Let me start by saying this is purely a guide to help you safely prepare food for your baby. There is no black and white way to prepare and introduce food to your baby (if you’ve read my other blogs you’ll notice this is a big theme through them). So this blog is mostly a guide for you to prepare food for your baby that reduces the risk of choking. There are some big no-no’s when it comes to baby food, and I think it’s good all parents understand those.

However it’s important to note that you can never fully negate the risk of choking, and you must always be with your baby when they are eating food. It is also important to know the difference between choking and gagging - if you don’t yet know, please sign up for my free webinar, where we cover this in detail.

With that in mind, you’ve got to consider each food individually. Texture, firmness, are they easy to break down, are they super slippery? And while that sounds like a lot of things to consider, it’s mostly a little bit of common sense. And if you’re not sure, err on the side of caution.

What are high-risk foods for baby choking?

The harder, slipperier, tougher to chew or break down, the more risk there is of your baby choking on the food. You also need to take into account the size of the food - smaller foods can quickly and easily be inhaled by accident, whereas larger sizes can be held and chewed on at the same time.

This does not mean you can’t offer your baby these hard/small/slippery foods, but you do need to prepare them in a way that is safe for their eating experience.

Modifying hard foods for babies

If the hard food is a nut or something that cannot be cooked, use them as a flour instead - and make yummy nut-flour muffins
Alternatively use nuts in nut butters - small portions the size of your fingernail
Hard vegetables that are raw, can often be steamed or roasted to be nice and soft
Prepare any cooked vegetables into sticks around the size of your finger
Harder fruits such as apples, pears etc can be stewed and mixed with yoghurt (my kids FAVE way to have fruit!)

Modifying small foods for babies

Berries can be mashed, or placed in a smoothie - blueberries, raspberries, strawberries
Strawberries can be cut into small sizes, about the size of your pinkie fingernail
Grapes can be cut into small sizes, about the size of your pinkie fingernail
Best to avoid foods with a pit unless you can easily de-pit them

Modifying chewy foods for babies

Dried fruit - best to avoid until they have the teeth and oral swallowing capacity down pat
Dates and dried fruit can be blended as part of a smoothie or put in a muffin to be cooked
Nut butters need to be provided in small quantities - about the size of your pinkie fingernail
Many don’t realise but fresh bread can be quite chewy for babies - best to introduce toast in finger-sized portions, and best to wait until 12 months
Cheese can also be chewy - best grated or thinly sliced

Modifying slippery foods for babies

Tomatoes are best introduced cooked early on, but can be cut up small fingernail size pieces after 12 months
Melons can be cut into finger-sized pieces for easy chewing and handling, or put into a smoothie
Cucumbers are best avoided until over 12 months of age

Further recommendations on safely preparing food for your baby based on age

6-9 Months Old Baby Food Preparation

Babies at this age are very much beginners! They are learning what food feels like in their mouth, how to break it down with their toothless little gums, how to swallow, how to gag appropriately, and of course what things taste like.

Purees are a great place to start, which is basically just mashed or blended food. If you prefer baby-led weaning, then larger pieces are best at this age. They need to have enough food to hold onto it while also mouthing some of it. Small pieces of food are not a good idea and do pose a choking risk.

In general, you want to have food to be the size and length of 1-2 of your fingers and to either be soft, or hard to break down (such as steak, which they will more likely suck than chew). Cook hard fruits and vegetables until soft.

9-12 months Old Baby Food Preparation

This is the age your baby develops a pincer grip, which enables them to be much more specific with how they interact with their food. They will be able to pick up smaller pieces between their pointer finger and thumb, and will have learnt how to put that food in their mouth. It is a good time to reduce spoon-feeding them puree, unless you’ve been allowing them to try and feed themselves. Self-feeding is encouraged at this age.

As teeth come in, your baby will be able to break food apart and chew it, so smaller sizes are actually better. However, it’s still important that food is soft and easy for their little mouths to manage. Thinly sliced foods, or those which can be picked up in a pincer grip, are good for 9 month old babies onwards.

12-18 months Baby Food Preparation

This is when the fun truly begins! And if you haven’t got it already, you’ll notice my baby food ebook shows you ways to cook one meal for the whole family. You really can give your baby modified versions of what you eat from the moment you start, but it does become easier once they are 1 year old and above.

You still need to be softening hard foods. Babies over 12 months of age can handle shredded food - carrot, cheese, meat, and smaller diced foods that they can pick at themselves. You may find by 12 months, or many by 18 months, will want to spoon feed themselves with utensils, and will start mimicking how you eat. This is especially true if you eat at the same time as them, and eat similar foods.