Goulash for Babies and Toddlers

I've said this before but there is a tendency to feed kids bland food and there is really no reason.  During their time in the womb they're 'tasting' the amniotic fluid, if you breastfeed, they get flavour changes through that.  Ok, perhaps don't go for chilli as the first step but at the weekend my son was eating some barbecued lamb marinated in garlic and chilli!  Spices are also a great way to make family meals with flavour but without using salt and sugar which I prefer to avoid.

So, here's a recipe adapted from Stephen Midgley's.  The original recipe is here.  My husband isn't over keen but I love this recipe, it's like a tomatoey beef stew.  Lovely.  My son ate a decent amount of his big portion and fed me some too.  I tend to feed him bigger amounts now as so much goes on his face, trousers, bib, floor...

There's something great about serving lovely soft stewed meat to kids too because simple roasted meat can be a bit much.  My son might have 4 molars now but they're not terribly effective, slow cooked beef though just falls apart and it's obviously full of iron which is really important after 6 months.  Anyway, pumpkin loved it!

Goulash for Babies and Toddlers (and Mummies too but not fussy Daddies) 4 big portions or 8 smaller ones.  Serve with vegetables, rice, potatoes, whatever you like.

Ingredients

400g Stewing or braising beef
Spray oil
Half a tin of chopped tomatoes
1 red, orange or yellow pepper, sliced (I used frozen peppers, sounds strange but when you're stewing something it works and it saves waste.  I always seem to have a pepper in my fridge on the turn.)
1 onion, chopped finely
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp Smoked Paprika (use sweet or mild unless you have a very adventurous child)
1 bay leaf

Method

Fry the beef in some spray oil then put into a slow cooker.  Deglaze the pan with a little water and pour into the slow cooker.  Saute the onions, garlic and peppers until softened.  Add the rest of the ingredients, hold back a little on the juice with the tomatoes.

Cook for approx 4 hours or until meltingly tender.

If you're a bit unsure, just do loads of veggies and try something new like this at lunchtime.  For babies on soft lumps it would probably be a great idea to puree it then cook up some rice from fresh and mix it in, that will also tone down the flavours if they're a little full on.