Originally published: January 2025
Teenagers often come to an age where they start wanting to make more of their own food choices. This is a great time to help them build or expand their cooking skills to feel more comfortable in the kitchen. Learning how to cook teaches practical life skills and supports healthy eating habits. Here are some simple ways you can support your teen in the kitchen.
Encourage your teen to take charge of meal planning and preparation
- Let them be the chef: ask your teen to plan and cook a family meal each week. They can pick the recipe, decide what ingredients they’ll need, and cook it themselves. Giving them some freedom with meal planning and preparation will help them to develop skills in planning and organizing.
- Make a grocery budget: get your teen involved in planning meals and grocery shopping. Encourage them to compare prices and decide what to buy. This is a great way to teach them about budgeting and making choices at the grocery store.
- Plan and prep lunch: encourage your teen to take the lead on planning and making their own lunch and snacks. Show them how to prep meals ahead of time for the next day or the next week. This can help grow their independence, planning and time management skills.
Build essential food skills
Teach your teen basic cooking skills to help build their belief in themselves and their independence.
- Knife skills: teach them how to safely chop, cut, dice, and slice foods.
- Food safety: introduce food safety practices to prevent potential food hazards and build good food safety habits for the future. For example, show them how to keep raw meat, poultry, and seafood separate from other foods to prevent cross-contamination.
- Stove-top cooking and baking: guide them through the process step by step. Explain how temperature and cooking time ensures food is cooked safely and turns out good.
Encourage your teen to make choices that support a healthy eating pattern
- Build a balanced meal: encourage your teen to create meals that follow Canada’s food guide by including a variety of vegetables and fruits, whole grain foods, and protein foods. When planning meals, teach them to aim for half of the plate or meal to be vegetables and fruits, one quarter whole grain foods, and one quarter protein foods. Building your plate like this helps them get the nutrients they need for energy, growth, and overall health.
- Find healthy swaps: teach your teen how to swap ingredients for more nutrient-dense options, like using whole grain bread instead of white bread or adding more vegetables. You can also share tips on what to use if a recipe calls for something they don’t have on hand.
- Practice mindful eating: encourage your teen to pay attention to their hunger cues, avoiding distractions during meals, and focus on enjoying the taste and texture of food. This awareness helps them make better food choices and builds a healthy relationship with food.
Make cooking fun and engaging
Cooking together as a family, can be a great way to bond while teaching your teen important kitchen skills.
- Create themed dinners: let your teen choose a theme, like "Pizza Night" or "Breakfast for Dinner," and make the meal together.
- Host a family cooking challenge: turn meal prep into a fun and friendly game by giving each person a part of the meal to prepare.
- Share favorite recipes: pass down family recipes. Show your teen how to make dishes that have a special meaning to them and share stories while you cook!
Give Support
- It doesn’t have to be perfect: remind your teen that it’s okay to burn something or make a dish that doesn’t turn out as planned. It’s all part of the learning process!
- Give gentle guidance: if they need help, give tips rather than pointing out mistakes. Giving positive feedback will help to build their confidence and keep them open to try again.
For extra tips and ideas, go to:
