Akmal Anuar, chef and proprietor, White Rice Consultancy
Three daughters, aged four, six and 11
“My 11-year-old’s preferences are good quality steaks, truffle and caviar”
What are your kids’ eating preferences?
Each of my girls have their preferences and style of eating. The eldest dines out with us at most of the restaurants we visit. Her preferences are always good quality steaks, truffle and caviar. The second one likes pretty much everything, her favourite is normally vegetables but she’s not a vegetarian. The youngest is still small and she eats whatever we cook.
Are they happy to try new things?
To be honest they eat what I eat. If I’m feeling a little happy and fancy some good ingredients, I’ll buy some fresh truffle and we get them to eat beef tartare with it. They love sushi and Japanese food, so raw fish and meat is easy for them. Thinking of it, I’ve yet to let them try oysters…!
Last interesting dish they tried?
Cured raw goose from Italtouch, and they absolutely loved it!
Which foods are a big No-NO?
The eldest will absolutely not eat mushrooms and blackberries. The youngest will not eat bland soup or anything she has to chew for a long time.
What’s your favourite family meal?
Definitely barbecue. I take this ritual seriously. We have to get the best charcoal and I grill everything from brie cheese and artichokes to T-bone steaks and good fish. The kids love their barbecue bonding with us. It’s hectic but lots of fun.
Balveer Balkissoon, executive chef, Fouquet at Louvre Abu Dhabi
One son, aged four
“Yoghurt has been a difficult ingredient”
How often do you manage to eat together as a family?
Once a week on my day off.
Is your son a fussy eater?
No, he is not a fussy eater but yoghurt has been a difficult ingredient for him.
Does your son get involved with cooking at home?
Very often he is with us in the kitchen helping us make pizza by adding toppings, mixing omelettes for breakfast, or mashing ripe banana for cake.
How do you encourage him to be open to new flavours?
We encourage him to try the new dishes by giving him and explanation of how healthy and tasty the food is. I think it is key to explain and give as much information about the dish and products as possible, in the form of a story, to encourage kids to try new things.
How about you – what are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite foods?
For my spouse, anchovies are the least favourite ingredient.
What’s your favourite family meal to share together?
Our favourite family meal is grilled prawns and salad, or stir-fried noodles with chicken and prawns.
Benjamin Wan, executive chef, COYA Middle East
One son, aged three years and eight months
“We call him Tofuboy, for his love of it”
How do you make healthy foods fun?
The biggest challenge is him giving the first bite, so we try to be clever, vegetables we chop down and bind with chicken or fish. We hide it in dumplings. We use an air fryer for crispy-crunchy food. We use a bubble waffle machine to toast his bread just to make it more fun.
How easy do you find it to get your son to try new things?
Haha! Not easy at all. Unfortunately he has to be tempted with a side of ketchup, not ideal…
Is your son a fussy eater?
He is a fussy eater, he was never before. He tried everything, now his palate is developing and he knows what he likes he immediately turns his head to anything new. Greens, that’s a difficult one. We have to balance it. One spoon of greens gets you one spoon of a crispy item.
How about you – what are your least favourite foods?
Tofu is something I’m not a fan of. The wife eats anything and luckily my son shares her taste in some healthy ingredients. Tofu being one of them. We call him Tofuboy for his love of it.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Hotpot. We drop in whatever ingredients – noodles, vegetables, fish balls, sliced beef and lamb – we choose into a simmering stock. We make our own dipping sauces (chopped garlic, sesame, soy, coriander etc) to our taste. And at the end we also have an intense soup to wash it all down with.
Baked chicken breast with Cheddar cheese and potato gnocchi
By Balveer Balkissoon
Forthe chicken
• 4 skinless chicken breasts
• Salt & pepper
• 100g flour
• 3 eggs
• 200g Panko breadcrumbs
• 200g shredded cheddar cheese
• 20g chopped parsley
• 10g chopped thyme
Cooking the chicken
1 Pre-heat oven to 180°C and spray a baking tray with non-stick cooking spray.
2 Place chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound until even.
3 Sprinkle both sides with salt, pepper, thyme.
4 Mix the chopped parsley with the panko.
5 Dip each chicken breast in the flour, then the beaten eggs and then the breadcrumbs.
6 Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and add the cheese on top.
7 Return to the oven for five minutes until cheese is melted.
For the tomato sauce
• 40g extra virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves large of garlic chopped
• 1 teaspoons oregano
• 20g roughly chopped basil leaves
• 2 pinches of espelette pepper
• 30g of chopped onion
• 100g tomatoes purée
• 100g of fresh cherry tomatoes
Cooking the tomato sauce
1 In a large saucepan add olive oil, garlic, espelette pepper flakes ,onion sautéed for few seconds and add the tomato puree,oregano and salt. let simmer over medium heat until thickened then add the cherry tomatoes and basil leaves. Keep aside.
For the gnocchi
• 300g baked potatoes
• 130g flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
Making gnocchi
1 Bake the potatoes in the oven at 180°C for 30 minutes and let cool, remove the skin, then pass through a potato ricer.
2 Mix the flour and salt and place on a flat surface, make a well in the middle and add the potatoes and egg. Mix with your fingers to form a soft dough, it should not stick to your fingers.
3 On a lightly floured surface, cut small amounts of dough to form ropes and cut
into 2cm pieces. Sprinkle with a little bit of flour and toss, so they do not stick together.
Cooking gnocchi
1 In a large pot of salted boiling water cook the gnocchi, gnocchi are ready when they float to the top. Drain and add to the cooked tomato sauce. Cook for 30 seconds, gently tossing. Serve with the baked cheesy chicken.
Chicken & VEg gyoza
By Benjamin Wan
Ingredients
• 500g minced chicken
• 50g finely chopped carrot
• 100g shredded white cabbage
• 20g finely chopped spring onion
• 10g finely grated garlic
• 10g finely grated ginger
• 35g light soy sauce
• 20g sesame oil
• 10g egg white
• 1 packet gyoza wrappers
• Handful baby spinach
• Pinch roasted sesame seeds
• To taste light soy
• To taste sesame oil
Instructions
1 Combine together the first group of ingredients (minced chicken down to egg white).
2 Wrap the filling in the gyoza wrappers to your desired shape.
3 Lightly pan fry one side until golden then gently add a cup of water to the pan.
4 Cover with a lid to steam/poach the dumplings for 3-4mins.
5 Remove the lid and add the baby spinach to lightly wilt.
6 Sprinkle over the sesame seeds and drizzle over the light soy and sesame oil.
Brian Voelzing, group executive chef, Lincoln Hospitality (La Serre, The Loft, Distillery, Taikun)
One daughter, aged nine months
“We let her try a bit of caviar – she wasn’t too sure about it”
What’s your daughter’s relationship with food like?
My daughter Harper absolutely loves food. Anything we feed her she is happy to eat, but then again, she’s only nine months old so I’m sure that’ll change as she gets older. My wife and I love trying new foods, so we hope she’s an adventurous eater too.
last interesting dish SHE tried?
We let our daughter try a tiny bit of caviar at a restaurant we visited not long ago. She wasn’t too sure about it, but certainly loved the gelato for dessert.
How do you introduce new flavours?
Our daughter is still a baby so we introduce new foods by mixing them with foods we know she loves. Once she’s tried it we slowly remove the food she is familiar with until she is eating the new flavours by themselves.
How about you – what are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite fOODS?
I am not a picky eater at all. My wife isn’t either, but doesn’t like mustard, wasabi or horseradish. We travel a lot to try new ingredients and cuisines – another thing we hope our daughter will enjoy as she grows.
What’s your favourite family meal?
We enjoy all family meals together. They are usually the most peaceful time of day provided Harper isn’t blowing raspberries while eating – that’s when things get messy. If I had to pick one, I’d say our favourite is having a lazy weekend barbecue – nothing beats an afternoon of grazing, grilling up some nice steaks over a few drinks while watching Harper play.
Cesar Bartolini, chef de cuisine, Bread Street Kitchen & Bar
One daughter aged seven, one son aged 16 months
“They are hard customers for me”
What are your kids’ eating preference?
The children are great eaters they love trying new dishes. The only difficulty
is with them waiting for us to cook… When they’re hungry, they are hard customers for me.
Will they happily try new foods?
Cruz is fine, Sofia on the other hand is now asking questions. What is it? What does it have in? Is it spicy?
The list goes on…
Last interesting things they tried?
Cruz tried a Lemon the other day his facial expression said it all. Sofia tried tuna the other week, which she refused to eat (first time in a long time) she said it was too fishy.
What will they absolutely not eat?
For Sofia it’s eggs and some different kinds of fish (I think she got this from her mother) and Cruz doesn’t like tuna, but we keep trying with him.
What are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite foods?
My wife doesn’t like some types of fish and egg dishes. My least favourite things are sweet-savoury dishes
What’s your favourite family meal?
Mexican or a home-cooked roast dinner, which is one of our signature dishes at Bread Street on a Saturday.
“Nael makes a blinding butter chicken”
Colin Clague, executive chef, RÜYA Restaurants
Two sons, aged 12 and 18
How happy are your sons to try new foods?
Obviously, they have their favourites, but they are both prepared to try new things, Nael prefers Indian and Asian food while Euan prefers European.
Were they fussy eaters growing up?
Nael the youngest is a bit more reserved in trying new things, but that will come with age, Euan eats me out of house and home – growing lad.
How often do your kids cook with you, or your spouse, at home?
Euan is off to University this year, so I have been showing him some basic pasta, steak dishes, and so on. Nael makes a blinding butter chicken and other Indian dishes
Last interesting thing they tried?
We were in 3 Fils last week for [my wife]Farah’s birthday and the boys both tried wagyu, truffle and tuna chu toro
How do you encourage healthy eating?
We cook at home all week, only allowing one cheat meal or fast food a week. We have lots of Indian dishes obviously when Farah cooks. I wish they would eat more vegetables though.
Are there any foods they absolutely won’t eat?
Not really, especially the eldest. As I say, the youngest has his favourites that he keeps going back to. I made a fantastic Mexican tortilla soup with chicken and homemade guacamole the other week – that didn’t go down too well with the kids. Not big soup fans.
How about you – what are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite ingredients or dishes?
Farah isn’t vegetarian but she really doesn’t eat a lot of red meat etcetera. Myself I can’t abide – and avoid – coffee.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Some staples from Farah’s side like biriyani and butter chicken. I tend to do more Asian stir-fries, roast chicken, pasta and so on.
I also do a mean barbecue when it’s a bit cooler.
Chicken curry
BY Colin Clague’s son Nael
For the chicken
• 300g chicken breast skinless & boneless
• 15g ginger and garlic paste
• 15g chilli powder
• Salt to taste
• Grapeseed oil
For the gravy
• 500g roughly chopped tomatoes
• 100g goughly cut onions
• 15g garlic purée
• 50g crushed cashew nuts
• 5g dried fenugreek leaves
• 2g garam masala
• 55g caster sugar
• 25g Kashmiri chilli powder
• 75g unsalted butter butter
• 45g double cream
• 25g malt vinegar
• Maldon sea salt to taste
Instructions
1 Marinate the chicken with ginger and garlic paste, red chilli powder and salt and marinate for 30 minutes.
2 In a pan heat some oil then fry the marinated chicken until nicely coloured, then remove the chicken and set to one side.
3 In the same pan add onion, oil, a spoonful of butter and once the onions are cooked (without colour) add the chopped tomatoes and cashew nuts.
4 Add some water and garlic paste, salt, malt vinegar, sugar, garam masala powder and chilli powder. Evenly mix and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
5 Blend the mixture into fine purée.
6 Strain it back into the same pan.
7 Add butter, cream, chicken and fenugreek leaves and let it simmer for five minutes.
8 Garnish with cream and fenugreek leaves.
Pasta Bolognese
By Brian Voelzing
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 120g chopped onion
• 60g celery, chopped
• 60g carrot, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 500g lean ground beef
• 500g tinned tomatoes
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 200ml beef stock
• 200g spaghetti
• 100g baby pasta (or cut up spaghetti)
• 50g Parmesan
• Fresh basil, to garnish
Instructions
1 In a large pan on medium heat add olive oil and then onion, celery, carrot and garlic.
2 Cook the vegetables until tender.
3 Add the ground beef and cook for four to five minutes until the meat is brown.
4 Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, oregano and beef stock to the mix and stir with a wooden spoon.
5 Bring the mix to simmer and cover with a lid and place on low heat.
6 Simmer for 1.5 hours or until tender.
7 Boil the pasta (spaghetti for mum and dad, smaller pasta for the baby) in boiling salted water until cooked.
8 Once the pasta is cooked, strain and toss in olive oil.
9 Place the pasta on a plate and top with bolognese sauce, and if you’d like, add a sprinkle of Parmesan and a couple of basil leaves.
Christopher Kinsley, chef de cuisine, Flow
One son, aged five
“It takes a lot of bribery to get him to try new things”
What are your son’s favourite foods?
Spaghetti and meatballs, aubergine lasagne, steak and any kind of pizza of course. He is also fond of chips, sweetcorn, yoghurt and cereals.
How readily will he try new foods?
He’s set in his ways and quite stubborn when it comes to trying new food, so it takes a lot of bribery to get him to try new things.
How often do your kids cook with you, or your spouse, at home?
My son enjoys cooking with me and he loves to help; however, he is easily distracted and his attention span sometimes just lasts 5 minutes in the kitchen!
Last interresting thing he tried?
The other day, my son tried a spinach and ricotta cannoli and loved it. However, as soon as he noticed the spinach, he stopped liking it and doesn’t eat it anymore.
How do you encourage healthy eating?
I try to get creative by hiding vegetables and certain fruits by blending them into a smoothie. We even put certain vegetables in pasta sauces by chopping them up small.
What are your own least favourite foods?
I tend to stay away from Brussels sprouts and very spicy food. My wife is pregnant at the moment, so has gone off onions and garlic.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Can’t go wrong with an aged steak, even the little one loves it. We have with it homemade mushroom sauce, corn on the cob and steak-cut chips.
Derek Flynn, executive chef, McGettigan’s Group
One daughter aged nine, One son aged seven
“We love to share a beef stir-fry”
What are your kids’ relationships with food like?
We have two extremes, one child is fussy and the other will eat anything. Erin hates sauces, she’s not adventurous and inquisitive about food. They both love Asian food – even sushi (non-raw fish).
Do they cook with you at home?
Erin loves to help me to cook. She really likes the creativity and seeing ingredients transform into a dish – even though sometimes she won’t actually try it. Darragh has participated in school competitions and done very well – but he’s more interested in the eating part.
Last interesting thing they tried?
After football training last weekend, I ordered a fantastic Arabic breakfast that included a cheese and meat manakish – neither of the kids had tried that before. They loved the idea of it and dove straight in.
How do you encourage healthy eating?
We bought an air-fryer which has been a great investment, as there’s no need for extra fats to be added. My kids love homemade breaded chicken drumsticks – they think they’re getting a treat and I’m happy we’re not deep- or shallow-frying. My kids know the importance of eating their vegetables and they love greens in particular – we go through a huge amount of broccoli every week.
Favourite family meal to share?
We love a beef stir-fry with jasmine rice – it’s the most popular dish in the Flynn household at the moment, but that’s ever-changing with kids…
Beef Stir-Fry with Jasmine Rice
By Derek Flynn
Ingredients
• 2x 250g striploin steaks
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1 onion, sliced about 1cm thick
• 2 bell peppers de-seeded and cut into bite-sized pieces (use any colour you want)
• 2 spring onions
Marinade
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing grape beverage
or Japanese rice beverage (the other one)
½ tsp baking soda
3 tsp cornflour
Stir-fry Sauce
• 3 tbsp oyster sauce
• 3 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing grape beverage or Japanese rice beverage (again, not that one, the other one)
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1½ tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp white vinegar
Instructions
1 Slice the steaks diagonally to form wide strips that are no more than half a centimetre thick.
2 Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add the beef and mix well with your hands to make sure each piece of beef is coated. Set aside to marinate for ten minutes.
3 To make the stir-fry sauce, mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Stir to dissolve the sugar.
4 Cooking Technique: Use two large heavy base saucepans – I find that using one pan or wok does not create the lovely sear on the meat and the vegetable will overcook. However, if you reduce the ingredients, one pan is fine. This keeps the vegetables crisp, and avoids overcooking the beef.
5 Heat the vegetable oil in your two pans over high heat. In one pan add the beef and sear for around two minutes moving it as little as possible at the start to try and achieve a nice crust on the beef. In the second pan, add the garlic and then the onion and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
6 Add the peppers, tossing quickly for about one more minute. When the beef is almost ready add the vegetables from pan two to the beef, toss for another 30 seconds or until the beef is just cooked.
7 Add the stir-fry sauce and stir-fry for another ten seconds or until everything is well coated. Turn the heat off and toss through the spring onions.
8 Serve with a small bowl of freshly cooked jasmine rice and enjoy!
Lily Hoa Nguyen, founder and executive chef, Vietnamese Foodies
Two boys, aged six and four
“My eldest can actually cook a complete meal”
How often do you eat as a family?
Unless work or travel takes my husband or I out of the house, we eat together every morning.
How willing are the kids to try new foods?
I find it rather difficult, but luckily as we’re a mixed family (me being Vietnamese and my husband being Turkish) we have them try many of the foods across the two cuisines. Turkish cuisine features a lot of meat and Asian cuisine focuses on vegetables, noodles and rice so it balances it all out.
Do THE kids cook with you at home?
A lot, especially when I make desserts… Eclairs, muffins and cookies are favourites because they can help out. My eldest, Berk takes after me in that he can actually cook a complete meal independently – with a little help of course, and supervision.
Last interesting thing they tried?
When we were in Turkey the last time, we made lamb skewers by ourselves and they really liked the whole experience. They wanted to try to try it the traditional way, the skewer in the Turkish yufka bread and eat it by the campfire, so we did!
Favourite family meal?
Homemade pizza. The kids love it, my husband loves it and I love both making and eating it. I make the dough, prepare the toppings and everyone has fun making their own pizza. We’ll have many kinds of toppings such as only corn, cheese, pepperoni, mushroom and olives. It allows the kids to be creative with food and sometimes try new things.
Omar Basiony, head of culinary, London Dairy Café
One son, aged three
“He’s a little raspberry monster!”
How do you encourage new flavours and healthy eating?
Watch your own eating habits. If you’re binge-eating potato chips, it’s kind of hard to take the high road with their diet. Push them to at least try new things, make it a dialogue. If it’s about the texture maybe try cooking things differently or incorporating them into something else.
Is your son a fussy eater?
Yes and no – surprisingly raspberries were hard before and now he’s a little raspberry monster! It was the texture that he had trouble with.
Does your son get involved when you’re coooking at home?
Anytime anyone sets foot in a kitchen, Noah brings his stool and is fully involved in the process.
last interesting thing he tried?
House special salad (the one with seaweed and mushrooms) at Din Tai Fung. Now he demands a portion to himself every time we go.
Anything he absolutely won’t eat?
Salad is still a little hard, but we’re working on it.
How about you – what are your least favourite foods?
I can’t speak to us having a least favorite anything per se, I think what’s important to us is that whatever we eat is made from quality ingredients with care and love.
Favourite family meal?
I think we’re grateful for every meal we get to sit down and have together.
John Faver Fonseca Martinez, chef de cuisine, Le Royal MÉridien Abu Dhabi
One son aged eight, one daughter aged five
“I tell her she should eat more veggies if she wants to dance like Elsa from Frozen”
How do you encourage the kids to try new things?
I try not to force them to eat something that they really do not like. However, it’s some ingredient they don’t like and it is very rich in nutrients or vitamins I encourage them to eat it because is good for their body.
And how willing are they?
It’s very easy. Especially whenever I’ve tried to encourage them to eat more vegetables. I just prepared a lot of vegetables in different dishes, and they loved it.
What was the last interesting thing they tried?
Last week my wife took them to a Japanese restaurant for a birthday celebration, and they did really love Japanese food, especially the sushi. They were so happy, I wish I could have been there.
How do you promote healhty eating with your son and daughter?
My daughter loves dancing, so when she does not want to eat her vegetables, I tell her you should eat more veggies if you want to dance like Elsa from Frozen… So then she eats all the vegetables.
How about you – what are your own least favourite ingredients or dishes?
I do not like eating rabbit.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Paella and a good baked fish from the Mediterranean Sea.
PHO GA XE (Chicken Pho)
By Lily Hoa Nguyen
Ingredients
• 1kg boneless chicken drumsticks
• 3L of chicken broth (recipe below for broth)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1tbsp sugar
• 2tsp salt
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 500g dry rice noodles (rice sticks)
• A bunch of green onions and 200g bean sprouts for garnishing
• A bunch of Thai basil and sawtooth coriander on the side
Instructions
1 Boil three litres of broth and cook 1kg chicken for one hour on medium heat until just cooked but not too soft. Remove the meat slice into 3mm thin slices.
2 Roast the spices (cinnamon, coriander seeds) in a pan on high heat for two minutes, to bring out the flavor. Put them in a tea bag and place it in the broth. (You should do this step just 30 minutes before serving.) Last, season the broth with black pepper, salt and fish sauce.
3 Cook the rice noodles as instructed on the package. Once ready to serve, warm up the noodles then pour boiling broth over. Garnish with slices of meat, chopped green onions, bean sprouts and serve piping hot with Thai basil on the side.
To make the chicken broth
Ingredients
• 1kg chicken bones
• 1 large onion,
• A piece of ginger about 20gr
• 3 star anise
• 2 black cardamoms
• 1tsp salt
• 3L drinking water
Instructions
1 Peel and wash the onion, and chop roughly into big chunks.
2 Charbroil the ginger then peel off the burnt skin and crush it lightly.
3 Roast the star anise and cardamom. Roast the bones in the oven for one hour at 200°C.
4 In a medium pot add the roasted chicken bones, water, onion and ginger, star anise and cardamom, bring it to a boil then reduce heat to low.
5 Add salt then simmer for six hours. Allow to cool and then strain before use.
Raphael Duntoye, chef patron, LPM Restaurant & Bar
One son and one daughter, aged 13 and nine
“Oysters did not go down well”
How easy do you find it to get your kids to try new things?
Very easy, because it has always been a rule in our house to try new things. But my children have always been quite curious. When I create new dishes for the restaurant I like to get their opinion.
how do you promote healthy eating?
They eat very healthily and prefer a wholesome meal to fast food. I think it helps that their dad is a chef and I have always tried to educate them about food.
How do you introduce new flavours?
Cooking with them, explaining where ingredients come from, also being creative with dishes when cooking and in presentation.
Are your kids fusst eaters?
My children are not fussy eaters, I think it helps that my wife and I have always encouraged them to try everything once. My daughter never used to like cheese, but I introduced her to different varieties and ways of eating it in dishes. Now one of her favourite dishes is my potato gratin.
Last interesting thing they tried?
Oysters, that did not go well! I think it was the texture that they did not enjoy.
How about you – what are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite FOODS?
Liquorice, Ribena and rose water!
Favourite family meal?
Lasagne! It’s a recipe that as a family we have perfected over the years and put our own spin on.
Michael Cushman, head chef, Black Tap The Dubai Mall
One son, aged two
“Pasta is definitely a favourite”
How do you introduce new flavours?
My wife often sends me photos from the internet of kids’ food, and we mix it up. I think that we have it easy right now, as he will pretty much go with whatever we make as long as it is well seasoned and there aren’t any crunchy textures.
Does your son get involved when you’re cooking at home?
My wife likes to bake quite a lot and my son gets involved and “helps” her during the weekdays when I’m working.
Last interesting thing he tried?
We got him to try beetroot recently. I wasn’t sure if he would go for it or not, as I really disliked boiled beetroot as a child, but he loved it. I had roasted it off to purée for a rice dish and he ate it all.
Any big food no-nos?
My son absolutely dislikes white beans and couscous.
How about you – what are your least favourite foods?
I pretty much eat everything. I am a pretty adventurous eater and I love trying new things. I really am not a fan of overly fishy-smelling or tasting items, though. My wife hates cinnamon and everything with cinnamon in it.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
As a treat for the family, I do recreate some of the CrazyShake milkshakes from Black Tap occasionally. And pasta
is definitely a favourite.
LPM Restaurant & Bar’s Potato Gratin
By Raphael Duntoye
Ingredients
• 1kg potatoes
• 1L cooking cream
• 15g salt
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 1 clove of garlic
Instructions
1 Slice the potatoes thinly and salt to help release the starch.
2 Then squeeze the potatoes to remove all moisture.
3 Heat one litre of cooking cream with salt over a medium-low heat.
4 Stir in your potatoes and add grated nutmeg.
5 Rub a prepared baking dish with garlic.
6 Ladle in your potato mixture.
7 Cover with baking sheet and place in an oven pre-heated to 100°C, and leave to cook for one hour and 30 minutes.
8 Finish under the grill until the top reaches a deep golden colour. Enjoy!
Gilles Bosquet, group executive chef, La Cantine du Faubourg, Ninive and new openings
One daughter aged 12, one son aged nine
“My tactics are not working very well for veggies…”
How often do you manage to eat together as a family?
One a week, Saturday, for breakfast, lunch and dinner is our weekly family day.
What are the kids’ favourite foods?
Since we lived in Asia for quite a while (the kids were born there too), we love Asian food. Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese… They like dim sum, fried rice… However, with two French parents, the kids also love chicken breast with mushroom and cream sauce, with French fries.
Any tricky foods?
Vegetables, like all kids. They do love pasta, rice, dim sum, pizza… But when it comes to broccoli and spinach it’s a different story.
How do you encourage them to eat their veg?
I try gratin or adding sauces, sometimes trying to make purée or soups, but my tactics are not working well for veggies… However, they will always enjoy roasted chicken or grilled fish, and will even ask for grilled meat.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Our weekend dish is coquilletes (elbow pasta), which is easy to eat and – above all – easy to cook, therefore it’s very popular with children in France. Our kids like the upgraded version of coquillettes, which is Les coquillettes de mon enfance, the one from La Cantine du Faubourg – a fancy version of the traditional dish that kids eat and love.
Samuele Boudoino, executive chef, Rosewood Abu Dhabi
One son aged seven, one daughter aged five
“My daughter’s favourite food is sushi with extra mayo”
How often do your kids cook with you, or your spouse, at home?
During the school holidays, both my kids assist my wife in the kitchen; trying to compete with their father.
How easy do you find it to get your kidS to try new things?
As a chef, I always encourage my kids to try out new ingredients and cuisines, especially given we are living in a city as diverse as Abu Dhabi.
Last interesting thing they tried?
Salmon eggs benedict was the most recent interesting dish they tasted and they were curious, but it was received.
What are their favourite foods?
My daughter’s favourite food is sushi with extra mayo, and her least favourite food is greens. My son’s favourite food is pasta with tomato sauce, and his least favourite is any sort of bean-based soup.
How often do you USUALLY manage to eat as a family?
We eat as a family fairly often, especially on the weekends. During the cooler months; a family barbecue on the terrace is always ideal.
What’s your favourite meal to have together?
We love a good family barbecue.
Scott Price, chef patron, folly by Nick & Scott
Two daughters, aged three, and four months
“She’s recently developed a love of edamame beans”
What are your kids’ relationships with food like?
Georgia is almost three and a typical toddler. One meal she’ll be gobbling down olives and cornichons, gnawing a lamb chop to the bone or demolishing a salmon fillet and the next day she’ll tell us that she doesn’t like any of it and only has eyes for ‘Marmite toast” (which she would eat all day long, given the opportunity). My wife and I are both quite conscious of not labelling foods ‘good/bad’ or ‘healthy/unhealthy’. It’s a tricky topic but we really want the girls to grow up with a positive attitude towards food – to really love and enjoy it and have a balanced approach to eating. So while Georgia does definitely have a diet filled with plenty of fruit/veg/protein/healthy fats, she’s also a massive ice cream fan, loves Goldfish crackers (‘fishy snacks’) and popcorn, and we are fine with that.
Last interesting thing she tried?
She devoured a tempura prawn the other day, which surprised us and has recently developed a love of edamame beans. She’s also rather partial to eye-wateringly sour gummy sweets – not sure who could’ve introduced her to them…
How often does your daughther cook with you, or your spouse, at home?
Georgia cooks with one of us almost every day in some capacity – that might just mean sitting on the countertop and whisking the eggs for scrambled eggs, but at other times we’ll make pizza from scratch or she’ll be the one (messily) dredging chicken in flour, eggs and breadcrumbs. She made her first focaccia with her mum the other day following my recipe, and while it wasn’t the lightest bread in the world, the effort was there! I guess my wife and I both have food/cooking backgrounds, it’s second nature to us to get Georgia involved in the kitchen and make things from scratch.
Any absolutely food No-nos?
Georgia point blank refuses to eat rice. We’ve tried all varieties and dishes – delicious risotto, egg-fried rice, crispy arancini balls – and she’s just not game. My wife gave her some rice with her chicken the other day and she looked genuinely insulted.
Kale ‘pesto’ pasta with salmon and honey halloumi
By Scott Price
For the ‘pesto’
• 75ml olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 large bunch kale (stalks discarded)
• 50g Parmesan, finely grated
• 2 tbsp full fat cream cheese
• 3 tbsp whole milk
For the salmon:
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 100-120g skinless, boneless salmon fillets
• ¼ lemon, thinly sliced
• 2-3 sprigs thyme
For the halloumi
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 125g halloumi, diced into 2cm cubes
• 2 tbsp runny honey
• 300g dried penne or farfalle pasta
Instructions
1 Set a large frying pan with 3 tbsp olive oil over a medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, for two to three minutes, being careful not to let the garlic burn.
2 Add the kale and mix well to coat the leaves with the garlic oil. Season with salt (if you like), increase the heat to high and cook for one minute. Pour 3 tbsp water into the pan and continue to cook for two to three minutes until the kale leaves have wilted. Remove the pan from the heat, leave to cool slightly then tip into a blender.
3 Add the Parmesan, cream cheese, remaining olive oil and milk and blend well– you may need to add a little water or extra milk to achieve a smooth consistency.
3 To cook the salmon, preheat the oven to 200°C. Drizzle the olive oil over a large square of foil, add the lemon slices and thyme leaves and sit the salmon fillets on top. Wrap the foil into a parcel and cook for 15-18 minutes. Leave to cool slightly then flake into pieces.
4 While the salmon cooks, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook according to pack instructions. Drain well, reserving some of the cooking water.
5 For the halloumi, return the frying pan that you cooked the kale in to a medium-high heat. Add the halloumi and cook for two to three minutes, turning halfway, until golden all over. Drizzle over the honey, mix well, then remove from the heat.
6 Stir the kale pesto through the pasta along with a couple of tablespoons of pasta cooking water. Stir in the flaked salmon and halloumi, heat through, then divide among serving bowls or plates.
Steffen Assmann, executive chef, The Westin Abu Dhabi Golf Resort & Spa
One son, aged five
“My son had never tasted clams before – he loved it”
How often do you manage to eat together as a family?
We try to do it on a daily basis and get the whole family together on the same table – usually for dinner.
How often does your son cookwith you at home?
We cook on a daily basis at home with fresh products. Due to the current situation, my son has become more interested in what we do in the kitchen, so we started to show him simple tasks like cutting cucumber, tomato, and so on, while we prepare the dinner. Now he supports me with the Sunday roast, like the lamb shoulder we prepared today.
Last interesting thing he tried?
These days, I try to give a fine-dining seafood restaurant experience to my family. So I bought some clams from the local fish market. My son had never tasted clams before and after trying them he loved the taste, so now we have clams with pasta for lunch once a week.
How do you promote new foods?
Education. We are not really into forcing or pushing. His natural interest in exploring the world is what we catch and direct.
Any food No-Gos?
Pineapple and orange are not really his preferred fruits, so it is banned on our shopping list until further notice.
What’s your favourite family meal?
We love soups – all kind of soups, from an Irish stew with lamb and beans to a simple German potato soup to Russian bortsch with beetroot.
Sudhanshu Nirmal, executive chef, Marriott Al Forsan Abu Dhabi
Two daughters, aged five and three
“The tried lobster recently – they loved it and asked for more”
Do the kids get involved in the kitchen?
We love to cook together – the kids really enjoy the activity. Especially these days with the pandemic, it helps them get creative, learn and explore (and what chef would say no to some extra pairs of hands?). I also believe that the more the children play with ingredients in the kitchen, the more familiar they become and the fear of the unknown fades away.
How readily will they try new things?
They’ve got a chef’s curiosity, so half the job is done if it doesn’t look scary! Kids have very imaginative minds and if parents are patient and try to relate the ingredients in a story or a character then they get eager to try it. Classic example, Popeye and spinach!
Last interesting thing they tried?
Grilled lobster. I was surprised to see them trying it out (given the looks could be intimidating for kids). But they loved it and started asking for more!
How do you encourage healthy eating?
It is pivotal to manage the sugar intake of children, it is the biggest factor leading to child obesity and diabetes around the world. Eating together at least one meal a day as a family allows you to keep track of the eating habits of your
children and then see which area needs attention and work.
Alex Stumpf, Executive chef & co-owner, BB Social Dining
One son aged five, one daughter aged eight
“Last week she tried tempura eel with foie gras”
How often do you manage to eat together as a family?
We get twice together a week
Have your kids ever been fussy eaters?
I would not say they were fussy at all. From four years old onwards, Sara loved grilled octopus, BB’s Brussels sprouts, sushi and soft-shell crab. Adam on the other hand loves to eat anything pasta, from his favourite tomato sauce to Asian ramen noodles. Yet he does not like anything green-ish (herbs) in his food.
How open are they to trying new foods?
Sara is more open to trying anything we want her to try her. Last week it was tempura eel with foie gras. Adam sticks like more to his usual – he could happily eat pasta seven days a week.
How do youencouurage the kids to explore different flavours?
Eating out is part of us and we always try to mix things up so we can discover new flavours and encourage them to try them. That’s the least you can do. Kids are curious people so show them what’s out there so they get familiar with it. But the most important thing is that the food does need to taste nice, so the first experience is not
a disappointment.
Any food No-nos among the kids?
Chili is still a big no-no for both of them, but I’m sure that will change as we still always add in the dishes (little by little)…
How about you – what are your own, and your spouse’s least favourite foods?
Shab absolutely doesn’t like mango in any form. For me, reptiles like snakes, I don’t think I can ever do.
How often do your kids cook with you, or your spouse, at home?
Weekends are the time where we gather around in the kitchen, whether it’s making a a French toast in the morning or a lasagne in the evening.
What’s your favourite meal to have together as a family?
Homemade lasagne is still our to go to dish as a family.
Broccoli Soup & Wholemeal Penne with Broccoli sauce
BY Sudhanshu Nirmal
For the Soup
Ingredients
• 2 tbsp butter, divided
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 2 cups veg broth
• 2 cups broccoli florets, stalk separated and broccoli cut in to small pieces
• 1 cup broccoli stalk, peeled and sliced thinly
• ½ cup regular potato, peeled and diced
• 1 cup milk
• 1 bay leaf
• 3-5 pcs Black peppercorns
• 1 small sprig thyme (or a pinch of dried)
• ½ clove of garlic, peeled and smashed
• ¼ cup cooking cream to finish the soup
• Season to taste
SOUP Instructions
1 Melt 1 tbsp butter in medium-sized stockpot, and sauté onion, garlic, broccoli stalk, diced potato, bay leaf, black peppercorn, thyme and celery with a pinch of salt on low to medium heat for five to seven minutes.
2 Add broth and milk, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
3 Add the broccoli florets, place the lid back and simmer for another five mins.
4 Remove the bay leaf and pour the soup into a blender. Add the remaining butter. Purée in batches until smooth and pour into a clean pot. Alternatively, use a stick blender and purée the soup right in the cooking pot.
5 Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6 At this stage or while re-heating the soup to serve you can choose to add cream.
For the PASTA
• 1 cup broccoli soup
• 2 cups cooked wholewheat penne pasta
• 1 tsp butter
• Parmesan, grated
PASTA Instructions
1 Place 1 cup soup in a pan and
simmer for five minutes.
2 Place the cooked penne in the pan along with the butter and toss.
3 Check the seasoning and place on the plates or serving bowl immediately.
4 Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese on top as per the child’s liking.
Chef’s Tips
• Cutting the broccoli florets small (Or even pulsed in a food processor) and adding separately ensures you get a brighter color and a fresher broccoli flavor.
• Adding the butter in the blender with the soup emulsifies the soup for a smoother finish.
• Using some potato in the soup adds body and makes it creamier. It’s a healthier alternative to making a butter and flour roux to act as your thickener.
• This recipe will ensure maximum yield and without a lot of prep will feed the whole family.
