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Lunches Around the World with Little Passports!
Kids around the world are preparing to go back to school—that means homework, new friends and … lunch? Yes, that’s right! Let’s visit different countries and see what yummy food the school kids eat every day!
France– French children enjoy a 3 or 4-course meal that is made from high-quality ingredients and is mostly made from scratch. The children all sit in the same eating area, the cafeteria. An interesting fact is that there are no vending machines in schools because they’re banned due to the high sugar and fat content of the treats they carry. Typical school lunches here can have a variety of dishes and ingredients, such as grilled fish, salad, red beans, seasonal vegetables, garlic sausage, fruit salads and chocolate flan (just to name a few). Another perk is that the food is served on plates and eaten with real silverware!
Japan– In Japan, the school lunch ingredients are locally sourced and almost never frozen; in addition, the schools employ nutrition experts that work with kids and teach them the importance of good eating habits. Like the children in France, Japanese kids also eat in a community-like setting with their peers, and even their teachers! The children also wear white hats and robes to serve their classmates, which teaches them teamwork and respect. You can expect to find lots of rice, vegetables, fish, soup, and meat on the plate.
South Africa– South African school meals have natural ingredients such as corn, squash, sweet potatoes, and yams. There’s also rice, soft porridge, and meat that is sprinkled in with the vegetables. A special stew is made called potjiekos (named after a potjie, a three-legged pot), which originated from Dutch settlers. The cook puts vegetables, meat, potatoes, and spices into the pot, which is heated by small amounts of wood and twigs. After cooking, the result is a delectable stew!
Colombia– Colombian school lunch ingredients usually vary from region to region but can contain rice, potatoes, fruit, beans, meatballs, and vegetables such as corn and avocados. There’s a special vegetarian menu also available, and children from 2 to 5 years old have their food cut and portioned into smaller sizes.
We hope you enjoyed our lunch trip around the world and perhaps found inspiration to try new foods at your own dinner table!
super fun. I think it’s important to get children to try new things at least once…this sounds educational as well.
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How nice this is for children to enjoy foods from different cultures as well as learn a few other interesting ways they live
sibabe64 at ptd dot net
Really interesting. I enjoyed learning about kids’ lunches in other countries, and I’m sure kids would like this, too. A great, fun way for them to learn about other cultures. Learning, planning and helping with one of these dinners would be a great homeschool project
that was really interesting to read. It never occurred to me what children in other countries had for their school lunches. Thank you for sharing that information.