How to feed a child in Thailand - mashed potatoes and porridge, in a cafe and at home
It is not possible to cover all aspects of baby food in Thailand in this article, so everyone has their own problems with feeding, and children have different ages. Therefore, I will talk more about our case..
Although Yegor is almost two years old, in terms of nutrition, he can be put on the level of annuals. This means that he still eats mostly puree food from a spoon, and you will not give him almost any pieces like fruit. Nevertheless, I will also tell you a little about feeding older children or not so selective..
The content of the article
How to feed a small child in Thailand
I remind you that it is imperative to make honey insurance, at least for the child. You never know what. Some kind of Quincke's edema or just getting to the hospital for 1 day, and you can get money. Take a look my main post about insurance. Everything is collected there at once: how to choose, how to use insurance correctly, which options are needed and which are not, what insurance does not cover, and so on. Plus, there are already 1000 reviews from readers and also with useful info. I try to update the post promptly so that you can always choose more working insurance.
Purchased mashed potatoes
When we flew to Thailand, we were worried about whether there are mashed potatoes here, to which we are so accustomed in Russia (post, how to find familiar products in Tai). No, we do not feed them all the time, and in general we try to buy only those that do not contain flour and starch. Usually we prepare food ourselves, but on the road the simplest thing is purchased puree. And just when you move, while you are living in a hotel, you cannot always cook something. Therefore, we took 10 jars with us from Russia, and it was right (I recommend). Although, as it turned out, there are mashed potatoes in Thailand! About this below.
Food in jars is sold here only in large supermarkets: Tesco Lotus, Big C, Villa Market, Tops Market, etc., that is, not always within walking distance (in the homeland, there is almost any grocery store). Baby food in Tai is less familiar in terms of components, its choice is scarce, food is more expensive (50-90 baht), because it is most often imported (Heinz). Purely Thai puree information is written in Thai, but ingredients in English.
How to feed a child in Thailand
Flavor examples: apple + mango + banana, apple + banana, apple + mango, apple + currant, apple + spinach + sweet potato, sweet potato, spinach + sweet potato, parsnip + carrot + sweet potato. Basically, there are fruit purees, but we can say that there are no vegetable purees that we are used to. I have not seen any fish puree; I have met chicken puree once. By the way, mashed potatoes are sold in two containers: in jars, like ours, and in soft packs. The last thing is very convenient, you can feed it like an astronaut, squeezing it straight into your mouth :)
Very convenient container for baby purees
What else is sold in large supermarkets from baby food? There are various cereals (mainly from Nestle), milk formulas for very young children (there is a large selection), all sorts of different muesli.
Porridge for children with different tastes
Infant formula
And a little on a related topic. If you are looking for a highchair, then you should think about this question in advance. For example, on Koh Samui, we could not find anything suitable for ourselves and regretted not taking our compact highchair from home (it fits easily into a suitcase). Everything that we managed to find here looks like a copy in the photo. We were not satisfied with the price (there were still other wooden ones for 4900 baht) and the lack of a normal fastening (we need it, like in a stroller with straps over the shoulders).
High chair on Koh Samui for 2,700 baht
Food at home
Since we feed mashed potatoes mainly only when moving, or when we are too tired, we cook at home. In the morning, Yegor steadily eats rolled oats (Oats) with chopped fruit. Most often it is a mango, but it can also be a banana, papaya, dragon fruit, watermelon, apple, or a mixture of several fruits. We also add linen urbech, brought from Russia, a very useful thing. However, I saw flax in the Villa Market in Bangkok, so you can buy it in Thailand and then make something similar out of it..
Oatmeal or in English Oats (two firms)
Mango chopped with a blender
Thai fruit
Thai fruit
For lunch and dinner, we make rice in a rice cooker (brown, red, black, white), chop vegetables with a blender and add some shrimp. Typically, vegetables are: onions, carrots, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, potatoes. All vegetables are fresh and can be bought at the supermarket or market. The price plus minus is the same, you can see it in the photo. We also bought frozen vegetables once, but the price for them is about 150-200 baht per pack.
Vegetables familiar to us in Big C with prices
Cherry tomatoes, broccoli, cabbage
Also in Thailand on sale there are ordinary eggs and quail, fish and seafood, all kinds of meat, both fresh and packaged. All this is also sold in the supermarket and in the market. You can also buy yoghurts and milk in 711 / Family Mart supermarkets and minimarkets. Imported yoghurts, of course, are only available in large supermarkets..
The most common chicken eggs
Seafood in Big C
Something from meat
Yoghurts and sour cream
Milk
Food in cafes and on the street
If you give your child everything that you eat yourself, then, in principle, nothing prevents you from giving him any Thai food in a cafe. Just ask for no spicy (know spicy), and you can also point at the child with any explanations, so that they can understand better.
One of the simplest dishes, often encountered and adapted at the same time, is Kau man gai (steam rice and chicken), that is, rice + a bowl of broth + chicken. No spices and other things, everything is like in Russia. Or a good breakfast dish - Kau Nya Ma Muang (sticky rice and mango), that is, sticky rice + coconut milk + mango pieces. But this is so to begin with. Then you yourself will try different things and decide what you can give your child..
Since Egor almost doesn't eat anything like that, we sometimes buy him boiled rice (steam rice / kau) in a cafe and to him, or store puree bought in advance, or boiled shrimp (kung). You just need to ask not to do anything with them either (no salt, no sauce). You can also take ordinary boiled vegetables, but we have nothing to turn them into mashed potatoes in the cafe, so for the occasion, take it home and chop it there. In general, at the moment we often just take freshly squeezed juice without ice and sugar (no ice, no sugar) for him, and feed him at home.
Rice and fried egg at a food court in Tesco
How to feed an older child or not so picky
If you just answer, then feed the same that you eat yourself. Most likely, if you like Thai dishes, then you and the children will feed them, and vice versa, if you do not like it, you will not.
I think everyone understands that Tai is not Europe, and the food preferences of local residents differ from ours with you, which means that not everything can be found in supermarkets (but a lot), especially at our usual price. The situation is the same with a cafe, only Thai food is really cheap. Nevertheless, even under these conditions, it is quite possible for yourself to eat more or less as usual, it is not for nothing that so many foreigners live here. You just need to cook on your own and set a budget for the purchase of imported products. Alternatively, walk through European / Russian cafes, who likes what more.
Personally, we have found here for ourselves, everything we need. Well, maybe in addition to a few products we need, which can be ordered from Russia with an opportunity. Fruits alone are worth something! Immediately I remember that «paper» something that is on the shelves in Moscow in winter. Brrr ... In general, children, according to the experience of our friends, happily eat local fruits, drink juices, eat Thai or cooked food.
P.S. Anything to add? Please write in the comments. We have not been here for so long, maybe we have not taken into account or forgotten.