Beetroot
Beetroot loves the colour so much it spreads it to everything – your plate, your other food, your mouth and even your poo and wee (don’t worry, it passes).
Nutrition
They’re a good source of fibre, folate (vitamin B9), manganese, potassium and iron making them a powerhouse veg to support energy levels, making red blood cells and supporting heart health.
Shopping Guide
Look out for beets that are on the smaller side with a strong maroon colour and bright leaves still attached.
Storage
To store raw beetroot, keep in a cool dark cupboard or even the fridge for up to a week. For cooked beetroot, keep in the fridge in its original packaging or a sealed container for up to 3-4 days.
Serving Suggestions
Simply add pre-cooked beetroot to a salad, or buy raw and peel, cut into wedges, brush with olive oil and roast in a tin in a pre-heated oven at 190C/170C fan/Gas 5 for 40 mins – add a garlic clove, separated but unpeeled.
Seasonality
Buying veg in season is not only great for the planet, it can be good for your wallet, too! Seasonal veg are often cheaper and frequently taste better, so can be a better time to try with a child as the often sweeter, riper taste is more enjoyable.
Coming In:
June
At Its Best:
July - January
Engage
Here are some of our favourite ways to engage kids with beetroot:
Arts & Crafts
Start simple with some non-food based engagement. This is especially helpful for a fussier child or those with sensitivities around food.
For beetroot, why not try making beetroot prints on paper plates using a cut beetroot? You could even take it a step further and carve a heart or shape into the beet to make stamps or temporary tattoos for hands. Make sure to wear an apron and perhaps some gloves to avoid staining! It can also be fun to try and paint or draw a beetroot picture with a raw halved beetroot – can they show the detail of the rings and shades of colour in the picture?
Science
Science allows for curiosity, play and hands-on experiments. It helps kids to become fascinated with veg – how it looks, reacts, smells, cooks and more. Finding fun and simple experiments to allow kids to play with their veg makes them curious about it and helps them approach it in a positive way.
Did you know that beetroot juice works like red cabbage as a natural PH indicator? Follow Stefan Gates’ video and tips to make your own red cabbage PH indicator using beets instead! Or follow his ideas for exploring the colours and shapes of different kinds of beetroot (did you know you can get pink and white striped ones?!).
Sensory
Sensory exploration can be a wonderful introduction to physically interacting with veg. Turn it into a positive, pressure-free experience by starting off with the golden rules of “You don’t need to try and you don’t need to like.” Reassuring a child that, while they have a chance to taste a veg, they don’t have to, and are not expected to like it if they do, can make them more happy to engage with it.
Beetroot is a fun one to explore through sight (just remember that it can get a little messy and stain, so make sure to wear aprons or old clothes and be prepared to get some pink fingers for a few days if you don’t wear gloves!). Try exploring whole and halved beetroot to describe the look, colour and patterns you see on the outside and inside. What does it remind you of? If you can get a few different kinds of beetroot (purple, golden, candy-striped), it can really spark the imagination!
Kids in the Kitchen
Children who help to prep and cook veg are more likely to eat it. If you feel your child is ready to help and could benefit from it, keep the stress and mess to a minimum by choosing one simple task for them to do as part of the prep, meaning they can be involved and feel like the recipe is in part ‘theirs’, but also not make the process too much longer or more complicated.
For a younger child, why not pop on an apron or old clothes to avoid staining, and show them how to cut safely with cooked beetroot and a butter knife. Cooked beetroot is super soft so you don’t need sharp knives, making it perfect for teaching little ones knife skills without being too nervous about it!
For an older child, it could be a great opportunity to teach essential knife skills, too. You could show them how to safely use a sharp knife to cut cooked or raw beetroot using the claw grip. Or show them how to grate safely to add some colour and extra flavour to a simple grated carrot salad. It’s great(!) in pitta breads or sandwiches with cheese, or with a simple dressing as a colourful side salad.
Use our Kitchen Ninja chart and videos to find simple ways for kids to help in the kitchen.
Your Food
Beetroot has a natural sweetness and beautiful colour many kids love, but not all are fans of the earthy flavour. Emphasise the sweetness with our simple sides and by adding beetroot to some of your family favourite dishes…
Recipes
If You Like them Beets…Try
Does your child enjoy beetroot? That’s great! Beetroot are usually soft, savoury and earthy, even a little sweet, so why not try a similar texture and/or taste…
Serving
The moments before food is offered can be a perfect opportunity for engagement that can help make it more likely a child will eat it!
The first thing to do is remove the pressure. If the veg doesn’t get eaten, it’s not the end of the world. There will be other days, other dinners, other chances. Fun is key here – try not to worry about mess, perfect table manners, or playing with food. Instead, focus on making the process of getting the food to the plates, readying the table, and the actual eating relaxed.
Try making one of our simple beetroot sides (like simple roasted beets) and ask your child to help with one small part of the recipe (wrapping the beetroots in tin foil can be fun, and an older child could help you with setting the oven and peeling when it’s cooled a bit).
While the beetroot cooks, ask your child to come up with a fun pink or purple colour theme for setting the table to celebrate the colour of this beautiful root!
The Wonderful World of Veg
Check out our vegepedia. When to buy in-season. How to store them to keep for longer. How to engage children with each veg, and simple ideas of how to prepare and cook them for maximum taste and minimum waste. Select a veg…