Hi, I’m Dr Kirsty Porter, a paediatric dietitian with over 16 years’ experience supporting families with fussy eaters and children who have sensory challenges. I know how stressful evening meals can feel when your child refuses foods or struggles with textures.
One simple strategy I use with families is turning dinner into a more relaxed, interactive experience. A build-your-own burger night is a great way to do this, helping children feel more comfortable around food while still sitting down together as a family.
Why This Approach Works for Fussy Eaters
For many children, the challenge isn’t just the food itself. It’s the pressure, unfamiliar textures, or lack of control at mealtimes.
Research shows that repeated, low-pressure exposure to foods can help increase acceptance over time, particularly when children are allowed to explore foods in their own way (Johnson & Harris, 2019). Sensory play and interaction with food, such as touching or assembling, has also been shown to increase willingness to taste new foods in young children (Coulthard, 2017).
Creating a positive, relaxed mealtime environment is also key. Family-style meals and shared experiences can support food acceptance and reduce mealtime stress (Taylor & Emmett, 2019).
How to Set Up a Build-Your-Own Burger Night
Keep this simple and flexible. The goal is not to get your child to eat everything, but to help them feel comfortable around the food.
Step 1: Lay Everything Out Separately
Use a board or separate bowls for each item:
- Burger buns, wraps, or pittas
- Protein options (burger, chicken, veggie alternative)
- Cheese slices
- Lettuce, cucumber, tomato
- Sauces or dips
Keeping foods separate is particularly important for children with sensory sensitivities.
If you’re looking for a simple option, I’ve also shared a chicken burger recipe with added vegetables that works well for fussy eaters — see below
Family Chicken Burgers with Veg
Ingredients
- 250 g minced chicken
- 1/2 red onion
- 5 spring onions
- 1 tsp thyme
- ½ apple grated
- 50 g carrot grated
- 4 burger buns sliced
- 2 sliced tomato
- 2 Lettuce leaves
- 1/2 cucumber
- 4 potatoes
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic granules
- 3 tsp vegetable oil
- Serve with optional:
- tomato ketchup
- mayonnaise
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 200C/Gas 6.
- Wash the potatoes then pat dry.
- Peel and cut the potatoes into wedges, then add the oil, paprika, and garlic then mix well.
- Place potatoes on baking tray and cook for 30 minutes.
- Wash and slice the spring onion.
- Wash and grate the apple and carrot.
- Wash and slice the lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes. Feel free to get creative and use cutters to make fun shapes.
- Mix the chicken mince, carrot, spring onion, onion, thyme and apple together in a large mixing bowl. Then shape the mixture into 8 patties.
- Preheat the grill and cook under a hot grill for 5 minutes on each side until cooked through in the middle OR fry the burgers for 5 – 6 minutes, turning half way.
- Make sure to check the burgers are cooked through to the middle.
- Serve with burger buns, salad & dips of choice.
Notes
Step 2: Include Accepted (Safe) Foods
This is one of the most important parts.
Always include at least 1–2 foods your child already eats comfortably, for example:
- Plain bread or buns
- Crackers
- Cheese
- A familiar fruit or vegetable
This reduces anxiety and means your child does not feel pressured to eat anything new. They can still sit at the table and feel successful.
Step 3: Let Your Child Lead
Allow your child to:
- Build their own burger
- Keep foods separate
- Touch, move, or explore ingredients
They do not need to eat the burger. They might just interact with one element of the meal, and that is still progress.
Step 4: Make It Visual and Engaging
You can adapt this depending on your child:
- Mini burgers or sliders
- Ingredients served on a compartment plate
- “Burger kebabs” using skewers
- Letting them stack or arrange foods
This shifts the focus from eating to exploring.
How to Make This Work for Sensory Eaters
Keep It Low Pressure
Avoid encouraging, persuading, or negotiating around eating. Research shows that pressure can increase food refusal and fussy eating behaviours over time (Taylor & Emmett, 2019).
Respect Sensory Preferences
Some children prefer:
- Dry textures
- Foods not touching
- Predictable, familiar options
Let them adapt the meal to suit their preferences.
Encourage Exploration (Not Eating)
Even small interactions help build familiarity:
- Touching the food
- Smelling it
- Moving it around the plate
These are important steps towards acceptance.
Why Family-Style Meals Help
Family-style meals allow children to see others eating a range of foods without pressure to do the same. This kind of exposure, alongside repeated opportunities to interact with food, supports gradual changes in eating over time (Johnson & Harris, 2019).
It also helps children feel included in the meal rather than having something completely different.
Summary and Support
A build-your-own burger night is a simple way to make dinner more relaxed, flexible, and positive for fussy and sensory eaters. By including accepted foods, reducing pressure, and allowing children to explore food at their own pace, you are supporting their confidence and relationship with food.
If you’re finding mealtimes challenging, my 1:1 support sessions provide personalised, practical strategies to help with fussy eating and sensory feeding challenges in a way that works for your family.
References
Coulthard, H., Thakker, D., & Pal, K. (2018) ‘The role of sensory play in increasing children’s acceptance of fruits and vegetables’, Appetite, 123, pp. 87–94. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28202412/
Taylor, C.M. and Emmett, P.M. (2019) ‘Picky eating in children: causes and consequences’, Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 78(2), pp. 161–169. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/proceedings-of-the-nutrition-society/article/picky-eating-in-children-causes-and-consequences/34921F967B9F37046962CA866DC199C3
Holley, C.E., Farrow, C. and Haycraft, E. (2017) ‘A systematic review of methods for increasing vegetable consumption in early childhood’, Current Nutrition Reports, 6(2), pp. 157–170. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28596931/