In response to the latest buzz about the lawsuit against Deceptively Delicious author, Jessica Seinfeld, I’m launching my own Steamy campaign against the entire concept of hiding vegetables in your kids food. But all in good humor.
Seinfeld’s recipes included stuff like, Carrot and Spinach Brownies, Cauliflower Banana Bread, Broccoli Gingerbread.
Like, totally. Gag me with an asparagus spear.
Do you even know how many Flaxseed Chicken Nuggets my kids can slingshot across the room in 12.3 seconds with one hand tied behind their backs? The long term effect of sneaking foods into your kids meals is the under appreciation of the taste of real vegetables. Plus, do you want kids to grow up with confusion over what mashed potatoes really taste like? When their school friends come over for supper, they’ll wonder why the hot dogs have a green tinge and smell like the wrong end of a hippo. That, my friends, leads to worse things than not eating greens, like social anxiety, adult bedwetting and a plethora of disorders that require expensive medication.
If we’re going to dupe our kids into eating healthily, let’s do it right. There are a variety of tactics that I employ in the Steamy Kitchen household, borrowed mainly from my husband’s old West Point Military Academy handbook and his 7 years as a Anthony Robbins trainer.
Bribery: “If you eat your broccoli, I’ll give you an extra 50 cents for college.â€
Blatent Honesty: “See this picture of Uncle Jimmy? We call him lard-ass. He didn’t eat kale.â€
Hostile Negotiations: “If you don’t clean your plate, I’ll whip Buzz Lightyear with a fishing pole and shock him with cattle prod.â€
Neuro-Linguistic Programming: “It’s funny how much the more you try to resist the natural urge to eat brussels sprouts , the more you keep wanting it, getting more and more excited about what you are tasting in your mouth at this very moment in time.â€
Exploiting Sibling Competitiveness: “If you eat your carrots, I’ll love you way more than your brother.â€
Jedi-Talk: “Try? There is no try. Just eat your goddamn vegetables.â€
Good Cop/Bad Cop: “Dude. If I were you, I’d just stuff those carrots in your mouth. Mom’s coming and she’s on her 6th straight day of PMS. Don’t want to be on the receiving end of that monster.”
Sponteneous Egomania: “SPINACH?! You can’t handle the spinach! Son, I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Cheetos and curse the alfalfa sprouts. I would rather you just said “thank you,” and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest that you pick up that spinach and eat it like a man. Either way, I don’t give a damn what you think you are entitled to.”
Injection of Guilt: “You have NO IDEA how many miles your father had to walk up the steep mountain, in Florida snow, carrying 50 pounds of oranges, wearing flipflops to get that tofu on your dinner plate.†or “Do you know how many pairs of Gap jeans your little cousin in China had to sew to so we could buy this bok-choy?” (ok, that was baaaad….spank me)
Dr. Phil: “Are you eating what you’re eating today because you want to eat it, or is it because it’s what you think you were eating yesterday when you were trying to finish eating? You moron, you don’t need to eat a horse’s genitals to spell your name.”
Starving Children in Africa Guilt: “If you don’t eat, I’m shipping YOUR ASS off to starve in Africa.” (thanks Mike)
The Rath of God, Buddha and Santa: “THEY ARE ALL WATCHING YOU RIGHT NOW.â€
And my favorite technique of all, Funny Food Names – laughing so hard you don’t notice you’re eating seaweed.
Furikake French Fries (pronounced Furrrrr-ee-kokkkkkkyyyyy)
if you say that 10 times fast. you might fart.
Yes, it’s a real word. Furikake is a Japanese condiment that includes dried bonito flakes, seaweed, sesame seeds and other seasonings. Find it at most Asian markets. While normally used to sprinkle on steamed rice, I sprinkled it on a fresh batch of french fries for a really cool sweet/salty hit. You can make homemade french fries with a good mandolin like I did, but I find the frozen kind easier to bake.
*DISCLAIMER: Yeah, I know this isn’t a healthy recipe. Get your kids to like seaweed FIRST with french fries, THEN switch it up on them – sprinkle Furikake on steamed broccoli, spinach, tofu…whatever!
This is another technique called Bait and Switch. This double-technique is for the experienced only. Amateurs do not try.
Furikake comes in a small can, with a pull-tab so you can shake out the furikake (heehee! I love saying that word!) There are many different flavors.
Furikake French Fries
Ingredients
- 1 bag of frozen french fries (if making own from scratch and frying instead of baking like a bad parent- see below)
- 2 tablespoons furikake seasoning
- sea salt or kosher salt
Instructions
- Follow the directions on the bag of your frozen french fries. Be a good parent and bake ‘em instead of frying. Bake until golden and crispy. While the french fries are still hot, season with salt and furikake seasoning.If you choose make homemade french fries, budget 1 large russet potato per person, after cutting, soak your fries in cold water at least 30 minutes, drain and pat very dry. The soak helps remove excess starch and produces a crisper fry. Heat your oil to 325F. Fry in batches for 1-3 minutes depending on thickness of fry, drain. Increase heat to 375F and re-fry to crisp for 30 seconds-1 minute. Drain and season while hot.
It’s my new favorite word now and can be used in many different ways. The moment you feel angry, instead of cussing, just say Furikake. Guaranteed to snap you out of your foul mood.
That Mother-FURIKAKE cut me off again!
FURIKAKE You!
Yo mamma is a FURIKAKE!
What the FURIKAKE?
Yippy-Ki-Yay Mother-FURIKAKE! (thanks Dave)
Come on, guys, you can do better than I can! Share with me your kid-duping techniques! How about a way to use FURIKAKE in a sentence????
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!
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I love this recipe! I’m going to have to try it out!
Thanks for the recipe.
Hi. What did you serve these with? A veggie burger? Salad? Curious.
Salmon burgers! https://steamykitchen.com/44-asian-salmon-burgers-recipe.html
recipe looks great! will have to try it. but that’s not how you pronounce furikake. it’s foo-REE-kak-EH (no “EE” or “KYY” sound on the end)
Will try furikake on fries some time. Love the use of the word Furikake. I have a similar word – one that’s so innocent but can be used in so many creative ways. In Mexico, the word for peanut is ‘cacahuate’. Such an innocent word with so many uses (like furikake – which I’m happy to add to my ‘driving with kids’ in car vocabulary). Thanks for the laugh.
laughing my furikake off!
The example for Spontaneous Egomania was so FUNNY!! 🙂
Oh gosh, this is the most hilarious thing I’ve read in a very long time. Man, I’m still laughing! Thanks for brightening my day; oh, and thanks for the recipe, too!
ROFLMAO! I LOVE THIS POST!
“If you don’t eat, I’m shipping YOUR ASS off to starve in Africa.”
LMAO ! For my Mom it was always “China”, didn’t make me want to eat liver no matter who was starving anywhere 🙂
I am going to the Asian Plaza and get some of this Furikake, because I want these french fries right now.
This is a breakfast food right ?
OH my GOODNESS that was so funny! I was posting on my blog : http://www.cutchens.com about my favorite snack lately with microwave popcorn, spray butter, furikake and iso peanuts… and was googling links for furikake and iso peanuts for the post… and saw this. OHMYGOODNESS i can’t wait to eat furikake french fries! 🙂
by the way my favorite is the nori kumi furikake. i am not a huge fan of bonito flakes.
delicious!!!!
I was surprised Japanese Furikake to be introduced!
I am interested in the food culture of your country. And I support your site. If there is time, please come in my site.
From Japan
http://food-soybean.blogspot.com/
I love your blog! I totally agree with you about this topic, I am so happy that my DD knows and appreciates the real taste of veggies like broccoli, califlower, bean sprouts, edamame, and cucumbers. Ofcourse there are veggies she doesn’t like and doesn’t want to even try but I am very satisfied at what she does like and appreciate. My favourite trick to introduce something new that I think my DD might not necessarily be naturally inclined to try and/or like is to give her something new when she is hungry, truly hungry, like right after school or something, lol. Because everybody knows food tastes much better when you are really hungry, and you can appreciate it more. Also, my DD loves furikake, so my sentence is “I furikaked the rice in her bento”. Lol. BTW, I live in Tokyo and here at McDonald’s, they often have “shaka shaka potato” which is french fries with a packet of seasoning and a paper bag included, and where you sprinkle the seasoning on the french fries in the paper bag and shake it up, essentially furikaking your fries! 😉 lol.
I am STILL laughing. I love the notes about gluten-free cooking!!! And you are too hilarious.
I love my Pampered Chef madonlin.
http://www.pamperedchef.com
Jaden,
This is too much for me to stop laughing! I HAVE to use that word today. I don’t know how, I don’t know when, but I do have three kids.
“Shut your Furikake Hole!”
I just don’t know how you do it. People have always thought that I was funny…I just don’t think that I am Cooooool enough to hang out with you.
Main reason I am writing is to find out which mandoline you use. I got a mandoline over the holidays and returned it. It was the OXO, I just didn’t care for it. Way too dangerous on the hands. I want the best one out there if possible. I just would like to know from people who actually own one, do you really like it, or would you rather have another one, and does it leave a huge hunk of veg or whatever you are using unsliced? The OXO did. At this point I am still cutting my matchstick carrots on my own. Thanks, Junith
Woohoo!!! I just got the Furikake I ordered from Amazon today! I’m sprinklin’ it all over the place. Furikake that!
And here I thought I was the freak because I sing the Macarena as The Furikake! I’m not alone!!!!!!!!
FYI, bonito furikake + cottage cheese = not pleasant. What can I say, it was late and I was hungry….
Been meaning to write about this as well – I hate the idea of hiding vegetables in food. It’s like Santa Claus…eventually they find out and hate you for it! LOL!
I couldn’t find furikake at that Asian Supermarket on 12th St. you told me about. They didn’t even know what I was talking about. (I got some great roast duck, though.) I ordered from Amazon. Can’t wait to try it!
Here Jaden,
Gobo fries. 🙂
http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/2007/04/gobo-root-burdock-fries.html
I was laughing so hard that I accidentaly farted FURIKAKE. hahahaha Great post!!!!
At least with your tactics the kids actually know what they are eating or not eating. If you are hiding what they are eating – then what do you do if the kid doesn’t want to eat the carrot/broccoli mint brownie? Do you tell them it’s ice-cream?
My 8 yr old loves fruit and vegetables (she could just about eat a bag of mini carrots) but my 5 yr old dislikes most fruit and veggies. But you know what – he still eats them. I still put them on his plate (though in smaller amounts than his sister) – and he has to eat them. It’s not up for debate. Might take him 1/2 hr and then he has less time to play before bed – so it’s up to him.
When I used to eat at my grandma’s house (I was teen-aged) – she had a snappy/yappy little dog that would jump on my legs. I didn’t like Fritsy – except when it came time to eating. You never quite knew how long those chicken nuggets, piece of cake or muffin had been hanging around her kitchen. So when grandma turned her back – little Fritsy got a little treat. Other times I’d just slip the offending food item into my pocket (grandma would not take “no” for an answer when you said you didn’t want something).
I was totally addicted to that seaweed seasoning when I lived in Japan. Just sprinkle it on anything, so good! What a brilliant way to get your kids used to the flavor.
Here’s what worked in our house growing up. Serve dessert only once a month. No sugar cereals or chips or sodas in the house. Don’t fill the kids up on empty crappy calories and they’ll be more likely to be hungry and willing to eat what’s in front of them.
How cool to see your Furikake Fries as the photo of the day on Serious Eats!
Ah, just give me some FURIKAKE fries!
Those fries look so good! Great photos! The Furikake with dried bonito flakes, seaweed, sesame seeds sound tasty. I will have to look for some the next time I stop by the local Japanese grocery store.
Don’t tempt me to visit Florida Jaden, I’ll be on your furikake doorstep before you know it!
My wife is half-Japanese and introduced me to furikake (I, too, love the word!) on rice. I will definitely be surprising her with some furikake-laced fries…since the deep-fryer is already out, perhaps the perfect accompaniment to tonkatsu?
Dominic
the zen kitchen
Of course, I meant ‘fantastic’ 😉
This dish looks fastastic! I can’t wait to try it. This is such a great post, I literally laughed out loud, your humor is truly appreciated.
Steamy! Steamy! Steamy for President!
You are so hilarious. And 100% correct that hiding veggies is not the way to go. A cookie is a cookie and a carrot is a carrot.
When I was a kid and reluctant to eat my vegetables… I was told, “That’s fine. They’ll be in your cereal/eggs tomorrow morning and you can eat them then.”
Saw your beautiful photo on Tastespotting 😉
xo,
Betty
Sometimes kids don’t like vegetables no matter what parents do. My parents gave us plenty of opportunities to eat vegetables, but I hated them. I only ate broccoli or overcooked veggies. It wasn’t until high school when my taste buds changed overnight and I began eating other (normally cooked)vegetables. If I ever have kids, I am definitely trying the 3 bites technique. Seems very reasonable.
Two words – duct tape.
Wow, I don’t have any kids and I’m really surprised at all the methods people employ to get kids to stuff their gob with veggies. I mean I knew a little but dang…lol you lady, are just too funny.
Basically, I just try to make veggies taste good to my little guy. Every child has a different palate and I like to think that I know what flavors my son likes. For example, I like to steam baby carrots and then drizzle a bit of margarine over them and sprinkle some brown sugar on top as well. The benefit of the carrots far outweighs the not-so-healthy topping in my opinion.
In my household I do not concentrate that what they are eating are vegetables.
They just eat what we do, because if grownups do not eat their veggies child will not either. (good tasting food helps too)
I love your column
For now, my 1 year old eats more veggies than meat. It’s hard to get her to eat meat – she spit it out. *sigh* Or she will push her food around and avoid the meat area and just eat the plain pasta or rice spot she could find.
Ah, from the picture I thought you made burdock fries like I did. 🙂
My cousin just made a chex mix with furikake. Good stuff.
ROFL..on those different ways to duping children. We are vegetarians and probably I have dupe my son to eat some chicken…u know the other way round. I am proud to say that my boy every veggie from Basil to Spinach and giner. garlic to bittergourd (what else can a veggetarian eat?..hahahaa…) Btw was drooling over those fries. Furikakke…(LOL) still laughing.
hi SK, along with maggi sauce, furikake is a weak spot. i put it on everything! your fries recipe sounds fabulous. happy new year to you.
I was lucky. My kid loves vegetables. I can’t get her to eat meat! She came home from kindergarten one day and announced that she was a vegetarian. She said that eating another living thing was against her ethics. Ethics!!! What does a 5 year-old know about ethics?
Great post! You gave me a good laugh! I’m getting me some furikake too.
I am laughing so hard I’m going to start crying soon…and I don’t know what I find funnier, the child-duping tactics or the Furikake-curses! How about some multi-lingual ones:
Hijo de Furikake!
Que te Furikake un pez!
Me Furikake en tu Furikake nacion!
Furikake mo to!
Furikake ka!
I’m in a good mood already 🙂
Great post! My kids would only eat veggies if they were deep-fried(as in tempura) or blanketed by sauce or gravy. Fresh-steamed vegt would seem naked to them!
Love furikake myself too. Discovered something similar from Mexico recently called tajine(“ta-heen”)..mix of spices, salt and lime. Good on everything!
Just thought this up…Britney Spears=furikake personified!
Furikake helped me survive dorm life. When I hated the main entree, I ate furikake over rice.
I’m with Alicia – the “no thank you bite” is what I’ve always used. Plus as my kids get older, they’re naturally more accepting of “strange” foods. About 5 years ago we went out for sushi for my birthday, and I guilt-tripped the youngest, then 7, to try raw fish, saying it would be a wonderful birthday present for me. (She ate it that once, but, alas, still won’t eat sushi.)
And furikake? It’s one of my favorite condiments, but I never thought of furry-kokky! Maybe because I always had the Japanese pronunciation in my head. But now that you’ve corrupted me…”I’ll kick you in the furikake!”
Hillarious! As a mother of two I have perfected the art of guilt! I can guilt ’em into anything. “Ok so don’t eat the veggies, just cuz I had to sell my Manolas to buy the stupid out of season asparagus then burned my self three times trying to steam them to perfection and then threw my back out picking them off the floor when I dropped them as I burned myself that last time, doesn’t mean you have to eat them. I just thought you might like to try something new. But it’s ok…(always good form to end witha little sob!)”
And here’s my way to use FURIKAKE –
Well FURIKAKE me dead!
As the Grandma, I have the pleasure of letting my grandkids eat WHATEVER they want–LOL!! You made my day, Jaden–thanks!
Haha! That’s brilliant! For me everything was more like, mommy worked her butt off working 10 hours a day in a sewing factory and you complain about not eating vegetables?
BTW it’s actually pronounced Foo-ree-kah-keh (????) ;D
Very funny, I am guilty of some of these techniques. One method I have used is to teach my daughter to never refuse without trying first and to never make a big deal out of not trying something. In other words, don’t be mean to someone about their cooking, especially when visiting relatives or other people. My mother always taught us to not whine at the table about what you don’t like. BTW, we also love Togarashi on our miso soup.
I love furukake! I’ve been sprinkling it on my rice with dinner for years!
BTW, my favorite is wasabi flavored! Oooh.
Waaasaabup? Furukake! 🙂
Ohmigosh, this is so hilarious! I loved the “tactics” you listed. 😉 Thanks for sharing!
This whole post is cracking me up! But seriously, veyr innovative. This is my first time here! Love your pictures…they are so droolworthy!
P.S. If you get the premade furikake in the glass jar (like the one pictured), when it’s empty you can pull off the metal top and get a nice little glass–they’re very sturdy and a great size for juice or something less wholesome. And you’ll feel quite proud of yourself for being very slightly thrifty and environmentally conscious, so that’s good.
Steal their food so that they think it’s something desirable. Along the same lines, don’t give them any and keep it all for yourself until they really think it’s something desirable. I can’t remember if this is a dog training or kid-duping technique… =D
ahhh – we love furikake and make jokes that our little Ruby should have been born to an Asian family – she’s totally a nori freak!
it’s like crackers to her…her sister took a package to kindergarten for snacks once (alternative snacks were also sent, mother knew that there would be children who wouldn’t be convinced to eat the green, cracker-like substance) and they were SO excited to share their favorite snack and oh so surprised to find out that none of the other children even knew what it was and only about 2 were willing to try it (probably Ruby shouting to everyone *IT’S SEAWEED!!* didn’t help…
must admit, when i learned that bonito was smoked, dried, shaved MACKERAL – i nearly lost my appreciation for furikake with bonito…but that’s the flavor i LIKE so we’re over it 😉
Your posts are so humorous I love reading them in the mornings:) great start to a day, right?:D
So true
the only reason I love healthy food now, is because I was raised on it!
Ah yes…I admit I’m a fan of the “Christmas Story” method. Let your kid squeal like a piggy, smash his face in the taters and it’s all gobbledy good!
You have acheivd what I call Bloggy Perfection on this one!
I wasn’t really tricked into eating vegetables too much, but I will always remember my mother tricking me into eating alligator tail.
“Florida Chicken Nuggets” she called them.
Welp, my kids bounced from their nest several years ago, and they all love veggies. It wasn’t always so. They rigidly adhered to their basic food groups of hamburgers, pizza, hot dogs and fried chicken for many, many years. I worried. I obsessed. I begged and threatened. Once, after my son refused to eat his mashed potatoes, I ordered him to eat “just 3 bites”. He did. Then, he turned huge 6 year old, tear filled eyes to me and threw up in my lap. Yetch. Thing is. They all survived. They are all uber healthy. They eat.. EVERYTHING! I worried for nothing. I feel kinda silly for stressing over this issue for so many years. One more example of how far I would go.
In Louisiana, we believe you MUST eat black-eyed peas on New Years Day. Don’t even ask what happens if you don’t. *shudder* Of course my kids thought b-e peas were revolting. So, every year I mashed said peas and added them to their peanut butter. Mizz Seinfeld would be so proud.
Via our friends at Serious Eats, this story continues to evolve:
Jerry Seinfeld served cookbook suit
Funniest thing I’ve read all day!
I have made the carrot spinach brownies from Deceptively Delicious and served them to adults during a nutrition program. They went over well and are pretty darn tasty.
We have a no thank you bite. Take one bite, chew, and swallow. You honestly don’t like it, fine, don’t eat it. We’ve been doing it for a long time, and the munchkin is six and willing to try anything now.
He still hates peas though. No matter how many times or ways he’s tried them. I don’t get it – something in them must just not agree with his tastebuds.
i loved it! i had very little success getting my young-un’s to eat veggies…now one is a vegetarian, and the other (and hubby) are such picky eaters, that i am going to tell them, “furikake all y’all, find your own damn food!”
no kid yet, but guess what? my seaweed hating hubs eat furikake and doesn’t mind the seaweed in it. 😀 I love to sprinkle them on roasted potatoes and simple steamed rice.
I know it is very difficult to make kids eat the veggies.
My daughter dislkes most of them with a passion.
The only way she eats them is when i make soup. Then she eats the full bowl. But give her them seperate she will not eat them.
Before i used to get angry with her for not eating her veg, but after a while i gave up.
jessica sienfeld is a little bit scary. and i’m sure her kids are going to grow up with the most bizarre eating habits ever. your methods, on the other hand, are hilarious! i used to hide food in my napkin when i was little, and no one ever caught me except my grandmother, and of course she kept my secret. 🙂
How about just instilling the fear of their own father in them? At least that’s how my mom made us eat our veggies… “You don’t want to make your dad mad do you?”
On the other side of the coin, I used to try and hide my string beans under a layer of rice on my plate. But that never really worked either since my mom hated wasting rice.
I am so glad to find other people who think Ms. Sienfeld is a nutcase! Why on earth would you lie and decieve your children–knowing that eventually they find out that you did and then it causes even more of a trust-hatred-I don’t like you anymore!-issue? If you don’t help them at least try new things, they won’t ever learn to appreciate the tastes of different things. I’m of the “you need to take 3 bites of everything on your plate–if you don’t like it, don’t finish it. But you have to try it”. After all, kids need to be exposed to foods almost 6 times before they’ll “like” it! My niece loves her veggies–in fact, last night she traded her bowl of ice cream for a bowl of apples slices for desert. Smart girl! If you give kids healthy foods early in life and not as much sugary soda and sweets, they will like fruits and veggies more. I hope that Ms Seinfeld has to pay megabucks to the author that she plagarized from–just because her hubby is famous doesn’t mean she gets to make money off of someone else’s work.
I’m laughing so much!! i’ll keep this in mind when I have kids 🙂
Jaden, you are funnier than both Seinfeld and that plagiarizing wife of his! When my son was little and easily manipulated I renamed beef-barley soup “Magic Muscle Soup” and he couldn’t get enough of it. Perception is everything. Furikake is my new favorite word and obviously very powerful. I just used it in the following sentence when speaking to my Yorkie who was chewing inappropriately: “You are in deep furikake now, mister!” He ceased chewing immediately.
Do you know they give me funny looks in my asian store because I take pictures of the condiments and ingredients you post here and ask for the exact same thing;). I have to take the picture of the Furikake this weekend. In Jersey, the owner’s son ( he was a cutie) would come to my rescue explaining me things because I could never find what I want written in English. In this stupid “fee-nicks” no such thing.
I think I am just going with the Jedi-talk strategy with Vikram if he ever fusses. I am not a very good negotiator ;).
Oh and that “Broccolini Souffle” thing sitting in your recipe box is getting me wee bit curious :).
“Hey, kids! The dog’s been licking the cat again,
because he left a big Furikake in the living room!”
Isn’t Mrs Seinfeld being sued by another author who claims she plagiarized from her book? So not only is she proposing we lie to our kids (hmm, currently I have no kids of my own, but for argument’s sake..) but she’s also apparently not coming up with her own original fodder. I need to think of good ways to use Furikake in a sentence. The word clearly has potential!
No luck here. When my son was young he’d eat any veggie I put on his plate. Now it’s threatening to take away the Xbox, and send him off to foster care and let him figure out how spoiled he is. He’s got 6 veggies he’s willing to eat, broccoli, green beans, gailan, summer squash, carrots, and spinach in quiche! I don’t count corn as a veggie. That stuff just doesn’t digest well. The spinach quiche is when he realizes Mom’s about to loose it with his lack of veggie intake. I swore to him the next time I make a quiche there will be nothing in it but the spinach no bacon!
i am now laughing so hard, i almost feel off the chair. FURIKAKE!!!! Now, that’s one word that is going to be of good use in my household ( and i’ll never tell them what it means, hahaha!)i have no problems with feeding my children veggies, so, sorry steamy…got no tips for you. but, thanks for making me smile (or laugh) today!
Oh my word! This was just too funny! I never had a problem with vegs as a kid, but just didn’t ever eat all of my food. My parents didn’t care too much, but my grandma would guilt me with the “There are starving children in Africa/China/Mongolia” bit. The furikake fries look yummy! I’m going to have to try this.
my Dad always made us eat veggies… hated him for it too. when there was one we wouldn’t eat, he’d go “hold up your eggplant!!! hold it up hold it up… -aaaAAAAND POP IT INTO YOUR MOUTH!”
my mom put veggies or other foods that we didn’t eat then into a spoonfull of rice and shape them into little balls (kinda like japanese “onigiri” rice balls)…
but i learned on my own (and thank God i did) that if you’re hungry enough, you’ll eat and LIKE any food laid out before you.
came home one day starving from school and didn’t realize that i had downed 2 platefuls of the very dreaded “Pinakbet” (filipino all-veggie dish, which includes bitter-melon, an acquired taste) and that it tasted damn good…
and if you nip them at the right age and the kids are smart enough (or you bully them into thinking it, hehe), it’ll be an epiphany…
“if this tasted good, who knows what other treats may taste like?”
p.s did you know they have “beef and eggs” furikake – the picture shows you can throw it on pizza…
Your tactics are great, how many of them actually work?
And your french fries look fantastic? I can’t believe they are from the freezer; they look like the work of a handy dandy mandolin.
No starving children in Africa threats? 😮
Seriously though, funny post and interesting pairing with the fries
I’m laughing so hard I almost forgot to tell you how great those fries look!! Once again, a great post, Jaden.
Hilarious post, Jaden!
Jaden, Seriously, how can you even think in these lines? Guess we have a lot of things to learn from you to be a successful parent (if ever there is one).
In our house I can use Political Suicide: “Whaddaya mean you don’t wanna eat that asparagus? Tell it to the Mayor!”
Of course, with the teenage boys there’s the Disneyfication Damnation: “You’re gonna sit there and watch Hannah Montana until those brussel sprouts are gone, mister.”
Finally, I think you forgot these:
sounds delicious!
Your methods are funny!! I agree that we shouldn’t dumb-down vegetables or recipes to trick kids…if you see children in other countries they are eating tons of vegetables because that’s all they have. I think if you withhold enough sweets, etc they will eat them! (Of course, I’m not a mother yet, so I’ll get back to you when I am ahha)
Damn! I wish I had kids. I’d totally go for the neuro-linguistic programming.
You crack me up! These certainly sound like they would get the attention of my son – any idea for substitues for the furikake seasoning? I am not sure if I will get that here. But I love the name so much that I think I will keep it even if I do not use the seasoning!
Furry cake, Mrs Steamy?! Whatever will you think of next? (It reminded me of the chunk of ma-in-law cake we didn’t eat for a few months; opened the box and it was all furry green, heh.)
Have no kids. Used to try to trick my dog into swallowing a pill by wrapping it in buttered bread. She’d chew and chew and finally spit out the furikake-damned pill. Then she’d give me an expression that said, “I want my next piece of buttered bread. Throw in some meaty bones while you’re at it.”
Kids, dogs — what’s the diff?
hhehhee. I love this seasoning on rice too! I have to try it on other things.
OH! and I absolutely enjoy reading the numerous ways of “persuading” children to eat veges! *smiles*
Oh my word…for some reason i looked back at my comment and realised that I had put another link in instead of mine. Arggghh…apologies to grab your fork, in case you think I’m trying to pass you off as me. I’m just a sillly twit!
Gee I wish I had thought of doing the furikake thing when my kids were little. As adults now they laugh about the years I made them vegetarians, gave the tv away and all manner of other things I did trying to teach them how to eat and live well. It worked, even if it was slightly oddball!
My best technique though to get them to eat good, was to do a deal. Whenever we went to a local buffet restaurant for a meal they were allowed one dessert plate for each meat or veg plate they ate. This came with an added bonus. As the dessert plate was limited to one dessert portion only, for them to eat the dessert cart clean they had to eat lots of meat and veg. This then took lots of time and planning and so I was able to spend a good few hours with my friends enjoying the night rather than hassling with kids that won’t eat and are bored.
Their record was about 10 courses one night. Whilst the desserts may have had more fat and calories than II cared to count, the number of healthy foods that went in their mouths that night certainly made up for it.
This is hilarious. I can’t stop laughing at the methods used to dupe the kids into eating their greens.