How to Prepare Vegetable Puree for a Six-Month-Old Baby as a Supplementary Food?

After six months, parents need to gradually introduce solid foods to their babies as breastmilk or formula alone can no longer meet all their nutritional needs. When introducing solid foods, it is recommended to start with mashed or pureed foods, such as vegetable purees. Vegetable purees are made from fresh vegetables and are rich in nutrients, making them particularly suitable for babies. When preparing vegetable purees for babies, parents should ensure that the ingredients and equipment are clean and hygienic.

1. Vegetable Puree

Ingredients: Fresh vegetables

Directions:

1. Wash the vegetables and tear the leaves into small pieces, avoiding the use of a knife to prevent rough fibers from mixing in, which can be difficult for babies to digest.
2. Boil an equal amount of water and add the torn vegetable leaves. Boil for about 10 minutes.
3. Once cooled, pour the cooked vegetable leaves and water into a stainless steel or wire sieve. Press the leaves through the sieve using a stainless steel spoon to remove excess water.
4. Discard the remaining solids, and the mashed vegetable matter remaining in the sieve can be used as a vegetable puree. This puree can be fed to the baby alone or mixed into porridge or soft noodles. Serve about 15 grams per serving, 1-2 times a day.

2. Four-Flavor Vegetable Puree

Ingredients: 50g carrot, 50g cauliflower, 25g peas, 25g edamame, 50g milk, a pinch of salt. Note: After removing the oxalic acid from spinach, it contains abundant folic acid, which is essential for brain development.

Directions:

1. Wash the carrot, cauliflower, peas, and edamame. Peel and dice the carrot, break the cauliflower into small florets, and peel the peas and edamame. Steam each ingredient separately until cooked, then mash and mix together.
2. Boil the milk and pour it into the vegetable puree. Add a pinch of salt and mix well.

Nutritional Value: This four-flavor vegetable puree is flavorful, easy to digest, and highly nutritious, containing protein, fat, calcium, phosphorus, iron, carotene, vitamin C, vitamin A, and B vitamins.

3. Spinach Paste

Ingredients: Appropriate amount of spinach, rice flour, salt, mushroom powder, vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Wash the spinach and blanch it in boiling water. Chop it finely and blend it into a juice.
2. Mix the rice flour with the spinach juice to form a thin paste.
3. Boil a small amount of water in a pot. When the water is boiling, pour the spinach paste into the pot while stirring.
4. Once the mixture starts to boil, add a pinch of salt, mushroom powder, and a drizzle of vegetable oil. Cook for a few more minutes.

Note: After removing the oxalic acid from spinach, it becomes a rich source of folic acid, which is essential for brain development.