Children’s books about food offer kids fun (and delicious!) ways to learn about the world around them. And can you think of anything kids love more than eating? Check out this great list!
Children’s books about food help kids learn about the world
Looking for an awesome and engaging way to teach your kids about people worldwide? Break out these children’s books about food, and get the party started!
Children’s food books are a terrific way to help kids learn. Whether you want to teach your readers about the sense of taste, how to make a particular meal or how to overcome their picky habits, books definitely help. We also love using stories to explore a variety of cultures and learn about traditional foods other families eat.
Not only can you use kids’ books about food to teach your readers to celebrate our beautiful, diverse world from inside your own homes, but this will also help kids understand the beauty of embracing differences. Children’s food books may also encourage your children to foster an attitude of curiosity, exploration, and acceptance.
Inspire kids to try new foods through stories
I love how children’s books about food also help inspire children to try snacks or other delicacies they may have once found “icky.” When kids see children in stories eating (and loving!) all sorts of different cuisines, they feel empowered to venture out of their comfort zones. Before you know it, you may even have a little foodie on your hands.
RELATED: We’ve got more than 100 children’s book lists on Happily Ever Elephants. Be sure to check out this link!
Frequently asked questions
Absolutely! Reading books about different foods cherished worldwide teaches kids about other people and cultures. They help to expand our kids’ worldviews. foster curiosity, and inspire young readers to explore a variety of cuisines that are not traditional staples in their own homes.
It certainly could! When kids see storybook characters exploring and enjoying new foods, or even eating foods that your own little ones may think of as “yucky,” they may slowly (or suddenly!) feel empowered to try new things themselves. My kids became huge fans of bao buns, something they would never try when we ate at our favorite Chinese restaurant, thanks to Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao (featured below!)
It’s hard to pick a favorite because there are so many fabulous books that introduce food to kids. I will forever love The Watermelon Seed for how it made my kids laugh and laugh. I also love Thank You, Omu! because of the way it celebrates diversity, gratitude, and community. Both of these stellar picture books are featured below.
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RELATED: Looking for great books for storytime? We have an excellent list of kindergarten read-alouds for you, so be sure to check them out!
We love these children’s food books!
If you are looking for a book to make your little ones squeal with laughter, this is it. From the “chomp chomp” sounds to the fear of a watermelon seed growing within the tummy, to a great big final burp, this book makes our trio laugh loudly every single time. Bright, colorful illustrations and a zany story make this a winner.
A stunning debut! Everyone in the neighborhood follows the delicious scent of stew to Omu’s doorstep, where Omu (meaning “queen” in the Igbo language of the author’s parents) dishes her meal out with love. But when it comes time for Omu to sit down for dinner, she realizes she left no stew for herself! This is a gorgeous, timeless story of generosity and community, beautifully conveying that one good deed deserves another — and sharing is everything. This is hands down one of my very favorite gratitude books for kids! For our full review of Thank You, Omu! click this link!
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This is such a fun read-aloud, and one my younger students simply adore! Amy Wu wants to make the perfect bao, yet every time she tries, they are too big, too small, or too… leaky. One day, however, she wakes up determined to get the job done right. With her parents on one side and Grandma on the other, Amy discovers the trick to cooking the perfect Chinese buns. Fun, tasty and tenacious, we love Amy’s perseverance and dedication to perfecting her recipe! For a full list of phenomenal Asian American children’s books, click this link!
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What child doesn’t want to make a pizza for dinner – a pizza with everything on it? This fabulously fun book features a boy and his dad making pizza together, and they want every single topping on top. But as their toppings pile up, the pizza becomes so extravagant, it actually burns a hole in the universe. Can anyone enjoy pizza again, even pizza that is out of this world? This children’s book about food is a total hoot!
Ring! Ring! Can you hear his call? Paletas for one! Paletas for all! Everyone knows Paletero Jose has the perfect treats for a blistering hot day, and this adorable book follows one boy as he goes on a search for the paletero man through his bustling neighborhood. But what happens when the narrator finds the paletero man but discovers the dinero in his pockets is gone? He’ll need the help of his multicultural community. We love this ode to neighbors, kindness, and paletas, of course!
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There can be no debate that food brings people together. This glorious book showcases just that, with a multicultural cast of characters getting ready for the dumpling contest in their apartment building. From kreplach to momos to Jamaican johnnycakes, the kids in the building learn to cook, wrap and pinch dumplings in each resident’s home, with all of the dumplings being unique to that family’s culture and traditions. This book so beautifully conveys that food can be a wonderful tool to teach kids to embrace differences and celebrate community!
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Sung to the tune of The Wheels on the Bus, this darling book celebrates a multigenerational family meal with love and fun! Join the family as they slurp noodles, squish tofu, and tap chopsticks around the table. It’s a fabulous twist on the classic tune, including a food glossary and a guide to Chinese dining etiquette. This is simply fabulous!
Pigeon is just delighted when he finds a delicious hot dog. He cannot wait to eat it, all by himself. But then a sly little duckling comes along, and she can’t help but be curious about that hot dog and want some of it for herself. Which one of these birds will outsmart the other? Will the duckling get to experience the hot dog for himself? This one cracks us up every single time! For a full list of Mo Willems books we love, click the link!
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This fabulous rhyming picture book is the story of a young girl cooking a special meal with her mom. The two work hard as they prepare their beloved meal of bee-bim bop, a Korean dish made with rice, meat, and vegetables. From shopping for the delicious ingredients to mixing it all together to sitting down as a family to eat, this charming children’s book about food has delighted young readers for years, all of whom will be eager to try bee-bim bop at home!
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Each Christmas, Rosie’s Abuela, mama, tia, and cousins gather together to make tamales in Abuela’s kitchen. The family goes through each step – soaking the husks, removing the silks, adding the filling – and tell stories every step of the way. Through their cooking, Rosie learns not just how to make a delicious tamale, but how to have a delicious life, one that is steeped in love, family, and even a little spice. I adore this book, the warm illustrations, the ode to patience, and the bilingual text. This is a treasure and one that will be cherished in libraries around the world.
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LouAnn is getting ready to hibernate, and she can’t wait to feast on the donuts she’s been baking. But – is that the door? It is, and her friend the woodchuck pops in, prompting LouAnn to share her donuts. Soon, all of LouAnn’s friends find their way to her house, and it’s a donut party! LouAnn loves making donuts and sharing them with her friends, but what happens when she makes a miscalculation, eats none herself, and has to get ready for her long nap? This is a wonderful children’s book about food and sharing!
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What a treasure of a book! This beauty uses fry bread, a staple food among many native tribes around the country, to describe family, community, and even history. Fry Bread is a celebratory ode to tradition, while simultaneously depicting the important role this food continues to have as a means to promote unity among Native Americans. Beautiful prose, beautiful illustrations, and beautiful sentiment abound in this story that has a vital place on children’s bookshelves around the country! For a full list of Native American picture books we love, click the link!
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Right now, someone somewhere in the world is eating pizza. This hilarious and fun-filled nonfiction book will teach your kiddos all about pizza, as Pizzoli travels through time and takes readers on a journey around the globe to discover pizza’s delicious history. If you are a pizza-loving family like ours, this book is a must!
This is a fabulous children’s book about food that takes place in a bustling Nigerian market as a mother and her toddler go shopping. Baby is so cute that all the vendors can’t help but give him treats! As Mama’s basket grows heavier and heavier, Mama can’t help but worry that Baby is getting hungry. Little does she know that Baby’s having the time of his life, eating all the special foods he’s been given as they shop, and putting just a few into Mama’s basket as well!
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A pancake and a piece of french toast are the best of friends, until one fateful day when they discover there is only one drop of syrup left in the fridge. Behind the closed doors of the refrigerator, all food comes to life, and the competition to get to that last drop of syrup is not just fierce, but incredibly fun as well. Talk about a rollicking rhyming romp! This series of funny children’s books involves the most imaginative food fights ever, and your little ones will delight in the escapades that ensue once the refrigerator doors close and the food inside takes over. For our full review of Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast, click here!
The Koala family is getting ready for Shabbat, and though Lila’s sisters both have jobs, Lila wants to participate too. But everything she does ends up a disaster! Suddenly she has an idea – she will make the most delicious challah ever! It will be tasty and beautiful and perfect … at least, she hopes. This is such a darling story about family and food!
Bilal can’t wait to help his dad make daal! But man oh man, this dish cooks very slowly, and it requires a lot of patience. Bilal’s friends can’t wait to try the daal, and more and more come to join his family. But as the day progresses, Bilal gets nervous. Will they like daal as much as he does? This is another fabulous children’s book about food that showcases how food can bring communities together.
Happy reading!
RELATED: We’ve got the best picture books for you on Happily Ever Elephants, so be sure to check out these great picture books for kids of all ages!
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