How To Get Your Kids Excited About Dinner: Geography Lessons Through Food

If you've got a little fusspot, or a child who eats the same thing on repeat, chances are all the usual tactics of persuasion and coercion just don't work. But there is a secret weapon you can use to try to get them to taste something new and get them excited about the food they eat – cooking together and making it fun. It's that simple. Get them involved in the recipes, teach them about where the food has come from, get them interested in which country the dish originated. Get the interested in different flavours with these easy-to-make recipes: THAILAND Mango salad Ingredients 425g/15oz can of mango slices 2 spring onions/scallions 1/2 cup fresh coriander 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon sweet chilli dripping sauce (optional, depending on their taste for spiciness) 2 tablespoons blanched peanuts 1 little gem lettuce Method 1. Pat the mango dry with paper towels, then cut it into 1cm chunks using a table knife. 2. Top and tail the spring onions/scallions using a scissor, then cut the white parts into small rings. 3. Chop the coriander using a scissors 4. Add all to a serving bowl with the grated ginger, lemon juice, oil, and chilli. Mix with a spoon. 5. Put the peanuts into a strong plastic food bag and gently hold the end closed. Smash them with a rolling pin to break them into smaller pieces. 6. When you are ready to eat, pull the leaves off the lettuce and spoon the salad into the middle of the leaves and sprinkle with the peanuts. MEXICO Slow cooked pulled pork stand 'n' stuff pork tacos Ingredients 1 Old El Paso™ Stand ‘N’ Stuff Soft Flour Tortillas 450 g pork shoulder roasting joint 120 ml Chicken Stock 2 tbsp oil Old El Paso™ Taco Seasoning Mix 1 lettuce 125 g Grated Cheese 1 Old El Paso™ Sliced Green Jalapeños Method 1. Slow cook your pork Lightly grease slow cooker with cooking spray and trim pork shoulder of any excess fat. Then carefully mix the oil with the seasoning mix, and brush all over the meat. Pour your chicken stock over the meat and then cook on high heat for 4-5 hours, or low heat for 8 to 9 hours, or until pork is tender and cooked throughout. 2. Prepare your toppings Shred your lettuce and place into a bowl ready for serving, along with your jalapenos and grated cheese. 3. Shred your pork Remove your pork from the slow cooker and place onto a wooden board or plate. Next, take 2 forks and gently start to pull the pork apart. Repeat until all the pork has been pulled. For extra flavour, you can pour some of the excess meat juices back over the shredded pork and combine. 4. Warm it up Take the tortillas out of their packaging – it is important not to oven heat or microwave the soft tortilla shells in the plastic packaging. To heat in the microwave, put them on a microwaveable plate, on full power, for 30 seconds. To oven heat, pre-heat the over to 165⁰C (same for fan assisted ovens) / gas mark 3 and wrap the tortilla shells in foil before placing on a baking tray in the oven for 7-9 minutes. 5. Stand, Fill & Top Fill your Stand ‘N’ Stuff Soft Flour Tortillas with your slow cook pork filling and top with your freshly shredded lettuce, grated cheese, and jalapeños! Mandarin ice-cream Ingredients 1 cup mascarpone 3/4 cup plain yoghurt 1 tablespoon clear honey 8 mandarin segments 3 fresh basil leaves   Method 1. Put the mascarpone into the freezer container. Using the back of a fork, smash it up with the yoghurt and whisk until  you have a smooth mixture. 2. Add the honest (or you could use agave nectar) and whisk again. 3. Cut the mandarin segments into smaller pieces in a cup, using a scissors, then add them to the mix. Tear the basil leaves into pieces and add. Mix in the fruit and leaves with a spoon. 4. Put on the lid, then out the container in the freezer for 1 hour. 5. Stir again, then put it back into the freer for another 2 hours or overnight. Ice cream and salad recipes from The World in My Kitchen, by Sally Brown and Kate Morris.  Sponsored by Old El Paso. For more fun Old El Paso recipes to have with the family click here. Watch how to make amazing beef tacos with the help of Yvonne Connolly below.