Daniel is becoming very interested in what we do in the kitchen. He is afraid of the oven (yay?), but he likes to imitate cooking with his pots and pans and play food. We made fajitas tonight and for the first time allowed him to watch the prepping and cooking. I admit to having ulterior motives because I’m hoping the more he plays with and sees us working with and eating foods he usually won’t touch, the more he’ll be inclined to give them a try. That’s the theory anyway.
Meal Prep: Veggie Chopping
Here he is watching J, the official sous chef, chopping peppers.
Giving Daniel a piece of red pepper
Daniel eventually ate that piece of pepper about 15 minutes later.
So all you do is de-seed and chop? Totally easy, Daddy
Watching Daddy chop the green pepper
Wait...what are you doing to the pepper?
Checking out Daddy's knife skills
Assembly
As with everything culinary, presentation is key, so we spent a lot of time creating an intricate plate for a wee palate.
Yummy! Mini fajitas!
Time to Eat!
Finally the fajitas were ready and assembled. J helped Daniel eat his since the fajita was a tad over-filled and would burst open, something Daniel’s two-year-old hands weren’t used to handling.
Doesn't this look yummy?
Daniel takes a bite!
The Verdict
The good news is that Daniel ate a few pieces of pepper and had several bites of a fajita as well as rice. The bad news was that he declared “No more” after only a few minutes. Oh well. Though he didn’t eat as much as we would have liked, at least he tried it, and I have to credit including him in the prep and cooking process for those small victories.
How do you incorporate your child into cooking family meals?
Family Building With a Twist 
I too have a two-year-old with a very limited palate. She even refuses to eat things she gobbled up a week or two previously! I have been incorporating her in the cooking process (she’s a fascinated spectator) but with no notable results as far as getting her to actually TRY the food. *sigh* Hopefully, though, this is a good sign and it works for you!
My son is only 18 months, but i will tell him and show him what i am doing in order to help him see that food required preparation and to engage his interest.
I agree with you about being ok with it if they try it but don’t clean their plate. Kids tend to be less hungry at the end of a day, and if they try a couple bites i consider it a big win.