Sharing how to start solids at 6 months, based on our personal experience. We combined purees and baby-led weaning for optimal nutrition and development. This post also includes how to know when baby is ready for solids, what baby food we started out with, how to cultivate healthy eating habits, our favorite products, and so much more.
I know starting solids for babies can be overwhelming and daunting, especially with so much conflicting information that’s out there in the internet. As someone who is interested in all things nutrition, I’ve done a good amount of research on when to start, how to start, what to start the baby with, etc. It really came down to what felt right to us as a family, as well as reading the cues and responses from our baby.
In this post…
- Resources For How to Start Solids
- How Do You Know When The Baby Is Ready For Solids?
- Purees or Baby Led Weaning (BLW)?
- Foods We Started With at 6 Months
- Quick and Easy Baby Food Ideas For Busy Days or On-The-Go
- How We Introduced Allergens
- How to Cultivate a Healthy Eating Habit
- Helpful Products When Starting Solids
- Other FAQs About Starting Solids
Resources For How to Start Solids
- Resources For How to Start Solids
- How Do You Know When The Baby Is Ready For Solids?
- Purees or Baby Led Weaning (BLW)?
- Foods We Started With at 6 Months
- Quick and Easy Baby Food Ideas For Busy Days or On-The-Go
- How We Introduced Allergens
- How to Cultivate a Healthy Eating Habit
- Helpful Products When Starting Solids
- Other FAQs About Starting Solids
As a new mom, you become a part of various online groups and forums to learn how to do become the best parent you can be for your child. When it came to how to start solids for your baby, the opinions and experiences varied so much from what I read from other mamas.
One thing was clear: every child is different and there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. However, I knew one thing: my goal is to give my baby the highest and best quality nutrient possible within my budget and our schedule for optimal growth.
This is how I landed on these two resources to start out with and they’ve been amazingly helpful:
- Megan Garcia’s First Foods and Beyond course: I’ve been following Megan for a while and she’s always so knowledgable about baby nutrition, and everything she shares is science-based and backed by research. This course was amazing to learn about what to start the baby with, the nutrients that baby needs, how to start allergens, and more. There’s even a big section just on recipes, as well as a 28-day guide for babies who show digestive issues.
- Nourished Beginnings Baby Food cookbook by Renee Kohley from Raising Generation Nourished: Renee approaches baby food from a WAPF perspective, with lots of fermentations, bone broth, and quality fats. I love that this book has recipes not just for baby, but for the whole family as well.
- Instagram accounts I follow for resources:
The first two resources above are similar in concept, but the one thing to note is that Renee’s recipes in her Nourished Beginnings Baby Food book uses added salt while Megan Garcia’s First Foods and Beyond course does not. Using added salt is in line with the WAPF perspective, but we personally didn’t feel comfortable introducing it until 12 months based on the research I’ve read. I just cooked those recipes in the book the same way without adding the salt in the ingredients.
How Do You Know When The Baby Is Ready For Solids?
For me, just from the stress of figuring out solids, I put it off until she was 6 months old. This is the general recommended time for starting solids anyway, but this also coincides with the time that she started showing all the signs that she was ready:
- She started taking interest in what we were eating and reaching out. She would stare at us while we were eating.
- She was also able to sit upright without support.
Purees or Baby Led Weaning (BLW)?
Another huge discussion topic that you’ll read about when researching how to start solids is choosing between purees or baby-led weaning (BLW).
If you’ve never hear of it before, BLW is giving babies soft finger foods that they can hold and eat themselves. The benefits are that the baby is exposed more to the food that the rest of family eats, it promotes independence and healthy eating habits, and also great for developing hand-eye coordination.
While BLW sounds really great, we decided to start with mostly purees and incorporate finger foods every now and then. This was because I wanted to target nutrient density with what we fed her and purees were much easier to do this with. Also, as a first time mom, I was a bit on the nervous side about every little thing being a choking hazard and I just felt safer with purees in the beginning 90% of the time.
Foods We Started With at 6 Months
My focus has always been quality and nutrient density. These are some of the foods I started her with when starting solids, and I still feed them to her today.
Proteins and fats
Quality animal protein and fats are extremely important for baby development, and rich in nutrients like vitamin D, iron, zinc, B vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, and more. Studies have shown that both iron and vitamin D levels commonly deplete at 6 months for exclusively breastfed babies, so it’s important to focus on meat when starting solids. Some of my favorite sources are:
(All the links to the meats I mention are from US Wellness Meats. If you can’t find grass fed and pastured raised sources locally, you can order from them and get 10% off your order with code: JEAN10)
- Grass fed beef bone marrow (she LOVES this whipped bone marrow recipe)
- Pasture raised chicken liver or grass fed lamb liver in the form of pâté
- Wild-caught canned sardines, mackerel, and oysters (after making sure she didn’t have shellfish allergy)
- Wild-caught salmon, shrimp, and other fish
- High quality ground meat and tender cuts like chicken thighs, shredded beef, and medium rare steak
- Lard and tallow
- Liverwurst
- Egg yolks at first, then we moved on to whole eggs
- Full-fat, grass-fed yogurt, kefir, and sour cream (after making sure she didn’t have dairy allergy)
- Full-fat cottage cheese and grass-fed cheddar
- Grass-fed butter and ghee
- Coconut butter
- Nut and seed butter
Veggies and fruits:
I always pair vegetables and fruits with some kind of fat to increase nutrient absorbency.
- Steamed starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes, squash, beets, carrots, peas, plantains
- Cooked and mashed non-starchy vegetables like cauliflower, kale, broccoli, onions, green beans.
- Pureed or mashed fruits like banana, berries, mango, fig, peach, pear, apples in the form of applesauce
- Avocado
Other nutrient dense foods:
- Bone broth
- Coconut yogurt
- Truly fermented sauerkraut and pickles (I love the Bubbie’s brand)
- Organic roasted seaweed sheets
Putting food groups together:
When it’s time for feeding, I usually have the above food items in separate components and just throw them together into a bowl. I try to include some kind of protein, fat, carbs, and fiber into her meals each day.
Quick and Easy Baby Food Ideas For Busy Days or On-The-Go
While it’s best to cook and prepare all the meals from scratch, it’s just not realistic all the time. I try my best to make a big batch of things and freeze them to always have on hand, but if you are short on time, here are a few ways you still feed nutrient-dense foods:
- Canned fish – I always look for wild-caught and, if possible, no salt added. Her favorites are sardines, mackerel, and oysters.
- Liverwurst (10% off with code JEAN10) – This is the highest quality liverwurst I’ve found made with grass fed beef organ meats. It’s so delicious, already cooked, and it’s soft and mushy so it’s ready to eat for babies.
- Organic frozen veggies (or fruits) – These are so convenient and so easy to pan fry straight from its frozen state. They cook really fast too. A few that I like to have on hand that Joey loves is frozen kabocha squash, peas, corn (allergen), green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots.
- Organic tempeh – This was how I introduced soy to my baby and it’s one of the healthiest form of soy, because it’s fermented. It’s easy to have around and you can mix quickly with pureed or soft steamed veggies and some kind of fat like butter. I don’t feed it to her often because I don’t believe that soy has much nutritional value, but it’s a good way to expose her to this allergen.
- My Serenity Kids food pouches (15% off with code JEAN15) – These are high quality puree pouches made with pastured raised/grass fed meats and organic vegetables and fruits. I love their meat and veggie pouches, but they also have veggie-only pouches as well. I’ve done a ton of research on portable pouches and these are my favorite ones.
- Sourdough bread – It’s even better if you can make it at home, but I buy from a local bakery that truly ferments their bread and uses simple ingredients. This is how I first introduced gluten to my baby, and she still loves it slathered with some whipped bone marrow or grass-fed butter.
- Grass-fed dairy products – When I don’t have any kind of meat ready, I’ve found that grass-fed dairy products are such an easy way to add fat and protein. However, make sure to check that your baby isn’t allergic to dairy first. I always have cheddar cheese (GREAT as a snack), cottage cheese, yogurt, and sour cream on hand to add to food quickly when needed.
- Bananas and avocados – These two foods are born to be baby foods in their original form. They both have great nutrients, mushy in texture, and you don’t need to prepare them in any way except for the peeling and mashing.
- Dried, unsweetened fruits – I find that these are great for snacking and teaching babies to suck and chew. I always have dried mangos, apricots, figs on hand, and they are great for car rides as well. I do like to take the fruit away once it gets small enough for her fit the whole thing in her mouth as it can be a choking hazard. At this point, it gets soft and I just chop them up into small pieces and add it into her next meal. Nothing is wasted!
- Hard veggies and fruits for teething – I love cutting long pieces of carrots, apples, cucumbers, and zucchini for her to chew on when she’s teething. These will occupy her for a while, and she loves the feeling of grinding her baby teeth into them.
How We Introduced Allergens
There’s so much conflicting information out there about when to introduce allergens, how to do it, and whether early or late introduction is better. As someone with food intolerances herself, I wanted to do what’s best, but it felt a bit overwhelming to read through all the different perspectives.
The more I read about it, I felt that it was best to just listen to my intuition. Joey has always been a healthy and happy baby thankfully, and I’ve never had to limit any kind of food or change my diet while breastfeeding. She never showed digestive issues or allergies, so I wasn’t too nervous about starting on allergens with her.
My Personal Approach to Introducing Allergens
I decided to introduce allergens around 7 1/2 months, when we were in a pretty consistent groove with her solids and she was eating well 3 times a day at that point. I felt that she was ready. I also felt that it was important to introduce 1 new food at a time, so I did that every 4-5 days. This is because I would be able to easily pinpoint what food was problematic for her in case she had any reactions.
I added a small about (around 1/2 tsp) into her food during her meal and checked for any kind of reaction on her skin, in her stool, her behavior, and with her breathing for the next 24 hours. I then added that allergen into her meals regularly for the next 3-4 days. When I could see that she wasn’t reacting to that food, I repeated that process with the next allergen.
By the way, Megan Garcia’s First Foods and Beyond course has a very comprehensive guide on how to start allergens, along with supplements you can give your baby to support them during this process. While I didn’t follow her process exactly, it was a great guideline that helped me feel confident on how to get started.
I also wanted to introduce allergens to her in their healthiest and most digestible form and that’s what we tried to do. Here are the top common allergens and how I introduced each to her.
Common allergens and how we introduced them in their most digestible forms:
- egg whites: whole eggs baked into mini muffins with vegetables
- grains: soaked quinoa, which is actually a seed but has similar properties to other grains
- nuts: soaked and sprouted almond butter
- cow dairy: started with goat milk yogurt, then moved on to grass-fed cow milk yogurt and butter
- peanuts: organic peanut butter with no additives
- shellfish: shelled, wild-caught shrimp pan fried in coconut oil
- gluten: truly fermented sourdough bread
- corn: organic corn kernels steamed, then blended with breastmilk and bone broth
- soy: tempeh, which is fermented and more easily digestible than other forms of soy
How to Cultivate a Healthy Eating Habit
So many of us have been taught and conditioned to believe that we must clean our plates, the baby NEEDS to like everything, and eating=GOOD. However, pressuring or forcing our kids to eat can cause unhealthy eating habits like overeating and this study shows that it can actually result in picky eating.
Letting go of control as a parent is key. Here are some things I still have to keep reminding myself when I’m feeding her so I can cultivate a healthy eating habit for her:
- She won’t like everything, but she might later. It can be frustrating when you spend your time and energy into doing the research and cooking up a nutrient-dense meal for the baby. However, the reality is that he or she might not eat it. That’s okay and we shouldn’t force them. They might love that food later or they just might not be in the mood.
This happened with chicken liver pâté for my baby. She made a scrunched up face when she first tried it and wouldn’t eat it. However, I kept offering it to her consistently without forcing it, and two weeks later, she started loving it. These days, it’s one of her favorite foods. Just be patient and let the baby guide you. - Always watch for her cues to see that she’s full. Babies know when they are full and their goal isn’t to finish their plates like many of us. I had to learn to listen to her cues telling me she was done even though her plate wasn’t clean. These cues can look like: turning her head from the spoon, getting easily distracted away from her food and looking elsewhere, closing her mouth, or playing with her food instead of eating it. You can always save the leftovers for another day, which I’ve done countless times.
- Don’t praise when she eats something. This is still the most difficult thing for me to do, because I was raised in a completely opposite way. Praising sounds like it should be good, but when it comes to eating, it’s best to avoid. That’s because this doesn’t allow babies to listen to their own hunger cues. They might want to please you and overeat.
This also makes them categorize that certain foods are “good” while others are “bad.” This is not a healthy way to view food for both kids and adults, when we are trying to remove guilt, shame, and restrictions around food. Every food should be on an even playing field so our kids can make decisions based on their own needs and wants. - Food doesn’t have to be perfect. While I want to cook up the most organic, nutrient dense food for my baby ALWAYS, that’s just not realistic in this busy world we are living in. As long as my baby is eating well most of the time, I try not to stress if she is just running on half of a banana and peanut butter for a meal. This also connects to having a healthy relationship around food and not obsessing over every little thing.
- Let her get messy. At first, I tried to get the food from the bowl straight into her mouth without making a mess. But soon, I learned that this was a futile effort. She wanted to feel the food herself, self-feed, and do a little art project with her food on the tray.
These days, I just let her go wild. I learned that this is a great way for her to feel the texture of the food (sensory play), teach herself how to feed herself, and turn meal times into a positive experience for both of us. It also allows her to regulate the amount of food she eats depending on her hunger level. - It should be a fun experience. Many moms have reached out to me about how feeding time can be quite stressful for them. However, when you release control and rigidness over the entire process, it can be really fun! Joey’s meal times are one of our best bonding moments when we smile and interact with each other.
There may be some stressful and frustrating moments, but I think we should always work to turn meal times into a positive environment for both you and the baby. For me (and this goes for every aspect of parenting), everything got better when I let go of control in how I WANT her to act and accepted that she’s her own person. Remember: food can turn to poison or nourishment, depending on what your mindset and stress levels are during consumption. And that goes for everyone.
Helpful Products When Starting Solids
- BabyBjorn High Chair: As with all baby products, I researched a ton of high chairs to find one that’s nontoxic (especially since we are dealing with food), easy to clean, stable, and won’t take up too much space. This one is made without VOCs, phthalates, lead, cadmium, and other heavy metals. The white tray is also removable and washable making cleanup a breeze, and it’s foldable so it’s perfect for a small space!
- Bumkins sleeved bibs: We first used a regular silicone bib, which were fine in the beginning, but had to move on once she started getting messy with her food. These bibs are washable, easy to clean, waterproof as well. We still use a silicone bib sometimes, but only during snack times.
- EZPZ bowl set with spoon & cup: We love this silicone set and I use it for every meal. The placemat with the bowl suctions to the high chair tray really well and it’s difficult for her to remove (although she recently figured out how to from time to time). The spoon is soft and perfect in size, and the baby cup is great for teaching her how to drink out of it.
- Munchkin Cool Cat Stainless Steel Straw Cup: This is what we used to teach Joey how to drink out of a straw, and she loves it and thinks that it’s so fun. I love that it’s made with stainless steel, doesn’t spill, and keeps liquids insulated.
- Munchkin Miracle 360 Trainer Cup: This is great for teaching babies how to drink out of a cup without spilling. It’s designed so the liquid only comes out when the baby puts her mouth on the rim. It completely seals when she’s not using it so she can turn it upside down without making a mess.
- Munchkin Stainless Steel Snack Catcher: This is a small snack container with soft flaps at the opening so she can easily access her snacks without spilling everywhere. I usually fill these with chunks of fruits and they are especially great during car rides.
- Instant Pot: You already know how much I love my Instant Pot from the recipes on my site, but I appreciate it even more ever since we started solids! It’s such a convenient appliance to have for cooking meats and eggs, steaming veggies, making bone broth, and even making yogurt.
- WEESPROUT Silicone Baby Food Freezer Tray: Babies don’t eat much and the most time-saving way to feed them is to make a large batch and freeze them into portions. I use this tray all the time to freeze fruit and veggie purees, meats, and even bone broth into small individual portions.
Other FAQs About Starting Solids
When I was rounding up questions for this blog post on my Instagram, I got so many questions that I decided to add this small FAQ section to address anything I haven’t included in the post yet.
What did you start with?
I tried to start with chicken liver pate, but she didn’t like it at first. Her first food that she embraced was whipped bone marrow.
How do you serve whipped bone marrow?
I served it on its own first. Then, I started mixing it with some mashed banana or sweet potatoes. I still do this, but sometimes, I’ll just add a spoonful of it to anything she’s eating if I think that it needs more fat.
Make sure to let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving, since it hardens when chilled.
Did you follow a specific schedule for when to feed her?
I just eased into it depending on my comfort level, and how she was doing. For the first week, I fed her solids just once a day, an hour after her morning nursing. I then added another feeding in the afternoon. I always do this shortly after nursing so her primary nutrition is still breastmilk. Since around 7 months, I’ve been feeding her solids 3 times a day with snacks here and there.
How do you serve finger foods for the first time?
At almost 1 year old, Joey still only has two front bottom teeth and that’s it. Here are some soft finger foods that I’ve been giving her that she can gum:
- chopped banana
- avocado pieces
- scrambled or hard boiled eggs, cut up
- cheese slices
- dried fruits (they soften as she chews them)
- cooked sweet potatoes or squash
- shredded zucchini made into patties
How did you handle gagging when first starting solids? Is it normal for babies to throw up because of this?
Joey never threw up, but I’ve seen her gag a few times. It never alarmed me though, because I could tell she wasn’t choking. She was working it out herself and she was able to move the food on her own and swallow it. I’ve read that this is an instinctual defense against choking so it’s best to leave them alone. Trying to move the food yourself might actually risk you moving the food and getting it lodged in their throats.
For babies who are ultra sensitive or have a hard time accepting solids, you can check out First Foods and Beyond course to learn how to help babies activate their muscles for chewing.
How do you store and reheat food?
Especially with purees, I like to make a big batch and freeze into individual portions using this freezer tray. Once frozen, I pop them out and store in a resealable freezer-friendly bag with a label.
For reheating, I defrost in the fridge then heat it back up like breastmilk. I place the food in a glass jar and let it sit in a bowl of hot water until warm. I try to avoid using the microwave, but it’s happened a few times. No biggie.
How did you introduce ethnic foods?
I think you can introduce it using spices first. When I serve meat or veggies, I like to rotate my spices so she can be introduced to different flavors. I’ve done cumin, chili powder, coriander, curry, turmeric, paprika, thyme, allspice, cilantro, ginger, coriander, and more. Honestly, nothing is off limits, and she’s been loving them all!
What do you recommend for constipation?
I personally have found that these all work well when she’s constipated.:
- Smoothies or purees thinned out with liquid
- High probiotic yogurt like this plain Cocoyo yogurt
- Fruits, especially pears
- Prune juice – no sugar added
Did Joey decrease nursing as she ate more?
She didn’t change the amount she nursed for the first 2 months of starting solids. But gradually, she’s been nursing a bit less after she hit 9 months. However, even at 11 months with 3 solid meals and 1-2 snacks, she still nurses 6 times a day.
Can you share baby-friendly recipes?
As I mentioned above, I usually prepare separate components of her food and put them together right before she eats. However, I do plan to share a few recipes that I’ve whipping up for her, so stay tuned!
In the meantime, here are some recipes from my blog that I’ve given her and she’s loved. I just don’t add salt to these while I’m cooking so she can eat it, and then just add it in before serving for me and my husband:
- 4-Ingredient Multi-Purpose Instant Pot Shredded Beef
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Meat Sauce
- Roasted Cauliflower Hummus with Roasted Garlic
- Creamy Whole30 Asparagus Soup
- Velvety Mashed Parsnips
- Instant Pot Cabbage Soup with Ground Beef
- Easy Homemade Tahini
- Whole30 Clam Chowder
- Pan Seared Whole30 Scallops with Lemon Garlic Ghee
- Grilled Keto Halibut Steaks with Basil Chimichurri Sauce
Basically, anything that’s soft and can break up easily, I have her try. So far, I’ve found that she loves strong flavors and spices and I’m very happy about that!
Hope you enjoyed this post about how to start solids. We began at 6 months, but you can start at 4 months if you feel that your baby is ready. The important thing to remember is that every baby is different. What I shared here might not work for your baby, and that’s okay! You just need to constantly look out for how your baby responds, and adjust to his or her needs.
If you have any more questions, please leave them in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post about how to start solids, you might also like…
- My Breastfeeding Journey + My Favorite Breastfeeding Products
- Non Toxic Baby Products For The Nursery and Registry
- My First Trimester Recap: Symptoms, Supplements, and More!
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Thank you for a wonderful thoughtful post I will share with fellow moms and families I work with at the Children’s Hospital. So many times working on pediatrics I witness nutrition entering a patient room to school a parent on what their child should eat but zero practical advice about how to get that food in. Speech do swallow tests but that’s reserved for patients who need significant help. There’s a disconnect with nutrition at work and strategies about playing with food and making it fun are often omitted. This was a great post I look forward to sharing. I have really enjoyed Joey’s eating pics on ig.