How to Make Fried Rice for Babies & Toddlers - FirstCry Parenting

Fried Rice Recipe

Are you looking for a quick one-pot meal to serve to your toddler? Does it need to tick all the right boxes- vegetables, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and nutrients? Then this delicious Vegetable Fried Rice for babies can be readied in less than an hour. You can also adapt it to suit your toddler’s changing taste buds.

Cooking Time

Type Time (hh:mm:ss)
Preparation Time 00:10:00
Cook Time 00:15:00
Total Time 00:25:00

Total Servings: 3-4

Cooking Method: Gas stove or induction

Type of Meal: Vegan

Suitable for: Babies over 12 months

Meal Schedule: Lunch and Dinner

Recipe Type: Main Meal

Ingredients

Ingredients Quantity & Volume 
Cooked Rice 1 cup
Cooked vegetables (carrots, peas, corn, broccoli, cauliflower) ½ cup
Ginger – Garlic Paste 1 tsp
Onions 5 tbsp
Butter or oil for frying As needed
Salt As per taste

Instructions

This step by step procedure on how to make Fried Rice is a great way to start that rice dish on your baby’s varying palate. Easy and quick to make, this dish is a wholesome meal in itself.

  • Heat oil in a large skillet, pan or wok.
  • Add the onions and sauté for a minute till they become translucent.
  • Cook the vegetables in water with a pinch of salt before sauteeing the onions.
  • Cook the rice and let it cool down before adding it in the final stage.
  • Once the onions are cooked, add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for another two minutes till the raw smell disappears.
  • At this stage add the cooked vegetables and stir continuously till it blends well with the onions.
  • Once done, add the cooked rice and mix well.
  • Serve immediately.

Recipe Tips

  • The dish is ideal for vegetarians and vegans.
  • If you wish to add eggs, then scramble an egg separately and add it to the rice at the end. Alternatively, you could move the cooked rice and vegetable to one end of the wok and break the egg on the other and scramble it. You can then mix everything together.
  • You can also use frozen vegetables instead of using fresh ones. Do ensure that the frozen vegetables are thawed before you cook them.
  • Long grain rice, basmati rice or jasmine rice are the best quality rice that you can use for this dish.
  • Chilled or a day old rice is best for this dish. If you have any left over rice then use it in the dish. The dish tastes best when made with left over rice. Make sure to heat the rice thoroughly when cooking the recipe.
  • For babies over 18 months, you could add a dash of mild soy sauce to make it taste a little tangy and sour.
  • If you are non-vegetarian, then you can add shredded pieces of cooked chicken, pork or mutton too. Make sure that the pieces are well cooked so that your baby can chew them.
  • You can also try adding some pineapple chunks to throw in a hint of sweetness which your toddler will appreciate.
  • Garnish the rice with chopped herbs like coriander or parsley.

Nutritional Facts Per Servings

Nutrient Value
Calories 245 kCal
Fats 7 gm
Carbohydrates 32 gms
Protein 9 gms
Cholesterol 122 mg
Sodium 558 mg
Sugar 6.6 gms
Calcium 32 mg
Vitamin C 1.5 mg
Potassium 111 mg
Iron 1.2 mg

Health Benefits

Now that you have learnt the easy Fried Rice recipe, read on to find out some of the health benefits it will give to your baby:

  • Rice is a good source of carbohydrates and will keep your child full for longer. It is also easily digestible.
  • The combination of vegetables – carrots, peas, potatoes – is a great bucket of nutrition in one dish.
  • Carrots are rich in Vitamin A and also help in improving vision.
  • Peas are rich in Vitamin C and good for digestion.
  • Potatoes are high on carbohydrates and also rich in fibre.

Buying Guide

Just a few things to remember when you are making homemade Fried Rice baby food recipe.

  • Wash the vegetables well in clean water before you chop them.
  • Wash the rice in clean water thoroughly before you cook it.
  • Make sure you buy good quality vegetables. If you are buying fresh peas, then check for tiny worms in the pod. Most vegetables used in the dish are seasonal and available during winter. It is a perfect winter dish.
  • You can choose to saute the vegetables in butter to enhance the taste.
  • If you choose to use soy sauce, then make sure you buy a branded one that is good in quality.

Fried Rice for babies is a wholesome dish that can be served with some delicious accompaniments. You can serve this with a bowl of curd and some cooked and fried potatoes. Vegetable fried rice is an adaptable dish and you can try different variations to the same. There are different add-ons that you can try.

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