I believe it’s important to include your family in the kitchen activities you do. Adding some interactive meal ideas (based on your favorite family-friendly recipes) to the menu helps the family have fun together while eating really good food too! Besides being efficient (or just having the company), having your people in the kitchen with you opens up a million opportunities. Whether you have a large family or not, this is your chance to feed into each other, grow together, build your dreams & create a long-lasting legacy.
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One easy way to bring your family along is to make & eat really good food together at the dinner table. Here are 130 different interactive meal ideas you can add to your menus on busy weeknights that give every family member a chance to participate. Plus, these easy dinner ideas aren’t going to break the bank or leave you bored of the same ole’, same ole’.
To make this easy, I sorted the interactive meal ideas into 4 categories of easy family dinners. And I think a great way to use these suggestions are as inspiration & encouragement to try new foods. Each of these will be fairly easy recipe to try on any weeknight dinner & even picky eaters won’t resist! Your ticket to visit places around the world through their cuisine. Maybe even try a new cooking technique!
If you’re not sure how to actually incorporate your family into these meal ideas, here’s a few pointers.
How to Use Interactive Meals in Your Kitchen
Break each meal idea down to its components & assign that to your family members who are interested/capable of doing those tasks themselves. You can pair family members together so those who aren’t as skilled yet can learn or practice with one who is. You can some as an easy dinner recipe, others as just a delicious dinner for a special weeknight to remember. Another nice feature is that pairing off is especially helpful when you make a quick meal or favor 30-minute meals instead of longer ones. Sheet pan meals actually are legit here for having multiple hands on deck.
For example, here’s what you can do if you choose to make chicken pot pie with biscuit tops instead of the traditional flaky pastry. This is actually one of a few very kid-friendly dinner ideas too, btw.
Food Prep: washing, peeling & dicing veggies (& meat), shredding cheeses. You can make 5 tasks out of that or if your family is small enough, you all can take turns. During this part, you can highlight the importance of keeping raw meat separate from the produce & proper cleaning of all the kitchen tools afterwards too!
Equipment Prep: Washing and/or buttering dishes or muffin pans, preheating the oven or preparing a wood stove, gathering utensils like the produce peeler, cheese grater, bowls, etc. All these things need tending to. And if you’re making a one-pot dinner, there’s still prep to do elsewhere in the kitchen.
Cooking & Assembly: Sauteing or roasting veggies, making a roux (or gravy, basically the sauce of a pot pie) & searing the meat are all tasks too. And let’s not forget making (or cutting) biscuit dough for the crust!
If there’s a task no one is prepared or willing to do, there’s always the role of storyteller & photographer! Have one family member take photos as you all buzz about. And while you’re capturing the moments like this, go ahead & start adding them to your kitchen journal. It will make an incredible family heirloom somewhere down the line. Matta fact, a lot of these are really delicious recipes that are worth putting together in a recipe box & passing on down. OR passing around your entire family so everyone gets to enjoy them!
Interactive Meal Ideas Category #1 – Make Your Own Meals
These simple meal ideas are quick wins when it comes to including your family in the kitchen because everyone makes something of their own in the end so there’s less fussing. The assembly-style meals are perfect for being creative & daring. And maybe also for using up leftovers in the fridge too for a healthy dinner at that! Try mixing & matching flavor profiles for something epic (if not unforgettable!).
What I really like about this category is how it almost forces independence in a way. Since everyone makes their own meal to some extent, how good (or not) it tastes depends on what they know so far. What they have learned about flavor profiles, veggie & meat (or fruit) pairings, how long to cook something for & how to cook it. This is DIY cooking. Although not everything will require a stove or oven, it will require each family member to think about their food & take responsibility for it if they want to like what they eat.
Pizza
- Homemade Pizza Night
- Make-your-own calzones
- Build-your-own flatbread pizzas (an easy way to use leftover chicken thighs)
- Pizza pocket assembly
Salad / Soup / Warm & Cozy
- DIY salad bar with mixed greens & toppings (maybe even rotisserie chicken for a quick uplift)
- Salad Wraps with Assorted Fillings
- Build-your-own chili bowls (with ground beef, ground turkey or chicken breasts!)
- Build-your-own veggie-loaded chili
Breakfast (come on now. THIS is that!)
- Customized Omelette Station (Build-your-own omelet bar)
- DIY fruit and yogurt parfaits
- Breakfast tacos with assorted fillings
- DIY baked goods like cookies or muffins (especially the ones topped with brown sugar streusel, gahhhh)
- DIY breakfast hash with Italian sausage potatoes and assorted toppings
Sandwiches
- DIY Sandwich Bar (think hot or cold. If you’re a meatloaf fan, they make great sandwiches the next day!)
- Build-Your-Own Burger Bar
- Sandwich and wrap assembly
- Soup and sandwich combos
- DIY gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches
- Build-your-own sliders with mini buns and assorted fillings
- DIY hot dog bar with assorted toppings
- Make-your-own sub sandwiches
- Make-your-own black bean burgers with assorted toppings
Tacos
- Build-Your-Own Tacos or Sheet pan chicken fajitas
- Taco Bowl Buffet (or Taco salad bowls!)
- Burrito Wraps with Toppings
- Taco soup with various garnishes
- Build-your-own burrito bowls with Mexican or cheddar cheese & sour cream
- Build-your-own quesadillas
- Tostada night with assorted toppings
- DIY taco cups with wonton wrappers
- Nachos with customizable toppings
- DIY burrito bar with assorted fillings and wraps
Other assembly-style options
- Baked potato bar with assorted toppings
- DIY spring rolls with assorted fillings
- Shepherd’s pie assembly
- Stuffed peppers with assorted fillings
- DIY loaded baked sweet potatoes
- DIY meat and cheese platter
- Build-your-own stuffed acorn squash
Rice / Grain / Noodles
- Macaroni and cheese bar
- DIY curry bowls with rice and various curries
- DIY sushi stacks with rice and seafood
- DIY ramen bowls with noodles, broth, and toppings
- DIY poke bowls with rice, vegetables, and seafood
- DIY Sushi Night
- Pasta bar with various sauces and toppings (Pinterest is flooded with pasta recipes)
- DIY grain bowls with quinoa or farro
- Build-your-own grain salads with assorted toppings
Interactive Meal Ideas Category #2 – Cooking Projects with Kids
The beauty in this category is that any of these delicious meal/snack ideas is almost like play time. Kids will love it but so will you! Although I can’t guarantee there won’t be at least a few small messes to clean up afterwards. Never underestimate your small humans. They might be some of the pickiest eaters, but they are more capable than you might realize.
And the good news is that they’re often very eager to help or learn more. So the easiest way to capitalize on that energy is by putting it to work! These kid-friendly recipes are where quality time meets busy moms who just want really good food to eat.
Mains
- Mini Pizzas with Fun Toppings
- DIY Quesadillas
- DIY chicken nuggets with assorted coatings & dipping sauces
- Build-your-own veggie and cheese pizza pockets
- Make-your-own veggie-packed macaroni salad
- Make-your-own veggie-packed frittata
- DIY veggie and cheese stuffed pasta shells
- DIY black bean and corn quesadillas
- Build-your-own veggie-packed wraps with assorted fillings
- Chicken pot pie filling with biscuits on top
- DIY chicken and vegetable skewers
Sweets
- Cookie Decorating Party
- Cupcake Decorating Contest
- Rainbow Fruit Kabobs
- Chocolate-Dipped Fruit Creations
Breakfast
- Decorate-Your-Own Pancakes
- Breakfast for dinner (pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon)
- Make-your-own crepes with sweet and savory fillings
Unique
- DIY Veggie Sushi Rolls
- Homemade Pasta Shapes
- Edible Art with Veggie Faces
- Make-your-own veggie-packed spaghetti & parmesan cheese sauce
- Make-your-own Mediterranean pasta salad with plenty of feta cheese
Interactive Meal Idea Category #3 – Family Cooking Adventures
The sky is the limit here. You might start to see a familiar theme around using common ingredients (like rice, pasta or tortillas) to make all sorts of things. And if you’re making any of your own food, these are the perfect recipes to use to start cooking from scratch! Add in fresh basil or green onions from your garden.
I think the best way to feed hungry mouths is to give their taste buds a handful of ingredients pulled as close to home & fresh as possible; a real taste of home you know? A homemade version of nearly any recipe will make even simple ingredients like olive oil & tomato sauce taste delicious.
On busy nights, I like to opt for a simple recipe that can come together pretty quickly. And the main ingredients don’t have to be fancy or anything hello! You can turn any number of chicken recipes or air fryer recipes into a winner!
So go for the ultimate comfort food of mac and cheese or pork chops seasoned with garlic powder & fried til golden brown & topped with creamy gravy. The best part is going to be doing it together.
When I first learned how ridiculously easy it is to make tortillas, I stopped buying them from the store in bulk. We also started eating a lot more Mexican & Spanish foods too! I love exercising my cook from scratch muscle but I also get immense joy seeing my toddler crank down the tortilla press when we make homemade corn masa tortillas for taco Tuesday.
Tacos (& the like)
- DIY Taco Cups
- Fajita night with chicken or shrimp or steak recipes
- Build-your-own empanadas
- Build-your-own enchiladas with assorted fillings and sauces
- Family Nacho Fiesta
Pizza-ish
- Family Flatbread Pizza Night
- DIY Mediterranean flatbreads with hummus and veggies
- Make-your-own bruschetta with assorted toppings
- Make-your-own crostinis with assorted toppings
Stuff-able / Assembly-style hearty meal ideas
- Build-your-own shepherd’s pie with mashed potato topping
- Make-your-own stuffed mushrooms with assorted fillings
- Build-your-own stuffed zucchini boats
- DIY veggie and cheese stuffed cabbage rolls
- Build-your-own stuffed bell peppers
- DIY veggie and cheese stuffed mushrooms
- Make-your-own Mediterranean stuffed tomatoes
- Make-your-own Mediterranean stuffed squash
Rice / Grain / Noodles
- Family Stir-Fry Night
- Rice bowl bar with different proteins and veggies
- Make-your-own pot stickers with assorted fillings
- Make-your-own veggie stir-fry with assorted vegetables and sauces
- Family Pasta Making
- Pasta bar with various sauces and toppings
- Make-your-own veggie-packed lasagna
- Make-your-own ratatouille with assorted vegetables
- DIY eggplant parmesan with marinara and cheese
- DIY Rice Bowl Buffet
- Rice bowl bar with different proteins and veggies
- DIY Sushi Rolls
- DIY salad rolls with rice paper wrappers and assorted fillings
Other
- Homemade Bread Baking
- Homemade Soup Party
- DIY Baked Potato Bar
- DIY vegetable and tofu lettuce wraps
- DIY shrimp boil with assorted seafood and vegetable (the cooking process here is ridiculously easy since it generally all boils together. Just use aluminum foil for easy clean up)
Interactive Meal Ideas Category #4 – Exploring Global Cuisines
This is my favorite category because my husband & I really love great food. He’s the one who pulled me out of my shell when it comes to trying different foods. I was hands-down forever gonna be a chicken strip & french fry, quesadilla loving kind of girl.
Unless Ma made spaghetti or meatloaf & mashed potatoes. My taste in food just wasn’t varied when we first met. Food is just one of those things I rarely take a risk on because I value it so much. So when I experiment, 99.9999% of the time, it’s off his plate. (Thanks, Husbo!)
Because we may not get to every destination on our travel bucket wish list, we’re learning how to make some of these foods at home. And you can too! Opt to include some of these every week or just once a month into your meal plan/menu.
Making a Lemongrass Chicken & Sweet Potato Coconut Curry (Vietnam) dish
However you choose to do it though, be sure you’ve already referenced the foods you have on hand. Shop your pantry/cantry first! This makes the most of your time & money (& appliances) by using those things first. It’s not necessary or even wise to build a menu that would require you to purchase 95% of the food on it if you have food in your cabinets already hello. You won’t save money eating that way.
And remember, because these are interactive complete meal ideas to include your whole family in, carefully read through recipes.
Make proper substitutions or use a different recipe if something is called for that you know won’t go over well with the fam. There’s a fine balance between encouraging your family to try new foods & forcing it on them.
Don’t be that person please.
Europe
- Make-your-own veggie-packed paella
- Spanish Tapas Feast
- Greek Mezze Platter
- Mediterranean mezze platter with hummus, falafel, and pita
- DIY Mediterranean grain bowls with couscous or bulgur
- DIY Mediterranean wraps with falafel or grilled chicken
- DIY Mediterranean stuffed eggplant
- Italian Pasta Night
North America / Africa
- Mexican Fiesta Dinner
- Moroccan Tagine Party
Asia
(You might be able to find some of the in grocery stores or international markets if you want to try them out first instead.)
- Thai Curry Night (coconut milk makes this ohhh so creamy!)
- Indian Spice Adventure
- Japanese Ramen Night
- DIY sushi burritos – don’t forget the soy sauce!
- DIY bibimbap bowls with rice, vegetables, and protein
- DIY Vietnamese fresh spring rolls with shrimp & vegetables
- DIY Asian lettuce wraps with assorted fillings
- DIY Vietnamese noodle bowls with grilled meat like five-spice steak and vegetables
- Build-your-own veggie and tofu noodle bowls
- Build-your-own veggie and tofu stir-fry
- Build-your-own veggie and tofu rice paper rolls
- Chinese Stir-Fry Dinner
- Lebanese Mezze Night
- Antipasto platter with meats, cheeses, and olives
Here are 2 globally inspired dishes great for beginners that we’ve created at home & loved. They may not be the most interactive, but they are incredibly delicious!
- Crispy Caramelized Pork Crumbles (Vietnam) from Vietnamese Everyday by Andrea Nguyen
- Coconut Chicken Noodle Soup (Burma)
These meal ideas should help you shake things up a bit.
Plus, what better way to encourage your family members to join you in the kitchen too.
Now here are a few ideas on how to include your family in the kitchen plus tips on meal planning for success!
🌱 Start Small. Start Now. Start where you are with what you have. The rest will follow. 🌱
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WOW POOK! I don’t know where to begin! Dad and I fixed a pot of turkey chili last night, with cheese and sour cream toppings and warm cornbread on the side. It was so delicious; and I don’t have to cook today!
We’re gonna try new dishes together or by myself when he’s working and we’re excited!I have to admit having a beautiful daughter who began LOVING the kitchen at the tender age of 4 has helped me to at least be interested in what we eat and it’s been fun. Your Dad and I have so much to be thankful for. The BECOMING TRADITIONAL woman and her precious family are at the top of that list!
Awww thank you so much! And I’m glad you enjoyed the chili – I know it was good! It’s one of our faves here.