B Breaking an Egg

Okay, I admit, I’ve been holding out on you.

I’ve had this video for 6 months now. It was taken in October 2012 when B and M were 22 months old. This was the second time Brooke and Mackenzie made scrambled eggs. Since then, they’ve cracked and scrambled at least 100 eggs each and their skills are at a whole new level. I’m planning on posting a more recent video later on, so you can see the difference. 

On their 2nd birthday this past December, B, M and I shot a series of videos, highlighting 30+ activities you can do at home with your toddler. One of them is – you guessed it – making eggs! In the DVD, you will get a detailed view of the materials you need, where to buy everywhere, how to present an activity to your child and special considerations for each activity. For example, in the video about making eggs, I teach you how to teach your toddler to behave around an electric skillet, which is critical to doing this activity successfully! The DVD is still in production, but will be available shortly. So stay tuned!

Every Monday, I cook a traditional Taiwanese dish, called 魯肉飯. It’s like spaghetti bolognese, except we use soy sauce instead of tomato sauce, shallots instead of onion and we eat it over rice instead of spaghetti. We also put hard-boiled eggs in it. Every Monday afternoon, you’ll find B and M in the kitchen helping me do the following:

After cutting off the ends of the shallot, I hand them over to M, who loves to peel pretty much anything

After she finishes peeling them, she puts them in the food processor for dicing later on

She picks up the cutting board with all the shallot skin…

and throws them in the dirty dish basket (this is where they put all their dirty dishes and food-related trash)

Later on in the afternoon, B and M help me peel the hard-boiled eggs that go into this dish

M helps me put cinnamon sticks and other spices into the pot

Time to eat dinner! It’s no accident – their favorite foods are the ones they help cook!

魯肉飯 Recipe

6 shallots – peeled and finely diced

4 shitake mushrooms – soaked and diced, separate mushroom and the mushroom water

1.5 pounds ground pork

6 hard-boiled eggs

oil for sauteeing

4 tbsp soy sauce, 3 tbsp rice wine, 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 tsp five spice powder, 3 star anise, handful of rock sugar

Add 2 tbsp oil in wok. Add shallots and saute for 20 minutes on low heat, making sure it doesn’t brown. Remove from wok. Put mushrooms in wok with 3 tbsp of oil, sautee, then add 1 tsp salt and sautee some more. Add shallots and ground pork. Add soy sauce, rice wine and sautee till most of the pork is brown. Add 5 cups water. Add mushroom water. The water should cover the meat, if it doesn’t, add enough water till it does. Let boil. Add cinnamon, five spice powder and star anise. Turn to low heat. Cook for 40 minutes. Add hard boiled eggs and handful of rock sugar. Cook for another 30 minutes. Serve hot over rice.

There’s usually something I’m cooking that day the children can help with. Or I will find items they can cut or peel and cook with those. Preparing food gives the child opportunities for concentration, developing fine motor control and you can see in those eager eyes just how much they want to participate in family life.

They get so much joy when they get to explore something new and REAL, like the whole corn – husk and all!

This requires maximum effort! Unlike adults, young children love to feel the full capacity of their bodies

Celery can be seriously hard to cut, but when you arm children with the right gear, it’s no problem

Zucchinis cut easily and can be a great place for your toddler to start practicing using a knife

M helps peel a baked purple sweet potato for us at the family table – absolutely delicious!A child can start using a knife as soon as they have the motor skills to do so, but don’t let your apprehension get in the way of letting him/her try. It’s not so different from teaching them to use a pair of scissors (watch the video here). The right presentation goes a long way. Make sure YOU are always holding the handle with both hands when presenting this to the child, because they will do it the way you do it.

The right material is key for your toddler, make sure you consider the size, weight and feel of each item before purchasing it. Here’s where I bought mine:

Knife: Joie makes the best cutter/knife I’ve found for toddlers. The size of the handle is perfect for their little hands. As long as they are holding the handle and cutting with both hands, it’s difficult for them to cut themselves but of course, an adult should be supervising at all times. You can buy it at Bed Bath and Beyond or here: