Courgette
Have you tried these spiralised? It changes the game with courgettes.
Nutrition
Courgettes contain vitamin A, C and K and minerals including manganese, potassium and magnesium. Vitamins A and C support our vision and immune system and vitamin K and manganese are important for bone health.
Shopping Guide
When purchasing courgettes, aim for firm and shiny ones that when lifted up feel heavier than they appear to be.
Storage
To store courgettes, just leave whole and dry and keep in the fridge for up to a week.
Preparation
Or prep by slicing a courgette in half lengthways and scoop out some of the insides. Fill those little boats with almost any mashed up mix of courgette and cooked meats like bacon or chicken, cooked whole grains such as rice, quinoa or couscous) and some greeted cheese. Roast these boats for 20-30 mins in the oven at 200C/180C fan/Gas 6.
Kids in the Kitchen
For a younger child, why not help them to grate a couple of courgettes? Show them how to do it safely, and you can add the grated courgettes to sauces, baked goods, or pasta.
For an older child, it could be a great opportunity to learn some essential knife skills – why not use a couple of courgettes to help them learn the claw grip by slicing into rounds?
Find more ideas for involving kids in the kitchen here.
Sensory
Explore courgettes using sight by getting a whole courgette (if you can, get a green and a yellow one to compare colours) and having a few slices, too. What does the whole courgette look like or remind you of? What does the slice look like? Use your imagination and descriptive language to explore.
Find more sensory ideas, tips and videos here. If you get stuck and need a little help with describing words, we have a selection for you here, too!
Serving
Next time you make a meal that includes courgettes, why not ask your child to help you with one small step in the preparation of the courgettes, then see if they want to help you serve it as “their” meal. Perhaps they could help lay the table and even create a fun centrepiece, maybe with all green objects to reflect the courgette?
Find the best ways of involving your own child and their skills and interests on our Roles for Kids page.
Activities
Why not try making a 3D courgette piece of art? Keep a real courgette in front of you for inspiration. Scrunch up some newspaper into a courgette shape then cover with a piece of green paper, adding a little glue to hold it together around the newspaper courgette shape. Add a little more detail by using lighter green strips of paper or a pen to add some “stripes” and/or cutting a little top from green paper or painting a bottle lid green to be the little “cap” on the top!
Kids more into science? Explore osmosis together by getting 3 slices of courgette that are the same size and thickness, and placing on 3 small plates or saucers. On the first one, add 1 tsp sugar, ½ tsp on the second, and leave the final one as is. Pour over a little water on each, and leave for 8 hours. Can you see how the one with the most sugar is soft and flexible and has shrunk in size compared to the other two? This is because sugar affects the osmosis process!
You can find more at-home science fun with veg with our videos from Stefan Gates’ here.
Seasonality
Buying veg in season is not only great for the planet, it can be good for your wallet, too! Courgette is very much a summer vegetable, so look for them then for the tastiest and cheapest ones, and choosing smaller firmer ones will mean you get the least watery, most flavoursome ones.
At Its Best:
June - September
Your Food
Courgettes are mild and soft, so if your child has those preferences, it could be a great place to start! It can easily just be diced and roasted, or thinly sliced and fried low and slow until soft, or even grated and added to baked goods. Find some inspiration below…
If You Like Courgette…Try
Does your child enjoy courgettes? That’s great! Courgettes are usually mild in flavour and fairly soft, so why not try a similar texture and/or taste…
The Wonderful World of Veg
Check out our vegepedia. When to buy in-season. How to store them to keep for longer. How to engage children with each veg, and simple ideas of how to prepare and cook them for maximum taste and minimum waste. Select a veg…