How do I give my baby Peppers as a first food for baby led weaning

February 17, 2023

Have you tried giving your baby bell peppers yet? Sometimes introducing new solid foods to your baby can be scary. When cooked properly and cut correctly, bell peppers make a great first food for baby led weaning. The information below will show you how to safely introduce peppers as a first food for baby led weaning.

Peppers Nutrition

Bell peppers are rich in vitamin C, an antioxidant that aids in the absorption of iron. In fact, a medium-sized red pepper contains 169% of the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for vitamin C, making them one of the best sources of vitamin C ever!

Bell peppers also contain vitamin B6, vitamin K1, vitamin A, vitamin E, potassium, and folate.

Vitamin B6 is good for red blood cell formation, while K1 helps in blood clotting and bone health. Vitamin E is an antioxidant, while folate or Vitamin B9 strengthens the body. Potassium is for heart health, and vitamin A is for the eye.

The main compounds in bell pepper are capsanthin, found in red pepper, which is responsible for its colour and is an antioxidant. The yellow bell pepper has violaxanthin, while the green one has lutein, which improves eye health.

When Can Babies Have Bell Peppers?

Bell peppers can be introduced to your baby as soon as your baby is 6 months old. It is important to never serve your baby raw pepper as they are a choking risk. This is even more important if your baby has a few teeth as they can easily bite off a little pepper.

Are Bell Peppers a Safe First Food for My Baby?

As long as you serve bell peppers properly cooked and cut, they are perfectly safe for your baby 6 months +.

How To Prepare Bell Peppers for a 6 month old – Spears

As a first food from 6 months, you can serve your baby soft cooked peppers with the skins removed. Cut into spears and cook until they are squashable between your finger and thumb. It’s true that cooking will destroy some of the vitamin C in peppers, but it is more important that your baby is introduced to lots of vegetables early on to increase exposure. As your baby gets older, you can cook them less and less which of course will keep more of the vitamin C intact.

Steaming Bell Pepper

Wash, then cut the pepper in half and remove the stem, seeds and core.
Cut pepper into large spear-shaped pieces.
Steam until soft enough to be squashed between your finger and thumb.
Place the pepper spears into a lunchbox while hot, then cover with a lid. The skin should easily peel off after about 15 minutes.
Offer a spear to your baby.

Roasting Bell Pepper

Cut the pepper into spears.
Place onto a baking tray lined with a bit of parchment paper, then drizzle over a little olive oil.
Roast until the peppers are soft.
Place the pepper spears into a lunchbox while hot, then cover with a lid. The skin should easily peel off after about 15 minutes.
Serve the spear to your baby.

How to prepare bell peppers for to baby 9-18 months old – Bite-sized pieces

Your baby still needs to eat bell peppers with the skin removed. Cook by either steaming or roasting by following the steps above.

Remove the skins, cut the peppers into smaller pieces and serve to your baby. This helps to develop hand-eye coordination and will also encourage chewing skills.

How to prepare bell peppers for a 18 month old +

If you started with peppers as a first food, your baby has now had lots of exposure to bell peppers, and also should have many of their teeth too. Serve your baby sliced peppers cooked al-dente (so a little crunchy). These are great as dippers for hummus, pesto or soft cheese or can be served as part of an overall dinner such as curry or stirfry.