How do I prepare my own baby food?

Clean everything first

• Before you start preparing food for your baby always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water, and dry them with a clean hand towel or disposable paper towel.
• You also need to make sure all your cooking utensils are clean, including your baby's bowl, cutlery and cups.

Buying and preparing ingredients

• Always choose fresh but ripe fruit and vegetables. Wash and peel as necessary. Take care to remove the seeds or stones from fruit as they can be a choking hazard for your baby. Dice fruits and vegetables before cooking. 
• Choose tender cuts of beef, pork, lamb or poultry. Trim all visible fat before cooking. Once cooked, remove any bone or gristle.
• When preparing fresh fish, carefully remove all skin, scales and bones. Once cooked, check again for any remaining traces of bone and skin.
• Do not add fat, salt, soy sauce, sugar, honey, or artificial sweeteners to your baby's foods. Even though the food may taste bland to you, it is just right for your baby. Babies have particularly acute taste perception with four times more taste buds than we have as adults, so to them it will be tasty!

Foods unsuitable for babies

Some foods unsuitable for babies under 1 year of age include:

• Honey is not a good choice for babies
• Whole nuts can be problematic because of the risk of choking
• Fruit juice holds no benefit for babies and may even reduce the amount of milk your baby may consume. It may not be good for baby's teeth because of its high sugar content and acidic nature.
• Salty meat such as corned beef, and tinned fish as first foods
• Cows' milk should not be given as a main drink before 12 months of age. Reduced fat milk is best given to toddlers older than two.
• Foods with added fat, salt and sugar should be avoided.
• Alcohol, cordials, juice, soft drinks, coffee and other drinks containing caffeine should be avoided for babies.
• Tea (including herbal tea) should not be given to babies since it contains tannins that can inhibit the absorption of other nutrients, especially iron.

How to cook your baby's food

• Watch out for the amount of salt in the food you give your baby. Avoid adding any salt when preparing food as too much salt can put a strain on your baby's developing kidneys. Also avoid adding sugar to foods, as this will help reduce the consumption of 'empty calories'. Honey should also be avoided for baby's younger than 1 year.
• Meats and fish can be steamed, grilled or cooked in the microwave. They can also be fried or roasted but make sure you don't add too much extra fat. Always ensure that meat is cooked thoroughly with no pink bits left. Fish should be firm yet easy to flake with a fork.
• Fruit and vegetables can be cooked in the microwave, steamed or boiled. You can also oven-bake some fruits such as apples and pears. The best option to go for is steaming as it retains the most nutrients. An easy way to steam food is by using a metal colander, a saucepan of boiling water and a saucepan lid.

How to serve

• At first your baby's food should be completely blended to a smooth purée. As your baby gets older, you can start to make their food gradually more textured. You can either use a blender or a mashing fork to mix the food to the right texture. 
• Always serve your baby's food warm rather than boiling hot but make sure it has been cooked to piping hot and then allowed to cool.