If you have picky eaters at home, you already know that deciding what to make for dinner can sometimes feel harder than actually cooking it. You want something healthy and nourishing, but you also don’t want to spend an hour making a beautiful dinner only for the kids to take one look at it and ask for toast!
That’s exactly why I put together this 7-day healthy dinner plan for picky eaters. These aren’t complicated “perfect parent” meals filled with ingredients your kids have never heard of. They’re simple, familiar family dinners made a little healthier, with plenty of opportunities to sneak in extra vegetables or simply serve them on the side.
Think hidden-veggie beef pasta, cheesy chicken quesadillas, homemade chicken nuggets and wedges, creamy chicken pasta, cheeseburger bowls, salmon patties and easy homemade pizza wraps.
Most importantly, everything can be adapted to suit your family. If your child doesn’t like broccoli mixed through their pasta, serve it separately. If they only want cheese in their quesadilla, start there and offer the chicken alongside it. If they love building their own dinner, let them choose what goes into their cheeseburger bowl or pizza wrap.
The goal isn’t to create a “perfect” plate every night. It’s to make family dinners easy, nutritious, affordable and a little less stressful — while continuing to introduce kids to different foods without turning the dinner table into a battle.
So here are 7 easy dinners for 7 nights, all designed to feed a family of four and make that dreaded “What’s for dinner?” question a whole lot easier.
DAY 1: Hidden-Veggie Beef Pasta
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Serves: 4
This is the meal I’d start the week with because it’s familiar, filling and incredibly easy.
The carrot and zucchini cook right into the tomato sauce, so they’re much less noticeable than having vegetables sitting separately on the plate.
Ingredients
- 500 g beef mince
- 300 g pasta
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 medium carrot, finely grated
- 1 medium zucchini, finely grated
- 700 g passata
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Grated Parmesan or cheddar, for serving
Method
- Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.
- Add the onion and cook for around 3 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
- Add the beef mince. Break it apart with a wooden spoon and cook until completely browned.
- Add your grated carrot and zucchini. Cook for another 4–5 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Pour in the passata and tomato paste and add the Italian herbs.
- Reduce the heat and allow the sauce to gently simmer for around 10–15 minutes.
- Drain your pasta and stir it through the sauce.
- Serve with a little grated cheese on top.
Picky Eater Tip
Use the finest side of your grater for the carrot and zucchini.
If texture is a major issue, you can even blend the vegetable and tomato mixture before adding it to the beef.
DAY 2: Chicken & Cheese Quesadillas
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Serves: 4
Anything involving melted cheese and crispy tortillas tends to go down pretty well in our house.
The great thing about quesadillas is that you can customise each one.
Ingredients
- 4 large flour tortillas
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
- 1½ cups grated cheese
- ½ carrot, finely grated
- ½ cup corn kernels
- Olive oil spray
- Avocado or guacamole, optional
- Greek yoghurt or sour cream, optional
- Cucumber sticks, to serve
Method
- Place the shredded chicken into a bowl.
- Add the grated carrot and corn and mix together.
- Lay a tortilla flat and sprinkle cheese over one half.
- Add some chicken mixture and another small sprinkle of cheese.
- Fold the tortilla in half.
- Heat a frying pan over medium heat and lightly spray with olive oil.
- Cook the quesadilla for around 2–3 minutes on each side until golden and crispy and the cheese has melted.
- Cut into triangles.
Serve with avocado, cucumber or Greek yoghurt.
Picky Eater Tip
Make dinner interactive.
Put chicken, cheese, corn and other toppings into separate bowls and let the kids decide what goes inside their quesadilla.
DAY 3: Homemade Chicken Nuggets & Potato Wedges
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 25–30 minutes
Serves: 4
Chicken nuggets don’t have to disappear from the menu just because you’re trying to make healthier family dinners.
Making them yourself means you know exactly what’s going into them.
Ingredients
Chicken Nuggets
- 600 g chicken breast
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- ½ cup finely grated Parmesan
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil spray
Potato Wedges
- 4 medium potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Method
Preheat your oven to 200°C and line a large baking tray.
Cut the potatoes into wedges.
Toss them with olive oil, paprika and garlic powder and spread them over one side of the tray.
Bake for around 10 minutes while you prepare the chicken.
Cut the chicken into small nugget-sized pieces.
Whisk the eggs in one bowl.
In another bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic powder and paprika.
Dip each chicken piece into the egg followed by the breadcrumb mixture.
Place onto your baking tray and lightly spray with olive oil.
Bake everything for another 15–20 minutes, turning halfway, until the chicken is completely cooked and the wedges are golden.
Serve with cucumber and carrot sticks, peas or corn.
Picky Eater Tip
Keep the vegetables separate rather than piling everything together.
Sometimes a plate containing separate nuggets, wedges, cucumber and sauce feels much safer to a picky eater than a complicated mixed meal.
DAY 4: Creamy Chicken & Broccoli Pasta
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Creamy pasta is another brilliant base for gradually introducing vegetables.
Broccoli works particularly well because you can leave larger pieces for adults while chopping the kids’ portion really finely.
Ingredients
- 300 g pasta
- 400 g chicken breast, diced
- 1 small head broccoli
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 150 g cream cheese
- ¾ cup milk
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Method
- Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- Chop the broccoli into small florets.
- Add the broccoli to the pasta water during the final 3 minutes of cooking.
- Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan.
- Add the chicken and cook until golden and completely cooked through.
- Add the garlic and cook for around 30 seconds.
- Reduce the heat and stir in the cream cheese and milk.
- Add the Parmesan and stir until you have a smooth creamy sauce.
- Drain the pasta and broccoli and add them to the chicken mixture.
- Stir everything together and season lightly.
Picky Eater Tip
If your child doesn’t like seeing broccoli in their pasta, don’t force it into the dish.
Give them creamy chicken pasta and put one or two tiny pieces of broccoli alongside it.
They can decide whether they want to try them.
DAY 5: Mini Beef Cheeseburger Bowls
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Serves: 4
This might be my favourite meal of the week for picky eaters because everyone gets to build their own dinner.
Think of it as a deconstructed cheeseburger.
Ingredients
- 500 g beef mince
- 500 g potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 1 cucumber, sliced
- 1–2 tomatoes, chopped
- Lettuce
- 1 avocado, optional
- Corn, optional
- Tomato sauce, for serving
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Cut your potatoes into small cubes.
Toss with olive oil and a little paprika and roast for around 25 minutes, or until golden.
Meanwhile, cook the beef mince in a frying pan.
Once browned, add the tomato paste, garlic powder and paprika and cook for another few minutes.
Prepare all your toppings in separate little bowls.
Put the beef, potatoes, cheese, cucumber, tomato, lettuce and avocado on the table.
Let everyone create their own cheeseburger bowl.
Picky Eater Tip
Don’t worry if your child’s bowl looks ridiculously simple.
Beef + potatoes + cheese is still dinner.
Put the vegetables on the table and allow them to explore without pressure.
DAY 6: Easy Salmon Patties & Salad
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 10–15 minutes
Serves: 4
Salmon patties are a really easy way to introduce fish because the texture and presentation can feel more familiar than a large piece of fish on the plate.
Ingredients
- 425 g canned salmon, drained
- 1 egg
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 small zucchini, finely grated
- 1 small carrot, finely grated
- 2 spring onions, finely chopped, optional
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
To Serve
- Cucumber
- Cherry tomatoes
- Lettuce
- Lemon wedges
- Greek yoghurt or mayonnaise
Method
- Drain the salmon thoroughly and place it into a bowl.
- Break it apart with a fork.
- Squeeze excess moisture from the grated zucchini.
- Add the zucchini, carrot, egg, breadcrumbs and garlic powder to the salmon.
- Mix everything together.
- Shape into approximately 8 small patties.
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
- Cook the patties for around 3–4 minutes per side, until golden and heated through.
Serve with a simple salad and yoghurt or mayonnaise for dipping.
Picky Eater Tip
Make the patties small.
Mini foods can sometimes feel less intimidating than putting one huge salmon patty onto a child’s plate.
DAY 7: Veggie-Loaded Pizza Wraps
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Serves: 4
Friday-night pizza energy without having to make pizza dough.
These are incredibly easy and they’re also a great end-of-week meal for using up whatever vegetables are still sitting in the fridge.
Ingredients
- 4 large wraps
- ½–¾ cup passata
- 1½ cups grated mozzarella or tasty cheese
- 100 g cooked chicken or ham, optional
- Capsicum, finely diced
- Mushrooms, finely sliced
- Baby spinach, chopped
- Corn
- Pineapple, optional
- Dried Italian herbs
You don’t need all of these toppings — just use whatever your family likes.
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Place the wraps onto lined baking trays.
Spread a thin layer of passata over each wrap.
Sprinkle over some cheese.
Add your chosen toppings.
Finish with another small sprinkle of cheese and Italian herbs.
Bake for around 8–10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the edges are crispy.
Slice into pizza wedges.
Picky Eater Tip
This is another meal where I’d let the kids make their own.
Give them a plain wrap with tomato sauce and cheese and put small bowls of toppings on the table.
Even if they don’t choose vegetables this time, they’re still seeing and interacting with them.
Your 7-Day Family Dinner Shopping List
Meat, Fish & Eggs
Fruit & Vegetables
- 3–4 carrots
- 2 zucchini
- 1 broccoli
- 1 lettuce
- 2 cucumbers
- Tomatoes/cherry tomatoes
- 2 onions
- 1 bulb garlic
- 1 avocado
- 1 kg potatoes
- Baby spinach
- Capsicum
- Mushrooms
- Corn
- Spring onions
- Lemon
- Pineapple, optional
Fridge
- Large bag grated cheese
- Parmesan
- Cream cheese
- Milk
- Greek yoghurt
Pantry
- 2 packets pasta
- 1 packet large tortillas/wraps
- 2 jars/bottles passata
- Tomato paste
- Breadcrumbs
- Olive oil
- Italian herbs
- Garlic powder
- Paprika
- Tomato sauce
A Final Note About Feeding Picky Eaters
If there’s one thing I’d take away from this meal plan, it’s that healthy family dinners don’t have to look perfect.
Your child doesn’t need to eat every ingredient on the plate for dinner to be a success.
Keep serving familiar foods alongside new foods. Let children choose from what’s available. Let them help grate cheese, build pizzas or assemble their own bowls when you can.
Some nights they’ll surprise you.
Other nights they’ll eat three potato wedges and declare themselves finished.
That’s family life.
The aim of this 7-day dinner plan isn’t perfection. It’s simply to make feeding your family a little easier, keep nutritious foods appearing on the table and hopefully remove some of the stress from deciding what on earth to make for dinner tonight.
Save this meal plan for next week and rotate your family’s favourites back through whenever you need another easy dinner.