Gone are the days when parents used to wait till their kids were grown up to travel. Nowadays, little babies travel everywhere, exploring the great big world with their inquisitive eyes. Of course, modern conveniences have definitely made life easier for Mom and Dad!! But in spite of everything, one point of worry for parents is what to feed their children while travelling.
With all the scare about packaged food and unhygienic food preparation in restaurants, parents would rather carry their own food with them. Needless to say, this requires quite a bit of planning, but we’re here to help!! Here is a list of convenient and healthy travel foods for babies and toddlers.
34 Easy Homemade Travel Food Ideas for Babies and Toddlers
Milk
If you are breastfeeding your baby then he won’t need any other milk supplement at least for the duration of your journey. If he has already been weaned, you can try these substitutes for milk:
- Formula
- Milk powder (commercially available)
All you need to do here is to add hot water, which you can carry in a thermos flask.
Fruit
Fresh fruits are one of the best travel foods, being convenient and and hygienic. For toddlers, you can just cut up the fruit and feed them. For babies, you can mash and puree fruits like papaya, muskmelon, banana or chikoo. When ripe enough, they can be easily mashed with just a fork.
Instant Porridge
Here is a list of 15 instant porridge powder recipes, all of which require only hot water to be added.
No time to make these powder, no worry !! Just click, order and get home delivered here. We also have Instant food ‘trial’ packs available now, because you can never tell what the baby might like!
Main Meals – Lunch
Main meals like lunch and dinner are a little more difficult to handle while travelling as it isn’t easy to prepare a filling rice meal on the go. However, you can still work your way around this problem with a few tips:
1. If you have a rice cooker then all you need to do is plug it in to make a simple khichdi with carrots or potatoes. You can carry carrots and potatoes as they last for more than 2 to 3 days without refrigeration.
2. If you don’t own a rice cooker, dry roast rice and dal well and make grind to a powder. You can carry this powder in an air tight container and cook it with hot water from your flask. You can also add grated carrot, which doesn’t take long to cook.
If you don’t have time to dry roast rice and dal, you can easily order homemade Instant Khichdi mixes here.
3. If you want to give lunch from a restaurant, ask for steamed hot rice with dal. Mash it with sanitized fingers or spoons and feed your baby.
Snacks
When it comes to snacks, most parents reach out for packaged foods like biscuits. But you can go healthy here too, especially since toddlers snack a lot and you don’t want so much junk going into their bodies! Try these homemade snack recipes that don’t require refrigeration.
- Laddus
- Cookies
- Roasted chickpeas
- Energy bars – Groundnut Bars, Maple Oat Cluster Bars , Chocolate trail Mix
Tips for Feeding your Baby at a Restaurant
Sometimes, you find yourself with no option but to feed your baby from a restaurant. In such cases, there’s no need to panic; just keep these few tips in mind:
1. Never give raw foods like salads to chutneys to babies
2. Along with raw foods, you should also avoid dishes with raw ingredients like mayonnaise, souffle, sushi etc.
3. Always try to go for steamed foods – steamed rice, steamed idlis and cooked vegetables.
4. Use your own cutlery.
5. Ensure there are no choking hazards in baby’s food.
6. Avoid trying new foods as your baby may be allergic to it.
7. Stick to boiled/bottled water and don’t give baby juices or milkshakes.
8. Stay away from anything with artificial coloring or flavoring.
Feeding your baby or toddler during travel needn’t be a huge source of stress! With just a little effort on your part, you can ensure that you and your child enjoy your journey, without any worries about food!!
If your baby has recently started on solids, you might also want to check out our detailed post – High Chair Vs Booster Seat: Your Ultimate Guide to Buying a Feeding Chair. Some of the feeding chairs recommended in this article are travel friendly too!
We have compiled a comprehensive Travel Food packing List for Babies and Toddlers
Authors
- Dr Hemapriya
- Fabida Abdullah
- Dhvani Shah
![Instant Poha Moongdal Porridge powder for babies [Easy porridge recipe for Travel]](https://i0.wp.com/www.mylittlemoppet.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/25182508/feature.jpg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1 "Instant Poha Moongdal Porridge powder for babies [Easy porridge recipe for Travel]")
Dear Dr. Hema,
Could you please suggest some travel foods for 2.5year toddler. I know by this age toddlers eat most of the foods, but mine doesn’t. Hence seeking your advice. Is it safe to offer outside food to 2.5 yr kid?
Hi Madhavi,
You can try the recipes given in this article. It should be a hit 🙂 You can give outside food if it’s from a trusted source.
Plz give ideas of travel food for 8 months old baby, for one week.
Any suggestions and advices are welcomed
The blog has so many ideas. Please use it according to the age recommendation. Hope you find it helpful 🙂
hi Dr I m going to travel in train for 25 hrs can you suggest home made food for my 11 months old baby. he has cool body so pls tell me can i give him uncooked apple?
Hi Revathy,
Please find link below with easy travel recipes. Hope this helps you.
Link – https://goo.gl/2V9Zm4
Hiii mam….I am travelling to North…. For 15days….. My baby is 10months old…. Can pls suggest me instant receipes… (no cooking)
Hi Swetha,
Kindly check on the link below for travel food ideas dear. You can also check for instant mixes from our shop. Hope this helps. Happy and safe journey 🙂
Link – https://goo.gl/3DUmJH
Hi Doctor,
I m traveling to north india for a week with my 1 year old… i will not have access to kitchen would like to purchase a few instant packs from you. I haven’t introduced my baby to anyinstant foods. Could you please suggest me a few required ones please!
Hi dear, Thanks for choosing to purchase our products, you can choose and order from our instant packs here: https://goo.gl/MsrRpE
Hi
Could you suggest some veg food ideas for a 24hr train travel.. It is for a 1yr old kid.
Please check some of these options dear https://www.mylittlemoppet.com/homemade-travel-food-ideas-for-babies-and-toddlers/
Hi Hema madam,
As I m traveling out of my city for 15days with my 1.5 months old son.. Plz suggest some snacks for him..
Dear this article has most options for kids and you can also check on our site for some wonderful ways to keep kids engaged. Just type “Travel” in search box.
Hello Hema,
I will be travelling on a 10 days holiday to New Zealand with my 8 months son in November. Please suggest me instant food I can give him thrice a day. I am very much tensed about his health during our stay at that time.
Thanks in advance
Dear, while on travel the best bet is to feed, fruits, boiled potatoes, eggs, dry snacks (like biscuits which can be made and carried along). If you must feed outside you can take boiled rice and give along with curd, or some mashed fruit based on your kids preference. Also in most places now you get indian foods so that is another option you can pick while on travel. Don’t worry much, kids too adapt to changed food.
Hi Mam..We r traveling for 4 to 5 days confused about water how will boil water or can v give bisleri to 10 months baby..? As flask will serve purpose only for 1-2 days..plz help with other options?..
You can always request at some places restaurants etc. to help you with boiled water.
Hello
I was wondering if bottled mineral water should be boiled before being given to a 1 year old
You can give it like that also, as eventually we have to give them such water.
Thanks alot for this information…..
Hi !!
Quick qs !! For the porridge do we need to soak dal and rice then dry to make a powder ? Or we can directly powder it.
Thanks,
Akshita
Dear Akshita,
You can check the recipe here
Hi Hema,
These recipes were really helpful. Also please tell me how can we add sweetness to it. I have been using jaggery for my lil one. Now for these instant porridges, other than fruits what can be added for sweetness. Please help. Thank you
Yes fruit purees can be added for sweetness
Hi.. This post is very timely, we are travelling to Europe with my 15month old in July.
I am quiet confused about what food to give him and also Milk. The instant porridge recipe needs no cooking? just hot water will be enough? Pls share any other tips you have.
Apeksha
Hi apeksha,
Yes the instant porridges do not require cooking. Just add hot water and it is done,
hello ma’am!!
is warm water ok? for making instant porridges?
Hi Ritika,
The water has to be hot for cooking porridges or else the powder will not get cooked .
Hope this helps