For those that feed meat

My twinkies are 9 months old, and only one of them has 2 bottom teeth. If I cut up meat reeeeeeeeeeally tiny they end up spitting it out/ gagging on it since they can't chew it. So now I grind it up in a coffee grinder, but it seems pretty dry.
Does anyone else grind it up? If so, do you mix it with anythign (a fruit or veggie) so it's not as dry? Am I missing another way to do the meat thing?
thanks!!!
Kathleen

 

I just cut up the meat into bite sized pieces and let them gum it. My DD still only has her lower 2 teeth and she does better with it than her brother who has 6! I give them chicken and fish more frequently than steak or pork just because it's easier to "chew" but they manage fairly well. My older DD turned her nose up at anything ground and to this day still does so I haven't bothered to try with these guys. They will eat ground meats too though.

 

We just give our son very small pieces of chicken and turkey (haven't tride any other meat yet except what comes in his baby food). He also only has two bottom teeth, but he chews it really well with his gums.

 

Hi Kathleen!
We just had our 9 mo. appt. yesterday and our pedi said if we had any trouble with meats like that, just to skip it and try again. He said that they usually don't like them and to try chicken or turkey loaf from the deli because that would be easier because it's ground up and then mashed back together. I know, sounds gross. He said it's not a huge deal to not get that in them because they are getting protein and iron from other sources. Anyway, I know this doesn't answer your question specifically, I just thought I would share! Good luck, we'll be heading down this road now too!!

 

I just cut it into small pieces and they gummed it. They don't need teeth to chew it, they just use their back gums to gnaw on it. They won't get those back teeth until they are 2.

What worked best for my girls at first was ground turkey/beef. Meatballs were (and still are) a huge hit.

 

I did the same thing for my older DD, I would mix a little breastmilk/formula in with it, not al lot - just enough so it isn't too dry.

 

I've done grinding it up and putting it in applesauce. They seem to like it that way. I have one with only two teeth on the bottom and he is getting good at chewing hamburger and hotdogs without grinding them up. You could try them??

 

I boil a chicken breast and add peas, corn, and green beens to the water. Then I pour it into a blender and grind it to stage 2 or 3 consistency. They love it. I also give them tiny plain pieces of chicken and S eats it better than N. Sometimes N keeps it all in his mouth and does not swallow and then gags. I give him water and he washes it down.

Wanted to add that at their 9 month, their ped said not to worry to much if they wont eat meat since they are getting what they need through their formula.

 

When we started meat, we had a variety of meat sliced very thin - paper thin - at the deli. We cut that into pieces and they ate it just fine as a finger food. We gradually served it in thicker and chunkier pieces. Mini meatballs work well for us too!

 

this is a HUGE help from all of you! thanks so much. I was panicing that they needed protein (even though they also get it from beans, yogurt, and cheese, etc.). I will definitely try meatballs, adding applesauce to the ground up meat, and I love the boiled chicken with veggies too. YEA for TS!
Kathleen

 

I go to the deli section and get ham, turkey or chicken shaved then it I cut it up in tiny slivers. (Plus the bonus here is you can buy as much or as little as you want. Also, I slow cook a chunk of meat in the slow cooker with only water to cover the meat then I take the meat and water and put it in the food processer. I freeze them in ice cube trays then put them in a frezer bags. I defrost it in the fridge and then I make little meat blobs on their tray.