# Introducing quinoa as first food



## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

Our doctor recommended introducing quinoa as our little one's first food. I thought I would find quinoa cereal in the baby aisle, but I only found quinoa flour and quinoa flakes, aside from the quinoa in the bulk section. My doctor is on vacation, so does anyone have any advise on quinoa. I think the flakes would be the best. If I cook the quinoa flakes and then puree, how long will this keep in fridge?


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## User101 (Mar 3, 2002)

I'm going to move you over to Life with a Babe since this isn't specifically about breastfeeding.


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## lifeguard (May 12, 2008)

I just cooked up regular quinoa flakes & fed ds just like that. No pureeing necessary. It was one of his first foods & he handled it no problem.


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## Jojo F. (Apr 7, 2007)

While quinoa is not really a grain, it's a seed, I still would wait and start with simple veggies and fruits. Grains, nuts, seeds, dairy, etc. are sometimes allergens (but of course some veggies and fruits can incite reactions)

When we eat quinoa we sprout it first, very simple just rinse VERY well to get rid of the sopanins (cause stomach upset) and let sit for a couple days, rinsing a couple times/day. On the second day or when you see the little sprouts, cook around 10min or so, taste along the way to make sure you don't over cook. Quinoa doesn't take long like rice. I would probably mash it a bit with my fork before feeding it to LO.


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## VeganCupcake (Jun 13, 2007)

We didn't try quinoa until maybe 8 or 9 months, but we used the flakes. Baby Girl didn't really like it.









Later, I also made some quinoa croquettes with whole quinoa and mashed sweet potato, and she kind of liked those.


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## tracymom1 (May 7, 2008)

We tried quinoa as DS's first food and it was kind of a disaster. We mashed it up a bit and he still had a hard time with the texture. I guess flakes would have been better but I did not know about them.


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## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

I cooked up some quinoa flakes. They cook up quickly (can even be microwaved) but have the same texture as quinoa. The "flakes" are not a smooth texture that one would think. We tried without pureeing yesterday and today I'll puree some. We'll see how it goes. Thank you for your comments.


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## Catwmandu (Jun 10, 2007)

We used the Happy Bellies brand of cereals (we used oats instead of rice which wasn't liked).

I saw they have a multi grain that has quinoa, oats and amaranth.

I'm going to try it with DS when it's time.


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## Birdie B. (Jan 14, 2008)

I didn't know there were quinoa flakes! I've been trying to feed Meadow cooked quinoa with veggies or yogurt, and she's not too crazy about it. But as far as grain goes, it's probably the best. Where can you find quinoa flakes??


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## paulamc (Jun 25, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *VeganCupcake* 
We didn't try quinoa until maybe 8 or 9 months, but we used the flakes. Baby Girl didn't really like it.









Later, I also made some quinoa croquettes with whole quinoa and mashed sweet potato, and she kind of liked those.


VEGAN CUPCAKE - this sounds good! Could you describe how you made the croquettes? Did you add anything besides quinoa and sweet potatoes?


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## Caterina (Jul 18, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Jojo F.* 
While quinoa is not really a grain, it's a seed, I still would wait and start with simple veggies and fruits. Grains, nuts, seeds, dairy, etc. are sometimes allergens (but of course some veggies and fruits can incite reactions)

When we eat quinoa we sprout it first, very simple just rinse VERY well to get rid of the sopanins (cause stomach upset) and let sit for a couple days, rinsing a couple times/day. On the second day or when you see the little sprouts, cook around 10min or so, taste along the way to make sure you don't over cook. Quinoa doesn't take long like rice. I would probably mash it a bit with my fork before feeding it to LO.

I second this. We started with veggies and fruits (but mostly veg) and have been going very slow on the grains. Brown rice, well soaked, well cooked with lots of water, and oats and millet done the same way have been fine. Quinoa comes out very like it goes in (sorry if too much info!) even soaked, well cooked and lightly mashed. So, we're still waiting on quinoa at 11 mo.


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## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

We found the quinoa flakes at a health food store.

Now that we started the quinoa, I'll have to do it for a few days to make sure there is no allergic reaction. The quinoa flakes still have a texture with pureeing. I also have quinoa flour, but I have no idea what to do with it. I may have to consult another naturopathic doctor to see.


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## Punchy Kaby (Mar 13, 2006)

I vote for starting grains later. Grains, seeds and such are hard to digest. I would start on a very well cooked veggie.


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## Just1More (Jun 19, 2008)

Another vote for waiting on the grains.

A friend told me her ped told her when her son was starting food (he's as old as me, lol!) to avoid allergies to start with MEAT. It seems odd, but if you are careful to pick something grassfed, etc...

Does that sound right?


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## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

Quinoa is a non-grass and it is said to be easily digested.

I know all doctors have different recommendations. Thank you everyone for your feedback.

Catwmandu I'll have to try that multi grain cereal later down the road.


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## beautifulboy (Apr 5, 2009)

Hi
We are way beyond the rice cereal stage, but Quinoa flakes sound like it might be a good breakfast cereal. I have never seen them sold, where did you get quinoa flakes? Who makes them? Are they an Earth's Best product?


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## SophieAnn (Jun 26, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Just1More* 
Another vote for waiting on the grains.

A friend told me her ped told her when her son was starting food (he's as old as me, lol!) to avoid allergies to start with MEAT. It seems odd, but if you are careful to pick something grassfed, etc...

Does that sound right?

Actually, I have read that in traditional cultures, meat is a first food for baby.

Logically, it actually does make sense when you consider that baby cereal and formula are all iron-fortified.


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## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *beautifulboy* 
Hi
We are way beyond the rice cereal stage, but Quinoa flakes sound like it might be a good breakfast cereal. I have never seen them sold, where did you get quinoa flakes? Who makes them? Are they an Earth's Best product?

The quinoa flakes we have is Ancient Harvest.


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## VeganCupcake (Jun 13, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *beautifulboy* 
Hi
We are way beyond the rice cereal stage, but Quinoa flakes sound like it might be a good breakfast cereal. I have never seen them sold, where did you get quinoa flakes? Who makes them? Are they an Earth's Best product?

My natural foods store has them in bulk. They do make a good breakfast.


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## mokey4 (Nov 3, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *SophieAnn* 
Actually, I have read that in traditional cultures, meat is a first food for baby.

Logically, it actually does make sense when you consider that baby cereal and formula are all iron-fortified.

I've heard that some countries' (Norway? Sweden? I don't remember which) governments currently recommend meat for 6 month olds.


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## paulamc (Jun 25, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mokey4* 
I've heard that some countries' (Norway? Sweden? I don't remember which) governments currently recommend meat for 6 month olds.

I think I read somewhere on MDC that Canada does so too.


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## BakerGirl (Jun 4, 2009)

Meat was recommended to me by the health nurse as a good first food (I'm in Canada). She told me to look for "beef in broth - not the casserole stuff".








I'm just going to skip the babyfood stuff but yes meat is recommended here for six months.


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## Erinz (Mar 1, 2006)

We don't do grains/seeds before a year, and then proceed slowly after.

Our first foods for our first son were avocado and ribs -- REAL foods that could be picked up. I'm not sure why a completely processed/flaked version of anything is offered to small children (or grown ups for that matter, but especially mouths developing a palate for taste and texture!).

eta: had a thought after I posted! This could be because we didn't offer food until our baby could pick it up and get it in his mouth himself. Not big spoon feeders!


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## ourdayourjourney (Mar 11, 2009)

i wanted to conclude on how we did with introducing the quinoa as the first food. we initially tried the quinoa flakes (shorter cooking time), which had some texture, so we pureed it. then, we made regular quinoa and pureed. we tried for 1 week and moved on to sweet potatoes. after a week on sweet potatoes, we now mix the two and it is working out well.


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