Baby’s First Foods: Where to Start

From 4 to 6 months, a major period begins for babies and their parents: the exciting phase of introducing solid foods. Some anticipate it eagerly, others dread it, as it brings the discovery of fruits and vegetables, compotes, purees, then finger foods, and also a gradual decrease in bottle or breastfeeding.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• What does solid food introduction mean?
• Up to what age should you give your baby bottles?
• 4 tips to start with solid foods successfully
• Our bonus tip: Try Yooji’s frozen portions!
• Which foods should baby taste first?
• Try the BLW experience!

What does solid food introduction mean? 

Baby is no longer a newborn—he is growing up, and both his needs and desires are changing. His nutritional needs increase as he grows and starts moving around. His curiosity grows as well. He sees you eating and wants to imitate you by tasting what’s on your plate.

If he happens to push away his bottle, refuse the breast, or reach for your meal, it might be the time to start introducing solid foods.

Up to what age should you give your baby bottles?

If the introduction of solid foods is added to breastfeeding, bottle-feeding, or mixed feeding (on average from 5 months), it's not by chance.  Between 4 and 6 months, voluntary swallowing develops. Babies naturally acquire the coordination needed to eat solid foods.

There is no obligation to give up the  sweet bottle-feeding moments or breastfeeding 🥰. In fact, children can drink milk (breast milk or formula) as long as they want or need to, without any contraindications. And just seeing two- or three-year-olds enjoying their morning, snack, or bedtime bottles when they're tired shows how real this pleasure is.

For reference, here is a table showing milk amounts and the average number of bottles to give from birth to 6 months. For breastfed babies, the principle remains on-demand nursing or, if you prefer, exclusive pumping.

Milk: the ultimate essential for babies

A transition period between bottles/breastfeeding and introducing solids

To know if it’s time to add compotes and purees to the menu, ask yourself these questions:

• Can baby sit up by himself ? (For example, in his high chair.)
• Does he chew his hands, toys, or spoon? (Not related to teething.)
• Is he interested in your meals?
• Does he lean forward with his mouth open when you offer food?
• Is he still hungry after his bottle?

If you answered "yes" to every question—or almost—then, if your pediatrician agrees, you can start introducing solids and gradually decrease milk intake.

During this transition from an all-milk diet to solid foods, you may run into some difficulties: temporary constipation, refusing certain flavors or textures, fatigue from sitting up... The main thing is to be patient and stay attentive. Your child doesn’t want carrot puree? Demands his bottle at the top of his lungs? That’s fine! Try a new meal later.

4 tips to start with solid foods successfully

Until now, baby’s diet has only consisted of formula or bottles, or breast milk. The arrival of carrots, peas, and other colorful apples will change everything. To make this first experience a happy one, follow these tips.

• Don’t start introducing solids too early. If possible, wait until your baby is curious about what’s on your plate.
• Go slowly, watching how your child reacts.
• Offer a new taste, texture, smell, or object (spoon, cup, straw…) one at a time.
• Start with very small portions first.
• Keep at least 17 fl oz of milk per day until about age 1, then adjust to your child’s needs.

Our bonus tip: Try Yooji’s frozen portions!

And if your baby already loves purees, don’t hesitate to try the fresh-frozen YOOJI portions designed for little ones! Made in France, in the South-West, with local produce, their “homemade-style” purees are super convenient and support your baby from 4 to 36 months on their flavor journey.

What’s Yooji’s mission?

To reinvent baby food while caring for the planet 🌿.

We’ll tell you everything about Yooji (and their new pancakes) 💚.

• Purees that taste truly homemade 🤤

Organic and French ingredients, steam-cooked at low temperatures and quick-frozen to preserve flavors and nutrients. 👨‍🍳 Perfect for little foodies!

• Ready-to-use portions⏱️

Mix them together or with your homemade dishes to create over 1,000 recipes in just 2 minutes! A true time saver for parents and more precious moments with baby!

• Zero waste ♻️

Portion sizes adapt to babies’ needs and help avoid food waste. Everything comes in recyclable and economical bags that let you quickly prep 4 to 12 meals in an instant.

New: pancakes for baby 🥞

The first pancakes for babies with organic veggies or fruits! You can give them to your child at meals, as a snack, for afternoon tea, or breakfast… They’re your new ally for introducing different textures and encouraging your little one to eat like a big kid.✋ Just heat for 30 seconds in the toaster or microwave—done!

Which foods should baby taste first?

As you start introducing solid foods, your child will go from 6 to 5 feedings per day, then from 5 to 4, which you’ll schedule for breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner. To help baby get used to these new routines, offer vegetables and fruits that are easy to enjoy.

Vegetables babies love

At first, children usually prefer sweet, mild flavors. Luckily, the variety of vegetables allows you to let them quickly discover colorful and tasty veggies such as  carrots, sweet potatoes, and parsnips.🥕🥔

For green veggies, peas, green beans, broccoli (Hello to smooth Yooji purees) and even asparagus may interest them.🫛🥦

When preparing them, always choose  steaming or boiling without salt to preserve each new food’s taste. Vegetables should also be pureed to a smooth texture, especially at the beginning, to make it easy to eat.

Fruits to try

This is straightforward. As long as your little one likes them, they can eat  any orchard fruit that’s ripe: raw or cooked, in the morning or at lunch, finely pureed without skins or seeds and, as always, without added sugar.

Around 9 months, if your baby is ready, you can switch to mashed fruits! 🍌🍓🥝

Don’t forget meat

In small amounts (0.35 oz per day), but given regularly, proteins are just as interesting to introduce. All meats, including uncured cooked ham and  boneless fish, can be offered first pureed then finely mashed, to babies from 6 months of age.  Fresh eggs should be served hard-boiled, no more than one quarter each day.🥚

Don’t forget! At first, the purpose of introducing solids isn’t to boost or supplement your baby’s nutritional intake. It’s mainly to awaken their senses, let them discover the pleasure of taste, and teach good eating habits that they’ll carry throughout their life.

🍽️ Did you know? Starting at 6 months, Yooji offers a “protein pack” designed to prepare up to 2 months’ worth of meals for your baby!

Try the BLW experience!

If the traditional method doesn’t work, or simply because you like to think outside the box, try  Baby-Led Weaning (BLW). Still not very well-known, but increasingly popular among families—and even adopted at some early childhood care centers—BLW is based on a simple principle:  let children make their own food choices and eat independently.

Goodbye spoon-feeding, hello eating with your hands! For example, on a plate, offer broccoli florets and a slice of cooked zucchini at the right temperature, a round of banana, and a very ripe strawberry. That’s it for you. Now it’s up to baby to pick what interests and intrigues him, and put it in his mouth.

The appeal of BLW is that it breaks the traditional codes of starting solids,  encourages fine motor skills,  hand-to-mouth coordination, independence,  self-regulation of hunger and fullness, and a mix-and-match discovery of textures, smells, and flavors.

For parents, you’ll learn your child’s  preferences faster, you learn to  trust them , and you get to enjoy an experience as adorable as watching your baby drink their first bottle on their own.

Last advantage of baby-led feeding? Like classic solid food introduction, it’s possible from 6 months, even if baby doesn’t have teeth yet. That’s why Yooji offers a range of smooth purees and silicone spoons—perfect for little hands starting at 4 months.