Kids are the easiest to please because they like picnic foods that are bite-sized, delicious—and sweet. Packing the picnic basket with goodies for kids is such a breeze and not so expensive. Just make sure that the kiddie foods are colorful and appetizing to look at.

Picnic food dishes for kids need not be expensive and elaborate to prepare. Just throw in lots of munchies in the picnic basket and cold drinks in the ice chest, the tykes should be chirpy and happy. Children love to play picnic games so don’t forget to bring along the frisbee or volleyball for the picnic.

Barbecues are all-time favorite picnic foods. Barbecued steaks and chicken legs are popular as picnic foods for adults; and hotdogs with roasted marshmallows for kids. Bring them raw and marinated so everyone will have fun cooking the food. It is more exciting to eat fresh-from-the-grill meat or hotdogs. You don’t have to buy a new grill for the picnic to save space for those big jugs of ice-cold drinks. Just don’t forget to bring a bagful of dry charcoal and matches along with the good ole iron grill. Light your charcoals at the center of several pieces of like-sized rocks to create a makeshift grill stove.

Picnic Hotdogs On-The-Go

Ingredients:

1 bag/kilogram jumbo-sized hotdogs, sweet and cheesy variety
Bamboo barbecue sticks

Ingredients for Basting Sauce:

1 medium red onion, peeled
1 cup ketchup
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ tsp Iodized Salt
1/8 tsp ground white pepper

How to: Skew one hotdog per stick. Make sure at least 3 inches length of stick is visible for easy handling. Using a sharp knife, make light diagonal lines on both sides of the hotdog. Set aside. (Optional: Hotdogs can be cut into bite-sized cubes before skewing.) In a blender or osterizer, combine all ingredients for basting sauce and blend for 3 minutes. Pour in a container and cover tightly. This baste mixture can also be used to meat barbecue recipes.

Simple Pork Barbecue

Pork is easier and quicker to cook over hot coals. Unlike beef, pork is juicier even when over-cooked—just don’t forget to baste the meat with sauce while grilling. Marinate pork cubes (or steaks or pork chops) in soy sauce, lemon, and seasonings overnight to make the meat more savory. To make kebabs, skew the pork cubes with your choice of vegetables or fruits in between (i.e., cherry tomatoes, pineapple chunks, onions, and peppers). For kiddie picnic barbecue, make it all-meat with shorter stick.

Ingredients:

2 pounds lean pork meat, cubed to 1/2-inch thick
1 cup soy sauce
1 piece lemon
5 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped finely
½ tsp each of salt and ground pepper

How to: Thoroughly mix all ingredients, except the pork meat. Arrange the cubes in the marinade mixture and set aside in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or overnight. When placed in the freezer, the marinated meat can remain fresh up to 3 days.

Tasty-and-Delicious Chicken Nuggets

Chicken nuggets are so easy to make even kids can help prepare them. Or you can just buy ready-to-cook nuggets from the supermarket. But, hey,  homemade picnic foods are tastier and cheaper so get your aprons and head to the kitchen. Fried or baked, these nuggets are tender to eat.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour, sifted (alternative: cornflakes, roughly crushed)
½ tsp salt, fine
¼ tsp ground pepper, fine
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1 cup grated cheese
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 pounds chicken breasts, washed and well-drained and cut into desired-size rectangles

How to: Combine all dry ingredients and blend thoroughly to make breading mix. Dip each piece of nugget in beaten egg and roll in the breading. For frying, heat 2 cups of oil in an iron skillet until smoke appears on the oil’s surface. Lower the nuggets one by one into the hot oil. For baking, arrange the breaded nuggets on a greased baking pan and bake in the pre-heated oven until cooked. Serve with ketchup or mayonnaise or any kind of salad dressing, or even honey.

Icy Lemonade Drink

Picnic drinks are usually canned or bottled soft drinks and water. Why pump your kids with artificial sweeteners or tasteless liquid? Fruit juices are rich in Vitamin C, like the lemonade made from lemon juice. Place them in jugs full of ice or pour them into containers and keep cool in the picnic ice chest—to keep the kids asking for more of the revitalizing fruit juices.

Ingredients:

5 cups lemon juice, freshly squeezed
5 cups white sugar

How to: Blend all ingredients well and mix with water, according to taste. To preserve the tangy and fruity taste of lemonade, add only ice.

You are welcome to read :

How to: Prepare Delicious Snacks for Picnic

Three  Picnic Chicken Recipes

If you have a family, or work with children of all ages, then a summer picnic in the fresh, open air is a perfect way to entertain them and help them burn off some of that energy that kids have from being inside all day. Taking them to a park, or to a playground, or even to an open field, is a great way to enjoy your time with them – and let them enjoy their time with you. In this article I will share you with you a few tried-and-true picnic food ideas for children, to make your picnic a fun experience for all.

The Best Sandwich Food Ideas

The centerpiece of any successful kid-centric picnic is the sandwich. They are easy to make, not very messy, and easy to clean up after – and kids love them. If you want a simple picnic food that you can throw together easily, then make the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Children love PB&Js and will have no problem with eating them, so you do not have to worry about fussy children.

If you do not want to go the PB&J route, then bring a variety of sandwich meats and ingredients (such as mustard, mayo, lettuce, tomato, cheese, etc.) and let the children make their own sandwiches. Children love to be creative and to make things that are their own; letting them fix their own food teaches them a little responsibility and lets them have fun at the same time.

And if you decide you want a simple yet tasty treat to give your children with a minimum of prep time or fuss, then I suggest making grilled cheese sandwiches for them. A grilled cheese sandwich is a delicious yet easy to fix treat that any kid will love, so packing a basket full of them is highly recommended and is a great picnic food idea.

Picnic Food Ideas for Dessert that Children will Love

Everyone knows that children really look forward to desserts at any meal, especially a picnic. But a picnic may not be appropriate for many typical desserts, such as ice cream (which will melt easily and get very messy). If you want a no-fuss dessert, then try baking cookies. (You do not have to bake them, of course, but making them yourself adds that personal touch.) Chocolate chip cookies are generally the preferred cookies for children, but you can also throw in some variety by including peanut butter cookies, fudge cookies, or your common sugar cookies with icing.

Another great picnic food idea for dessert is watermelon. Having watermelon with your meal is a great way to cool down your kids, as well as give them a healthy treat that tastes wonderful. Plus, all you have to do is bring the watermelon and cut it up. Watermelon also hydrates well, so you get some protection from the sun. And what kid does not enjoy having contests to see who can spit the seeds out the furthest?

Taking children to a picnic is a great activity for the summer. Hopefully these picnic food ideas I have shared with you will help to make this great activity even better.

You are welcome to read :

Picnic Food Ideas – Five Great Picnic Sandwiches