How to Feed Your Kids When You’re Carnivore (Without Making Two Dinners)
Simple strategies for feeding your family real food without becoming a short-order cook.
I know it’s a sample size of one, but given that my two-and-a-half-year-old is wearing size 4T clothing, I feel like my hypothesis is working out: feed kids meat and plenty of protein, and they’ll grow big and strong.
But I don’t necessarily advocate putting kids on a strict carnivore meal plan. While it can be helpful for some (relatively rare) health issues, in general I want to offer my kids as much variety and sensory food experiences as they can stomach (literally).
How do you provide variety without needing to cook sixteen different dinners every night? Follow the golden rules of stress-busting batch cooking: batch, portion, and freeze.
1. Cook One Base Protein for Everyone
You don’t need to make two dinners. You just need one simple base: a roast chicken, a sheet pan of steaks, or a slow cooker full of shredded pork.
Start everyone's plate with the same protein, then build out from there.
For yourself? Just steak.
For the kids? Diced steak + fruit slices + a small sweet potato.
Batch prep some sides, and suddenly adding variety to your kid’s (or husband’s) plate is as easy as heat-and-eat, without extra cooking at dinner time.
2. Batch Prep Easy Extras for the Week
Kids often need (and appreciate) a little more variety than adults, especially when it comes to carbs and colors.
Instead of cooking new sides every night, batch prepare a few simple, clean foods once a week:
Roasted potatoes (cubed, roasted in tallow or butter)
Steamed white rice (cooked in bone broth for extra nutrition if you like)
Washed, cut strawberries and blueberries (or frozen ones for an even faster option—just leave them out a few minutes to defrost and squish larger berries for new eaters)
Cubed or shredded cheese (for quick snack plates—avoid anti-caking agents like cornstarch and cellulose in pre-shredded cheeses by buying a block of cheese and cutting it yourself)
Portion these into small glass containers (like four ounce or eight ounce Mason jars) and freeze. When it's mealtime, pull what you need out of the freezer, heat, and plate! Having everything in stock makes it easy to mix and match quickly and create interesting meals.
3. Build “Protein-First” Plates
Meat first. Carbs and extras second.
Start your child’s plate with their protein (a small portion of what you’re eating), and only then add fruit, rice, eggs, or a small veggie side. If your child tends to gobble up the sweet things first and run out of room for protein, you might even put the protein and sides in separate kid-friendly stainless steel bowls and only serve the extras after your little one has had some bites of meat.
This keeps their main calories coming from real, nutrient-dense foods instead of carbs or filler snacks.
4. Normalize Simple, Repetitive Meals
Kids thrive on routine. You don’t have to create Pinterest-worthy lunches or elaborate theme nights for every dinner.
Simple patterns like:
Meat + Fruit
Meat + Rice
Eggs + Berries
...build strong, adventurous eaters without burning you out.
In fact, the more repetitive and stable the meals are, the less likely you’ll see picky eating later on.1
5. Shift Your Mindset: You’re Nourishing, Not Catering
Instead of thinking, “how do I make my child happy at every meal?” it might help to focus on “how do I help my child explore real food and nourishment?”
Your home isn’t a restaurant. It’s a place where strong families are built, one small meal at a time.
When you model simple, powerful eating, kids follow over time, even if it doesn’t look perfect today.
Quick Wins for Feeding Kids Alongside Carnivore
If you want to start making this easier right now, here are a few ideas:
3 Go-To Fast Meals:
Beef patty + handful of berries
Chicken thigh + mashed sweet potato
Scrambled eggs + banana slices
For early eaters, cut up proteins into pieces the size of your child's thumb tip, squish berries, and always stay present when your child is eating.
Pro tip: wild blueberries are very small compared to most blueberries, making them safer for toddlers to eat. And you can also serve them mostly frozen for a cool hot-weather treat! A 32 ounce bag of organic wild blueberries lasts us forever.
5 Foods to Batch Prep Weekly:
Roasted potatoes or carrots
White rice or farro
Washed or frozen berries
Shredded cheddar or mozzarella
Dice and portion foods, then freeze portions individually. I love using these Made in USA wide-mouth 8 oz Kerr Mason jars. They’re compatible with these one-piece stainless steel lids (that also fit all wide-mouth Mason jars!).
Plan for Success
For more ideas on how to feed your omnivore family when you’re a carnivore, grab my 7-Day Carnivore Meal Plan + Family Add-Ons! I'll also send it to you for free when you subscribe. It’s packed with carnivore snack ideas, batch-cook or no-cook omnivore sides, and checklists and templates to help you plan for success.
You don’t need to be a short-order cook to feed your family well. One strong meal at a time is enough.
Start with meat. Add love. Add grace. You’re building up more than you think.
Want more simple strategies for clean, joyful family meals?
Every strong family is built on one meal at a time. Subscribe now and let’s grow together at the table!
If you choose to make a purchase through some of the links on this page, I may receive a small thank-you commission as an Amazon affiliate—at no cost to you! Thank you for your support!
A report from Healthy Eating Research at Duke University emphasizes that it may take children sampling a food 10 to 15 times before they take to eating it, underscoring the importance of patience and repetition in developing healthy eating habits.