Wondering how to serve rice and beans to baby led weaning babies in a way that is less messy and gets more in their bellies? Here's how to serve rice and beans (and other grains with beans) for baby led weaning and self feeding babies!
This post has been written and medically reviewed by Kaleigh McMordie, MCN, RDN (Registered Dietitian Nutritionist).
When your family is eating rice and beans with a meal, don't shy away from offering some to baby! Most babies love rice and beans, whether they're Tex-Mex style, white rice with black beans, or some other combination. The soft texture is great for little ones, especially those who don't yet have teeth. While tiny grains of rice and small beans can be extremely messy for baby led weaning babies to eat, they don't have to be! Here's how you can serve rice and beans to BLW babies with less mess - and more in their mouths.
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Can Babies Eat Rice and Beans?
As soon as babies are developmentally ready for solids, usually around 6 months old, they can eat fully cooked rice and beans. The soft texture is great for even the smallest of eaters. The challenge with babies this age is that they don't yet have the dexterity to pick up small objects (like beans) between their index fingers and thumbs (called a pincer grasp). It can be hard for them to scoop up tiny foods and actually get any in their mouths using the palmar grasp that is developmentally appropriate at this stage. So here is what I do to make it easier (and less messy) to serve rice and beans to new eaters...
How To Serve Rice and Beans for Baby Led Weaning (6+ months)
While you can offer rice and beans separately, it can be messy and frustrating for baby to try to get from plate to mouth. To give baby a better chance of success, try these methods instead.
Mashed Together (6 months and up)
Using a fork or spoon, mash the bans and rice together so that the beans help bind the grains of rice together. You can offer the mixture on a preloaded soft spoon, or baby can scoop up a handful of the mixture straight from the plate or tray.
Rice and Bean Balls (6 months and up)
You can also mash mix rice and mashed beans and roll the mixture into balls that baby can grasp and bring to his mouth more easily. Try rolling into oblong balls (finger shapes) for younger babies that may have trouble with a perfectly round ball.
Other Foods To Serve Using This Method
You can use this method for so many other combinations of grains and beans, depending on what your family is eating. This works great for quinoa, barley, millet, farro, or other small grains. You can use chickpeas, white beans, black beans, or even hummus to hold the grains together.
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FAQ
Though it is possible to be allergic to any food, neither rice nor beans are common allergens. Rice can be a trigger for FPIES, food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome, a non-IgE mediated food allergy in children that can be delayed and very severe. If your child has been diagnosed with FPIES, ask your allergist before introducing known triggers like rice.
Larger beans may be a choking risk. Make sure to smash or cut large beans such as lima beans or chickpeas. Rice is not a major choking hazard.
Rice has recently been in the spotlight for containing trace amounts of arsenic from the soil and water in which it grows. To reduce the arsenic that may be in rice, you can soak rice in water for 15-30 minutes before cooking and discard the water, or rinse the rice through a mesh colander or strainer until the water runs clear. White rice tends to have less contamination than brown rice. I'd recommend not eating rice every day, and maintaining a varied diet to reduce exposure.
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