Meet the toddler who loves to eat fancy meals like lobster and short ribs - which leaves other parents "shocked". Professional chef Jack Zhang, 31, wants to make sure son Levi, two, is not a picky eater.
So he has been making him posh dishes ever since he could eat solids, in a bid to make food fun. Levi has had scallops, ratatouille and pork dumplings and loves trying new things, Jack said.
Jack, from New York, said: “I started off when he was young, making baby food from scratch. I love to cook - that’s my passion. Now I have someone to cook for all the time.
“I love introducing him to all types of dishes, cuisine and cultures. The mindset is for him to not to be always picky and to try a bunch of different foods.”
Jack, married to part-time English professor Emily, 28, grew up with homemade meals. He wanted to replicate that for Levi - so started making meals from scratch since he was one and able to try different foods.
Jack said: “In the beginning I would try to introduce him to protein like fish and meat. I would make rice, salmon and peas and cook it all up and blend it into a baby food consistency.
“He really enjoyed it. When he was young he loved anything that had salmon in it and he loved Greek yoghurt as a little baby.”
At 18 months old Jack was able to test out his new dishes on Levi. And he now serves up dinners like scallops with a cauliflower puree, quick pickled cucumbers, radish, microgreens and tobiko.
Jack said: “Around 18 months old I started to give him stuff he could chew. It helps him explore and learn.
“I recently made braised short ribs with parsnip puree. He really enjoyed it.
“He loved pulling it out the bone.” Jack said Levi loves avocado, seafood and fruit and is always up for developing his “curious palette”.
Jack and Emily try to excite Levi with food so he’s up for trying it. He said: “I made a ratatouille inspired by the Pixar movie.
“We let him watch it first to get him excited. We make food fun. They want to experience different textures.”
Jack said strangers are “shocked” to see such a young tot try different foods. He said: “I think people are shocked to seeing someone eat different food so young.
“People say ‘I’m 40 and I’ve not even tried that’. Levi speaks extremely well for a two-year-old.
“I have full on conversations with him.” Jack and Emily are working on putting together a cookbook on some of Levi’s favourite dishes and to help give other parents ideas on how to excite their kids to try new foods.
Jack said: “His [Levi’s] palette is always changing. It’s never too early for kids to learn.”
