It’s super fun and exciting when your baby starts eating solid foods! There are SO many choices of commercially prepared baby food it can be overwhelming! It might seem like there’s really no need to know how to make your own baby food. Why put in the extra effort when you can just open up a jar or pouch and dinner is served?
I’m not knocking the major baby food brands out there – I feed them to my own kids a lot of the time. However, the cost of these can really add up, especially if you opt for the organic brands and the kind that come in pouches. Plus, you have to buy so many of those little jars and pouches! My twins go through at least one each per meal. That’s a lot of baby food jars.
Even if you only do it some of the time, having a little stash of home made baby food on hand can help save money and save you from a trip to the store if you run out of baby food jars. Plus, it’s really fun to do! Here’s everything you need to know about how to make your own baby food at home!
Start With the Basics
If you take a look at the first foods for babies in the store, often labelled “stage 1”, you will find mostly single fruits and veggies. Pediatricians recommend giving your baby one new food at a time and waiting to see if they tolerate that food before you move on to another food. It really doesn’t matter what fruit or vegetable you start with, so long as you give your baby a chance to get used to one food before moving on to the next. The first step in learning how to make your own baby food is to prepare some simple one ingredient purees. This is certainly the easiest way to make your own baby food!
Here are some first fruits and veggies that are easy to make at home for baby food purees:
- Apples
- Bananas
- Sweet potatoes
- Peaches
- Peas
- Mangoes
- Pears
- Pumpkin
Although these also make great first baby foods – check with your pediatrician first.
- Carrots
- Squash
- Spinach
- Green Beans
Although easy to make at home for baby food, these foods carry a higher risk of nitrates. Commercial baby food is tested for nitrates, and according to our pediatrician, safer for young babies than making them at home. However, the risk goes down as your baby gets older. If you want to make these foods at home, I suggest getting your pediatrician’s approval first.
How to Prepare Baby Food at Home
To start, always wash fruits and vegetables well. Peel as necessary depending on the item and cut into chunks. If you plan to make a puree of more than one baby food item you can cook them together as long as they take about the same time to steam. The softer or more ripe the fruit or veggie, the faster it will cook.
You do not need to cook bananas, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, avocados or anything else that is already very soft and ripe.
The best way to cook your own baby food is by steaming. You can do this with a pot of water and a steamer basket (or a metal strainer with a handle so long as it fits over the top of the pot). Put a couple inches of water in the pot, bring to a boil, place fruits or veggies in the steamer basket and cover. The food is done once it is soft enough to mash with a fork or blend in a blender.
You can also steam vegetables in the microwave by placing them in a microwave safe dish with a bit of water. Cover and cook on high a few minutes at a time until done.
How to Make Your Own Baby Food Puree
Once you have your ingredients cooked and ready to go, you are ready to blend them into a puree.
If you are making a puree out of steamed fruit or veggies, save the cooking water. You can use this to thin the puree. Depending on the type of puree and the consistency you’re going for, you might need more or less water. Experiment to find the right amount. I tend to use quite a bit of water, especially with thicker, denser fruits and veggies like peas and sweet potatoes.
You can also use breast milk or formula to thin the puree when you are ready to blend it.
What you add to your puree is up to you. It’s fun to try different combinations when you are learning how to make your own baby food. If you look at some of the baby food pouches in a grocery store, you will see many different and sometimes odd combinations of food. I use these to get some ideas to try at home!
The only rule – make sure your baby has already been introduced to each of the ingredients separately before you combine them in a puree. Or if you are trying something new, like blueberries, that might not make a good puree on their own, just combine it with something your baby has already had by itself and tolerated, such as apples.
Don’t add any salt or sugar – these are not necessary and not good for babies (or anyone really!)
Baby Food Combinations to Try
Once your baby has done well with single ingredient purees, you may want to try some combinations. Experiment to see which food combinations your baby likes. It’s really fun to think of these yourself, but here are a few of the ones I like to make for baby food:
- Apple Blueberry
- Carrot Peach
- Apple Mango Peach
- Strawberry Banana
- Carrot Sweet Potato
- Squash Pumpkin Peach
- Red Pepper Carrot
- Broccoli Carrot Apple
You can really experiment with these. Try tossing in different berries or other ripe foods that don’t need to be cooked, such as avocados. You can also add formula or breast milk to change up the texture. You can even start adding cooked meats such as chicken or turkey. It’s really a lot of fun for you and baby!
If you are feeding your baby some type of baby cereal, such as rice or oatmeal, you can also experiment with mixing that into the puree.
To ensure a good consistency, try mixing a more dense food, such as potatoes, with a more watery food, such as squash.
Are Any Food Off Limits for Babies?
While you should definitely check with your baby’s pediatrician to get their specific recommendations – here are some foods your should avoid during baby’s first year:
- Honey
- Cow’s Milk
- Egg whites (although the yolks are okay)
- Highly acidic fruits such as oranges or tomatos
- Seafood
- Anything that might present a choking hazard
Do I Need an Expensive Baby Food Maker?
Not necessarily. I didn’t have one with my oldest daughter. I was brand new to making my own baby food. To start, I would steam the fruits and veggies in a strainer over a small pot of boiling water, just like I do for my own meals when I need to steam something. Then I would either puree them in a food processor or blend them in a blender, depending on the consistency I was going for.
When babies are just starting out eating solids, you want the food to be more smooth and runny. Once they start getting used to it, you can slowly thicken up their food and make the texture a little grainier. Once your baby is eating solids regularly, a few pulses in a food processor will probably do the trick. So if you already own one of those, there’s not really a need to purchase a new gadget.
However, I will admit, I did recently purchase a baby food maker for myself after the twins started on solids. I might not have actually needed it, but anything to make life even a little easier right now is worth it to me. I made a YouTube video about how to use it, and I really like it. So while it’s not really necessary, it is sure nice to have if you can afford yet another baby item!
This is the one I have – the Babymoov Duo Meal Station. I really like it and have been using it regularly for several months now.
Here is the video I made about it. Feel free to check it out if you are unsure if one of these might be right for you!
It’s really an awesome product and I do recommend it if you want an all in one type of thing. But it’s certainly not something everyone will need.
For more on baby items you might not have though of – check out my post:
10 Newborn Baby Essentials You Might Have Missed!
How Do I Store Homemade Baby Food?
This all depends on how much you want to make ahead of time. With my first baby, I had the time to make big batches of baby food and freeze it. If you plan to do this, you can buy small freezer safe containers that you can defrost, warm up and feed your baby right out of. That’s what I did with my oldest, and it was really convenient.
If you want to save some money and space in your fridge when you start learning how to make your own baby food, you can also use ice cube trays. Once the food is frozen, pop it out of the tray and store it in a freezer bag. Then you can just take out what you need when you’re ready to use it.
With my crazy life now, there usually isn’t time to make a big batch. I often only have time to peel and cut a few apples and throw them in the steamer before I’m needed elsewhere. I’m cooking for two babies, so that means it lasts half as long anyway. I usually try to make a couple day’s worth at a time. If you’re only storing it for one or two days, it’s just fine in the fridge.
I try to keep it in meal sized portions, but sometimes I don’t have little containers clean. If you store the food in one large container, transfer it before feeding. You don’t want to be feeding your baby from a container that will go back in the fridge if they don’t finish it. This can introduce bacteria as well as break down the nutrients in the baby food.
Do I Need to Warm Up the Baby Food?
This really depends on your baby. My babies love the fruit purees cold right out of the fridge. If you want to warm them up a bit, you can do it the same way you might warm a bottle. I don’t recommend the microwave as this can cause the food to heat unevenly and presents the risk of burning baby’s mouth. My husband accidentally did this to our older daughter. She was okay and it was just a tiny bit of food but it was really traumatic at the time.
You can use a baby food maker like the Babymoov to warm the food. You can also just place the container in a bowl of hot water for a bit, or warm it in a pot as you heat the water. Always make sure to stir the food well and test it yourself first to make sure it’s not too hot.
If you have frozen the baby food you will obviously need to defrost it before feeding. Follow the same safe food handling guidelines that you would use for your own food, and again, just make sure not to feed baby anything that may be too hot. Once defrosted, definitely don’t refreeze it!
Important Safety Reminders for Making Your Own Baby Food
While making baby food at home can be just as safe and perhaps even better for baby than serving commercially prepared baby food – there are some important safety guidelines to keep in mind:
- Always make sure the baby food puree is fully blended – a baby can choke if small chunks are left in the puree
- Make sure the puree is thinned enough – don’t feed baby anything too thick or pasty
- Always check the temperature of any baby food that you serve warm and stir well to avoid hot spots
- Always wash fruits and veggies well before cooking or serving
- Follow safe food storage guidelines and don’t leave fresh purees in the fridge for more than a day or two at most. It’s best to freeze whatever your aren’t going to be using right away.
- Always check with your pediatrician for any questions you have, especially regarding any uncommon foods or those with the potential for allergic reactions
Making your own baby food at home can be a really rewarding experience. Not only will you save money, but you’ll also be making sure your baby’s first experience with solid food is as nutritious and fun as possible!
