to start starchy foods?
Rice, wheat, corn, legumes, potatoes… It can be hard to know where to start with the vast family of starchy foods. So when it comes time to introduce them to our babies, we can feel a little lost. When should we introduce starchy foods? How? In what quantity?... Keep cool, we'll answer all your burning questions right here.
What starchy foods are suitable for a baby?
After four months, your baby will embark on an incredible adventure: introducing solid foods . Following vegetables, fruits , meat, and fish, starchy foods will enter your child's life. Pasta, bread, semolina, legumes, rice, polenta, bulgur, tapioca, quinoa, potatoes, corn: there's plenty to choose from!
At what age should starchy foods be introduced to a baby?
Introducing starchy foods happens in two stages: starting gently at 4 months with infant cereals (gluten-free initially) and potatoes, which can be added to a smooth vegetable purée. After 6 months, the possibilities expand: rice, small pasta shapes, quinoa, corn, or even tapioca. And finally, from 9 or 10 months, legumes make their grand entrance (always in a well-puréed form)!
But then… How do we prepare them?
Since your baby is still far from being a chewing champion, it's important and necessary, before they are 6 months old, to finely purée potatoes to obtain a very smooth puree or soup. You can also opt for flours (rice, buckwheat, chestnut, cassava, wheat, rye, barley, etc.) mixed with dairy or vegetable soup. From 8 months onwards, you can start to purée your purees a little less, gradually introducing texture . For example, you can add small, soft pasta to your vegetable purees . Good news! Good Goût has launched a Baby Pasta range! Your baby will love our two organic pasta recipes: tricolor star-shaped pasta with vegetables and risoni pasta made with durum wheat semolina .
Age: OK. Preparation: OK! And at which meal should you give starchy foods to a baby?
In the morning , you can add infant cereal to their milk. Alternatively, you can also opt for the evening meal ! For example, you could take inspiration from the following menu: a breastfeed (or formula) followed by 130g of vegetables with cereal or starchy foods. From 10 months onwards, starchy foods will also have their place at snack time with baby biscuits !
To learn everything about introducing solid foods, visit www.ameli.fr or contact your pediatrician to ask all your questions!
