Baby and toddler recipes
🍲 Caribbean chicken and sweet potato stew
A warm, fragrant stew of chicken thigh, sweet potato and kidney beans with thyme and a whisper of allspice. Mild, comforting and full of flavour without salt or chilli heat.
Makes about 6 baby portions
Ingredients
- 3 boneless thighs Chicken thigh (skin removed, diced)
- 1 medium Sweet potato (peeled, diced)
- ½ x 400g tin Kidney beans (no added salt, drained and rinsed)
- 1 Onion (chopped)
- ½ Red pepper (diced)
- 1 clove Garlic (crushed)
- 2 sprigs Thyme (fresh)
- 1 pinch Allspice (ground)
- 100ml Coconut milk
- 1 tsp Rapeseed oil
- Water (about 250ml)
Method
- Soften the onion and pepper in the oil for 8 minutes, then add the garlic and allspice.
- Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes, stirring.
- Add the sweet potato, thyme, coconut milk and water. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.
- Stir in the beans and cook for 5 to 10 minutes more until everything is very soft.
- Remove the thyme stalks, then shred the chicken and mash to your baby's texture.
Serving it to your baby
At 7 months, mash the beans and sweet potato and shred the chicken very finely. From 10 months, offer soft pieces to pick up, with beans squashed flat.
For the rest of the family
Add a whole scotch bonnet to the pot for the adults after the baby portion is removed (or cook it separately), plus salt to taste. Serve with rice and peas.
Storing and reheating
Cool quickly (within an hour), then keep covered in the fridge for up to 2 days or freeze in baby portions for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge, reheat until steaming hot all the way through, stir well and let it cool before serving. Never reheat more than once.
Weaning with OBubba
Plan meals and log what your baby loved.
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Questions parents ask
Can babies have coconut milk?
Yes, tinned coconut milk is fine in cooking from around 6 months. It is not suitable as a drink for babies.
Why rinse tinned beans?
Rinsing removes some of the salty, starchy liquid. Choose tins labelled no added salt or sugar.
OBubba gives general information based on UK guidance. It is not medical advice and does not diagnose anything. Every baby is different. If your baby has a known allergy, severe eczema or a medical condition, speak to your doctor or health visitor before starting solids. Learn baby first aid, and in an emergency call your local emergency number (999 in the UK).