Today I can not make an assessment of the percentage (and how they are organized) of centers in which students are allowed to eat the menu that their parents have prepared, although it is true that in some places the regulation is He has done a little precipitously, and by scarce information even after starting the course.
But today we are not going to talk about these aspects of organization, or about the rates imposed in some autonomies for eating 'tupper' in school. Actually we wanted to be a little more practical and offer information on how to get a balanced menu to take to school. Not long ago in Spain manual workers brought their lunch boxes with lunch at noon, or received the visit of their children who brought them a nutritious freshly prepared dish, there has also been an earlier time when school canteens accepted children who They brought the menu prepared at home.
In Japan that tradition has never been lost, to the point that the famous 'Bento' can be found nowadays prepared in some stores, although in many families the custom of elaborating very balanced menus is preserved (You know how healthy Japanese food is) to take to the office or school.
Menu planning and hygiene in preparation
The most advisable thing is to plan the menus weekly, to check at a glance that the noon meal we offer is balanced. In addition the menus must be varied and organized.
What does balanced mean? From the point of view of the nutritional pyramid, Tarteras must contain foods from all groups (carbohydrates, proteins, olive oil such as fat, vitamins).
And as for the preparation, The first recommendation is hygiene: It seems obvious but when we cook food the hands should be washed before, and also after handling different dishes, we will also clean the utensils well.
We will wash the vegetables well and cook the meat sufficiently (the juice of the meat should appear clear and not pink). Egg dishes should be well set so that the microbes do not develop inside.
The best way to make sure we are preparing the food in good condition is to cook in advance, which will ensure that we have time to let cool and take to the refrigerator until the next morning
- A few minutes before leaving for school we will place the lunch boxes in an isothermal bag, and if the journey is long we will also introduce an ice accumulator. Once at school, those responsible for the canteen service already take care of the children putting their meals in the refrigerator.
Common sense is that the recipient is identified with the child's name
What do I put to eat?
Let's start by pointing out what is 'not suitable' for children's health: it is forbidden to resort to the sandwich or fried regularly. We can reserve that for a special occasion or a sporadic day, but do not resort to this solution on a daily basis.
From Faros (from the Sant Joan de Déu hospital) they indicate that it will be easy prepare unique dishes that include four to six groups and food, using different cooking techniques to make it more varied. It can be completed with a raw salad, and bread. For dessert we will preferably include seasonal fruits.
Always semi-raw or undercooked foods will be avoided (with the exception of vegetables, of course) to preserve children from a possible microbial or bacterial infection. This also excludes sauces made with raw eggs.
Think that there are not too many limitations when cooking for the lunch box of the school: rice, pasta al dente, tortillas, legumes, purees, meat or fish stew ...
It is important to know that the lunch box must be just the right size so that the food does not move inside, and that there are containers with varied compartments that are most suitable for a complete meal
Any ideas ?, you can look for them in De Rechupete, in l'Hora del Tupper ... and in many other places. Our colleagues from Directo al Paladar also published a post on the subject a few days ago.
Ideas for success
The aforementioned planning is indispensable, and we can also include the kids in it: So we can include your preferences (as long as we don't talk about insane foods) and ideas. And of course do not include foods that the family does not eat: it makes no sense to put beans with ham, if nobody at home has the habit of taking these vegetables, in any case we should first accustom them to appreciate other foods and textures to which they are habituated
In the isothermal bag the bottle of water must also be included, different from the one they carry for drinking during recess
Children should receive explanations from their parents that include: heating the food only once in the microwave, salting the food when necessary after removing it from the mic to eat, and dressing the raw vegetables just before eating them.
Although we don't have much habit of present the 'tupper' in a fun way, in other places it is considered that this encourages the attractiveness for the child... look but these photos, and tell me if they are not appetizing. It seems that in Japan even competitions are organized to assess the best prepared lunch box.
To start, let's strive to combine different flavors and colors
That the feeding is not incomplete
It is very important that you have a good breakfast at home, and that they do it by ingesting food that gives them energy to endure the first part of the school day. And we will also give them a snack for recreation (a small snack, a piece of fruit or a bag with bread sticks).
Knowing firsthand that children have breakfast and eat, it will be easier to organize snacks (fruit, dairy or hydrates taking into account the groups that have already eaten) and dinners, always light.
I have heard opinions from some nutritionists who warn about the risk that eating lunchboxes may trigger childhood obesity rates. Actually I think that if it is well planned it doesn't have to be that way. In addition, many carbohydrates have been abusing carbohydrates with little presence of vegetables and fish, so in this sense it may even be healthier.
It is definitely that the lunch box is healthy, and that the children are well fed with nutritionally balanced menus. Let's think that nobody better than parents (with the right information) knows how to feed their children well.
Images | Kelly Sue, I Love Egg, Bunches and Bits on Flickr In Peques and More | Starting next year, many students will be able to take food from home to the school canteen, Back to school with Tupperware products In Babies and More | What to put in the tupper for school food?
