Collection
Kid Approved
Twelve recipes we reach for when the brief is “kid approved”.
- Recipes
- 12
- Curated by
- Aroha
- Updated
- March 2026
About this collection
We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner. If you can chop flat-leaf parsley and hold a Dutch oven, you can make this. We promise. Do not skip the fennel; it is the bright note that stops the whole plate from feeling heavy. It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink.
The trick with kid approved is patience: let the ingredients take on proper colour before you even think about moving it. It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink. Dev, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.
1. Herby Mushroom Quesadillas
There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are mushroom quesadillas — the kind you clear your evening for.
Season in layers. A pinch at each stage beats a panic-handful at the end. A spoonful of miso paste does the heavy lifting here, giving the ingredients a depth that tastes like you cooked all day. If you can chop shallots and hold a heavy cast-iron pan, you can make this. We promise.
Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg. The crisp edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning. We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner.
2. Charred Leek Hand Pies
The charred edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning.
Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are charred leek hand pies — the kind you clear your evening for. It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not.
Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate. No tahini? A mix of anchovy and a little eggs gets you most of the way there. Tomasz swears by adding the fennel in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch.
3. Sticky Pork Empanadas
Noor, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.
If you can chop basil and hold a box grater, you can make this. We promise. We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner. It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate. Do not skip the spring onions; it is the bright note that stops the whole plate from feeling heavy.
We first ate something like this at a street stall in Seoul, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it. If you can chop ginger and hold a sheet tray lined with parchment, you can make this. We promise.
4. Brown-Butter Mushroom Quesadillas
The brown-butter edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning.
It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink. There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are brown-butter mushroom quesadillas — the kind you clear your evening for. We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner.
There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are brown-butter mushroom quesadillas — the kind you clear your evening for. The crisp edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning.
5. Fiery Chickpea Spring Rolls
We first ate something like this at a street stall in Lisbon, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it.
Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg. No kecap manis? A mix of curry leaves and a little baking powder gets you most of the way there. It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink.
Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg. If your ingredients is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches.
6. Charred Sweet Potato Tacos
Mateo, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.
It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not. There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are charred sweet potato tacos — the kind you clear your evening for. No star anise? A mix of tahini and a little baking powder gets you most of the way there.
It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not. Every stop on a good snack crawl needs a headliner, and at our table it is usually this. This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it.
7. Charred Salmon Croquettes
We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner.
Mateo swears by adding the kale in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch. The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the chicken stock hydrates as it rests. The crisp edge is what people remember, so be brave with the heat and generous with the seasoning. This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it.
It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink. The trick with charred salmon croquettes is patience: let the ingredients take on proper colour before you even think about moving it. There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are charred salmon croquettes — the kind you clear your evening for.
8. Smoky Salmon Croquettes
If you can chop coriander and hold a rolling pin (or a wine bottle), you can make this. We promise.
We tested this 8 times in the Snack Crawl kitchen, and the version with kecap manis won every single round. A spoonful of curry leaves does the heavy lifting here, giving the ingredients a depth that tastes like you cooked all day. Do not skip the red onion; it is the bright note that stops the whole plate from feeling heavy.
It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate. Olu, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.
9. Lemony Tofu Bao
We tested this 3 times in the Snack Crawl kitchen, and the version with black garlic won every single round.
Leftover filling is excellent on toast the next morning with a fried egg. If your ingredients is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches. We first ate something like this at a street stall in New Orleans, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it.
If you can chop spring onions and hold a rolling pin (or a wine bottle), you can make this. We promise. We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner.
10. Spiced Chickpea Spring Rolls
It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink.
No curry leaves? A mix of dried lime and a little honey gets you most of the way there. A spoonful of masa harina does the heavy lifting here, giving the ingredients a depth that tastes like you cooked all day. We first ate something like this at a street stall in Seoul, balanced on a plastic stool, and spent the flight home reverse-engineering it. Season in layers. A pinch at each stage beats a panic-handful at the end.
This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it. The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the double cream hydrates as it rests. Imani, who runs our test kitchen on Thursdays, calls this “the one that ruins other snacks for you”.
11. Herby Tomato Fritters
It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink.
We like to make the filling the night before, when the kitchen is quiet and nobody is asking what is for dinner. We tested this 12 times in the Snack Crawl kitchen, and the version with white pepper won every single round. There are snacks you eat standing at the counter, and then there are herby tomato fritters — the kind you clear your evening for.
It looks like a project, but most of the work is waiting, and waiting pairs beautifully with a drink. It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not.
12. Garlicky Pumpkin Toasties
It reheats well, travels well, and disappears at parties at a frankly alarming rate.
It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not. This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it. The trick with garlicky pumpkin toasties is patience: let the ingredients take on proper colour before you even think about moving it.
The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the Greek yoghurt hydrates as it rests. This is a recipe built for sharing, which is a polite way of saying you should double it. It is weeknight-friendly if you are organised and weekend-worthy if you are not.
How we choose
Mateo swears by adding the sweetcorn in two stages: half cooked in for sweetness, half raw at the end for crunch. Versions of this dish turn up wherever people needed to make a little ingredients feed a lot of mouths. What every version shares is the contrast: something crisp, something soft, something sharp to cut through. If your ingredients is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches.
The mixture will look too wet at first. Trust it; the double cream hydrates as it rests. If you are cooking for a crowd, hold finished batches in a 190°C oven on a wire rack, never stacked. If your ingredients is releasing a lot of water, your pan is not hot enough. Take everything out, get it smoking, and start again in smaller batches.