Pudina recipes for kids - surprised at this title?
Can we include pudina recipes in kid's diet?
What are some easy mint recipes that are healthy too?
When to add pudina in a kid's diet?
Hello lovely blog readers, today I am here to share with you a few mint recipes which I gathered for you and your family to indulge irrespective of seasons.
What are the benefits of including mint in your food?
Mint with its Indian name pudina is one of the very healthy herbs which is largely used for its amazing curative properties.
Mint leaves contain a good amount of calcium, vitamin A and C. Its health benefits make it a popular ingredient in lots of Indian and continental cuisines.
It's antifungal and antibacterial properties make it a wonderful herb for kids and adults. It's a natural remedy for gas troubles and stomach aches in kids as the menthol present in pudina helps in easy digestion. It also boosts kid's immunity.
Pudina leaves are also good for oral health and helps to keep your skin glowing and acne-free.
You can include mint in your baby's diet from 8 month onwards. At start you can add 1 to 2 leaves to your baby's puree, chutney or pulao.
The mint recipes I have given here are suitable for kids older than 2-years.9 Pudina Recipes For Kids You Ought to Try Today:
Here are a few mint recipes that I have tried and are approved by my preschooler.
#1. Mint Paratha
Are you or your little one bored of eating normal parathas? Then here is a twist- try pudina paratha recipe!
Paratha prepared using mint is delicious and a change from your regular parathas.
Ingredients needed (for around 4 parathas)
- Wheat flour - 1 cup
- Fresh mint - ½ cup
- Cumin seeds - ½ tsp
- Red chilli powder - ½ tsp
- Dry mint (optional) - ½ tsp
- Salt - as required
- Water - as required
- Butter - 1 tbsp (optional)
- Oil - 1 tbsp
- Ghee - as required
- Take a bowl, add wheat flour, red chilli powder, cumin seeds, dry mint leaves, salt and oil and mix well
- Chop finely the washed mint leaves, add to the flour and mix
- Now add water to make soft dough
- Cover and rest the dough for 15 minutes
- Make equal balls from the dough
- Dust a ball with dry flour and press it to round shapes using rolling pin
- Heat a tawa and cook the paratha on medium heat by applying ghee all over it
- Remove the paratha from tawa
- Apply butter over it and sprinkle dried mint leaf (completely optional step)
- Serve hotIf you are looking for more vareity in paratha then try Sweet Pumpkin Paratha, Stuffed Ragi Paratha, Cheese Paneer Paratha, and this easy Aloo Paratha Recipe.
#2. Mint Pulao/ Pudina Pulao Recipe
Mint pulao/ Pudina rice recipe is a super easy one pot delicious recipe. This is one of our favorite weekend pulao recipes.
- Basmati rice - 1 cup
- Water - 2 cup minus 2 tbsp
- Ghee - 2 tbsp
- Bay leaf - 1
- Cloves - 4
- Cinnamon stick - 1 inch
- Cumin seeds - ¼ tsp
- Big onion - 1
- Tomato -1
- Potato - 1
- Salt - as required
To grind:
- Pudina leaves - half cup
- Coriander leaves - half cup
- Green chilli - 2
- Ginger - 1 inch
- Garlic - 4 cloves
- Big onion - a small one or half of a large one
- Fresh grated coconut - ¼ cup
- Water - as required to grind
- Wash and soak the basmati rice for 20 to 30 minutes
- Take all the ingredients listed under "to grind" and blend to a smooth paste
- Heat ghee in a pressure cooker and add all the spices till a nice flavor comes out
- Add finely sliced onions and sauté till golden brown
- Add chopped tomatoes and sauté till they become mushy
- Add chopped potatoes
- Now add the ground pudina paste and sauté
- Finally add the drained basmati rice, water and required salt
- Mix everything well slowly and pressure cook for two whistles on medium flameRead: Vegetable Pulao for Babies and Kids
#3. Mint Chutney
This chutney is perfect for idli, curd rice, or as a base for sandwiches/panino/pizza. Down the memory lane, during my childhood days back in my paternal ancestral home, my Periamma used to prepare this often for idli. Those days I used to hate this but periamma always made me eat it. I often gulp it with water.
Years passed and now I fell in love with this pudina chutney after my marriage. Thank God, seems my little one like mint flavor so he has not shown any hatred towards mint chutney till date.
- Grated coconut - ¼ cup
- Fresh mint leaves - ½ cup
- Red chilies - 3
- Tamarind - soaked in water
- Small onion - 4
- Salt - as required
- Oil - as required
- Grind grated coconut, red chilies, tamarind, mint, and salt to coarse paste
- Heat oil and fry small onions till brown
- Add ground paste and fry till a nice flavor comes
- Cool down and serve
#4. Mint Moong Daal Curry
This recipe is the same way you prepare moong daal curry and is one of the easiest of the pudina recipes.The only variation here is to add pudina to get a mint flavored moong daal curry.
- Mint leaves - ¼ cup
- Split moong dal - ½ cup
- Red chili - 1 or 2
- Cumin seeds - ¼ cup
- Asafoetida - a pinch
- Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
- Ghee - 1 tbsp
- Salt - as required
- Water - as required
- Wash and soak the moong dal in water for half an hour
- Pressure cook the drained moong dal with enough water, red chili, turmeric powder, and salt with a drop of oil up to 3 or 4 whistles.
- Once the dal is cooked, add more water, and cook on low flame
- Now prepare the tadka using ghee, cumin seeds, and asafoetida
- Add mint leaves and fry for a second or two
- Pour this tadka in the cooking dal & stir
- Simmer the dal for 1-2 minutes and switch off the flame
#5. Mint Crush
On our last vacation to India, me and my little boy happened to drink KFC lemonade crusher during one of our tiresome shopping days. We just loved it. Once back from vacation, my little one started asking for that green juice. So, I tried this at home. In my recipe soda is not added like in KFC crusher. Here is how to make mint lime juice in my style.
- Fresh lemon juice - ½ cup
- Fresh mint leaves - ½ cup
- Water - 1.5 cup
- Sugar - 1/4 cup or more according to your taste
- Ice cubes - 4 or 5
- Mint sprigs - for garnishing
- In a vessel stir water and sugar till the sugar dissolves completely (another option is, in a small pan heat water and sugar till the sugar dissolves and bring to room temperature)
- In a mixer or blender blend the sugar solution, fresh lemon juice, ice cubes and fresh mint leaves for few seconds
- Pour into glasses, garnish, and serve
- Filter the juice for kids
#6. Mint Cucumber Juice
Mint cucumber juice is a very refreshing one with all green ingredients. It's a very simple to make recipe. This juice is rich in vitamin C and K and its very good for kids. For a variation, you can include an apple in this recipe.
- Fresh lemon juice - ¼ cup
- Fresh mint leaves - ½ cup
- Chopped cucumber - ½ cup
- Water - 1.5 cup
- Salt - ¼ tsp
- Honey - 1 tbsp
- Ice cubes - 2
- In a mixer or blender add mint leaves, chopped cucumber, lemon juice, salt, honey, and water
- Blend well for few seconds and serve chilled with ice cubes
- Filter the juice for kids
#7. Mint Cauliflower Dry
Cauliflower is rich in vitamin C and has numerous anti-cancer compounds. But for most of us, this veggie is not a favorite to go food. Maybe because of its unpleasant smell. However, when its roasted this veggie transforms to some fantastic yummy dishes like gopi manchurian, gopi 65 etc. By adding mint leaves, however we can mask the unpleasant smell.
I ngredients needed:
- Cauliflower - 1 small head
- Mint leaves - 1 cup
- Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
- Pepper powder -1/2 tsp
- Onion - 1 finely medium
- Grated coconut - ¼ cup
- Green Chilies - 1 or 2
- Fried gram dal (pottukadalai) - 1 tbsp
- Pepper powder - 3/4 tsp
- Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
- Cumin seeds - ¼ tsp
- Salt - as required
- Oil - 2 tsp
- Cut the cauliflower into florets, wash and clean the florets
- Take a bowl with water, a little salt and turmeric powder. Bring to a boil, switch off the flame and put all the florets into it with lid covered for 15 minutes
- Drain the florets and chop into small pieces and keep it aside
- Wash the mint leaves
- Put the mint leaves, grated coconut, green chilli, fried gram dal and required water in a mixer/blender
- Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and onions. Sauté till brown
- Add ginger garlic paste and sauté for a while
- Add the mint paste on low flame and cook for one or two minutes by stirring continuously
- Add required salt and pepper
- Finally add the chopped cauliflower florets to the pan
- Stir well to get the mint paste nicely coated to the florets
- Cook on low flame till all the water content evaporates and its completely dry
#8. Mint Paneer Masala
Paneer, the Indian cottage cheese which is one of the easiest cheeses you can prepare at home. There are so many versatile dishes you can prepare using paneer. I often prepare paneer butter masala for chapattis. But this is the first time I am trying paneer with mint and believe me this is one super easy and super delicious dish.
- Paneer cubes - 15 to 20
- Mint leaves - ¼ cup
- Coriander leaves - ¼ cup
- Tomato - 1
- Big onion - 1
- Green chilli - 1
- Poppy seeds - ¼ tsp
- Fennel seeds - ¼ tsp
- Cumin seeds - ¼ tsp
- Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
- Curd - 2 tbsp
- Oil - 1 tsp
- Butter - 2 tbsp
- Salt - as required
- Water - as required
- Add butter in a pan and shallow dry the paneer cubes till golden brown
- Add this fried paneer in a bowl of warm water (to prevent crumbling) and keep aside
- Heat oil in a pan add fennel seeds, poppy seeds, chopped onion, tomato, green chili, mint leaves, and coriander leaves
- Sauté till all get cooked, switch off the flame and cool it down completely
- Add this to a mixer/blender along with curd and grind it to smooth paste
- Heat butter in a pan, add cumin seeds and the ground mixture
- Sauté it for a second then add turmeric powder, salt and required water
- When it starts boiling add the soaked paneer cubes, close it with lid and cook until you get your desired consistency
- Serve with plain rice or chapattis
#9. Mint Rasam
Mint rasam is a tweak from the basic rasam recipe. Rasam is a traditional south Indian food, mostly served at the end of a meal for proper digestion. It's one of a super healthy food for kids. Mint rasam can be given to kids when they are suffering from cold and chest congestion. It also helps in digestion and prevents constipation.
- Mint leaves - ¼ cup
- Coriander leaves (optional) - one handful chopped
- Tomato - 1
- Green chilli - 1
- Garlic - 4 cloves
- Cumin seeds - ¼ tsp
- Curry leaves - 1 handful
- Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
- Rasam powder - 1 tsp
- Tamarind - lemon sized
- Cooked toor daal water - ½ cup
- Water - 1 cup
- Ghee - 1 tbsp
- Salt - as required
- Soak the tamarind in water for 15-30 min
- Squeeze the soaked tamarind to extract the juice and discard the settled impurities
- To the tamarind juice, add chopped tomato, crushed garlic, green chili, and hand pound everything and keep aside
- Heat ghee in a pan, add in the curry leaves, cumin seeds and sauté
- Add the cooked toor daal water, turmeric powder, rasam powder, salt and cook on low flame
- Add in the prepared tamarind juice
- When it starts boiling, switch off the flame. Never let the rasam to boil further
- Now add in the coriander leaves and mint leaves and immediately close the vessel with a tight lid to allow the flavors to infuse into the rasam for 10 - 15 minutes
- Serve hot
Read: Tomato Rasam for Babies During Cold and Cough
These are some of the mint recipes I tried so far. Try these recipes and let me know both your positive and negative feedbacks.
What are the pudina recipes that you have tried?
How often do you include pudina leaves in your diet?
I will be very happy to hear from you all.
