Food for a 6-month-old baby: first foods and meal ideas

Build a meal from two parts

Choose fortified infant cereal, soft lentils or finely minced cooked meat. Add a soft vegetable or fruit. Offer a small serving and more if your baby stays interested.

Three ideas to try

Offer cereal with mashed pear, lentil and carrot mash, or finely minced cooked meat with potato. Use ingredients available where you live. These examples offer variety without requiring special baby meals.

• Cereal with mashed pear
• Lentil and carrot mash
• Finely minced cooked meat with potato

Spoon-feeding and finger foods

Use either or both as skills develop. Keep food soft enough to manage, your baby upright and an adult present. Avoid whole nuts, hard chunks and fish bones. Do not give honey before age one.

Allergens and readiness

Try small amounts of well-cooked egg or smooth peanut butter thinned into familiar food, one new allergen at a time. Seek individual advice first for severe eczema, known allergy or a previous reaction. Head control, supported sitting and swallowing matter alongside age. Solids should not start before four months; ask a local healthcare professional about feeding difficulties or growth concerns.