A long time ago I came across an American blog post that talked about pouches that you could use again and again instead of the store bought ones. The blogger was very excited and did a mass production of food in her pouches for her little one. I thought, wouldn’t it be nice if there was something similar in South Africa? If you are going to use them, however, you need to learn from my experience and implement my tips for using reusable food pouches.
Buying food pouches is expensive. At Pick ‘n Pay, there are two options:
Squish Baby: about R6
Ella’s Kitchen 20.99 or 14.90 (depending on size).
I like food pouches because they are a good thing to have in the car when you are on the go. They keep a little one fed and happy on a day where you have to travel between several places.
So I was thrilled when I was contacted by Reusable Food Pouches to review their product. The distribute Sinchies, an Australian product, which conforms to that country’s high standards of being PVA, BPA and phthalates free.
Even more exciting, I was getting a whole lot of recipes with the pouches to try out.
I started off with “Morning Fuel”, which consists of milk, yoghurt, banana, apple, pear, weetbix and cinnamon. I was so into it I decided to double the quantities and make a huge batch. Nicky had a little. I left them in the fridge for a few days and gave them to him again.
Big mistake.
I forgot that these pouches contain milk. The milk went off. We had to throw them out, but not before I had let him taste one.
I then tried “Malibu Macedone”, which contained pineapple.
Nicky did not want any.
A week later I tried again with “Peachy”. This involved using peaches from a tin (which can’t go off).
Again, he would not even try it. I guess he had a good memory.
I decided to leave it for a longer period. Christmas passed and we were into the new year.
I also decided to concoct something sweet. (Nicky loves sweet stuff). I did “Mint Choc” which has cacao powder. It really tastes delicious. I could not find mint essence so I landed up using chocolate and mint vermicelli sprinkles.
I also gave it to him after he woke up from a nap and I knew he would be hungry. I had one for myself to eat. He is always wanting things if I eat them.
Success! He liked it.
I think if you are going to use reusable food pouches, it is worthwhile to bear the following tips in mind:
-Make just enough that your kid will actually eat within two days, or else freeze them. You cannot leave them in a hot car. What you can do is pack them, frozen, in a cooler with ice bricks.
-When using your mixer, get someone else to take your kid to the other side of the house if he is scared of loud noises. Or else take an extension chord and do it outside during nap time (or the end of nap time in case it still wakes him up). Nicky hates loud noises. I have just gotten him to the point where he can tolerate the vacuum but the food processor still gets shrieks of distress. Ashley from Reusable Food Pouches suggests using a stick blender which will make less noise.
-The nice thing about the pouches is that you are in complete control of what goes into them and can avoid the processed, sugar filled option.
-If your child is used to eating sugary pouches, however, you might want to start off with a sweet temptation. Fruit or the mint choc may work well.
-There are so many options out there to put in your pouches. This post recommends apple sauce.
-A funnel may help but you don’t really need one. There is a slit at the top (like a zip lock bag) where you can pour or spoon your mixture into. Nicky had fun doing water play with the Sinchies funnel which is also collapsible.
-For cleaning you can use all the brushes you have been using for your bottles. A little brush is needed to clean the narrow folds. For drying I propped it up on cutlery so that it could air out well.
-There are special caps you can get which are larger (“anti-choke lids”), if you are worried about your little one swallowing a small lid.
-There are other uses for these pouches – such as salad dressing for your lunch.
-You will save money if you use these pouches instead of the store bought ones.
In conclusion I would say that reusable pouches are an excellent option if you are aware of the pros and cons. With good organisation they can be a healthy, economical snack.
*This post is not sponsored but I did receive free products to review.*
Interesting. I never liked the store bought pouches so these would be perfect. Plus you know what is going into what the child is eating. Love it. Thankfully we skipped the “baby food” stage and went straight to proper adult type food eating so one less equipment for us to worry about.
Well done for persevering, I must look into this option. If you ever find mint essence please let me know, I’ve been searching for it to bake a certain recipe.
Great idea – mine just do not like anything like this at all. But I guess we are actually over the age of this type of thing
Interesting, never heard of these pouches, will have a look for them the next time I go to the shop!
Interesting. We never used food pouches with the girls – I’m not sure I was even aware they existed.
I’ve never heard of these. Pity they weren’t around when my kids were little 🙁
These are awesome pouches! I love that they are free of so many things. I have a couple reusable snack bags that I use frequently. I would love to have more eventually.