How to cook pears for baby finger food

Pear for Baby-Led Weaning - Baby Foode

Pears are a great first finger food for baby-led weaning. You can serve them as a baby food puree on a self-feeding spoon, cooked and in half or large slices for baby-led weaning, or cooked and chopped for a finger food. Plus, this guide has nutritional benefits of pears for your baby, FAQs, 3 ways to prepare pears, feeding tips, and so much more! Great for 6 months and up!

Medically reviewed and co-written by Jamie Johnson, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), and Lauren Braaten, Pediatric Occupational Therapist (OT).

Pear for BLW

If you are looking for information on how to feed pears to your baby, then this is the place for you!

Pears are full of essential nutrients and are a great food for your baby! Plus, pears are super easy to make into finger foods for baby-led weaning! 🖐

Below 👇 you will find 3 of my favorite ways to serve pears to your baby!

First time making homemade baby food? Then, I would suggest that you start by reading my very in-depth Complete Guide to Baby-Led Weaning – which covers what exactly is baby-led weaning, to every parent’s concern of baby-led weaning and choking, this guide goes over it all. I will also share how to know when baby is ready for BLW, the top 10 best first foods, a helpful sample blw feeding schedule, helpful tools to have on hand, and much much more!
You can also check out my best-selling cookbook for even more information and recipes!

Reasons to Love Green Beans for BLW

Great for baby-led weaning – 6+ months
Also great for the finger food stage – 9+ months
Full of essential nutrients for baby
Different ways for baby to eat – spoon-fed or self-feed
Easy to make – minimal prep work required

Healthy Benefits of Pears

There are tons of varieties of pears, and all are nutritious, so offer different types to give your baby different tastes and textures.

Good source of immune-boosting vitamin C.
Great source of fiber, to help with digestion and improves constipation.
Provide vitamin K to help strengthen bones.

Types of Pears

Feel free to use any type of pear you prefer – Bosc Pear, Taylor’s Gold Pear, Bartlett pears, Anjous Pear, Asian Pear or Comice.

Spices to Add

Adding spices to your baby’s foods is a great way to introduce more complex flavors at an early age. Some great spices and herbs to add to cooked pears are a pinch of allspice, anise, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, ginger, mint, nutmeg, rosemary, or thyme.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can pears be baby’s first food?

Pears can 100% be your baby’s first food if you want it to be. It is recommended to wait to introduce the top eight allergen foods to your baby once a few other well-tolerated foods have been introduced, but otherwise, foods can be introduced in any order, so choose whatever you are most excited for your baby to have.

Are pears a common allergen for baby?

No, pears are not a common allergen; however, as with any food, start with a small portion and be aware of any signs that might be an allergic reaction after introducing it.

Are pears a choking hazard for babies?

As with any food, you should always supervise your baby while they are eating. To minimize choking risks, cook pears until they are completely soft. Raw, unripe pears can be a choking hazard, so either cook them or serve them in paper-thin slices once your baby is old enough to grasp them.

How to Prepare Pears for Baby-Led Weaning

There are several different ways to prepare pears for your baby. Here are some of our favorite ways:

Steamed

In a medium pot, bring 2 inches of water to a boil. Add the pears to a steamer basket, cover, and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes or until fork tender. Let cool slightly.

Simmered

Place pears and 2 tablespoons of water in a medium pot. Turn heat to medium and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until pears are tender.

Sauteed

Melt 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pears and about 1/2 cup of water. Simmer for 8 minutes, until the water has evaporated and the pears turn golden brown, stirring occasionally.

Pear Puree: You can offer purees and still allow your baby to lead the way with self-feeding by offering the puree on a self-feeding spoon, by placing a few spoonfuls of the puree directly on the tray or in a bowl for your baby to dip their fingers into, or you can even use the puree as a dip for solid foods such a banana or piece of toast.

Helpful Tools

Here are some products that help you make and serve pears to your baby even easier! To find even more products that I love, make sure to check out my online shop.

Highchair
Saucepans
Steamer Insert with lid
Easy to hold fork and spoon
GOOtensils
Bowl or Sectioned plate
Open lid cup
Bib with catch pocket
Sleeved bib
Splat mat to cover the floor

Baby-Led Weaning Feeding Tips

It may seem counterintuitive, but offering younger babies a larger piece of pear, such as cooked halves or thick slices will actually reduce choking risks, as they are less likely to break off a larger piece that’s difficult to manage. Serving larger pieces is also easier for younger babies (6-9 months) to grasp while eating.
Cooked pears can sometimes be slippery, so try rolling in finely ground baby cereal, hemp seeds, ground flaxseeds, or finely shredded coconut to help give your baby a better grasp.
Pureed and mashed pears are also great for adding to yogurt, oatmeal, and other pureed fruits and veggies.

How to Serve Pears for Baby-Led Weaning

Pears can be a choking hazard for your baby, regardless if you are doing baby-led weaning starting at 6 months or during the finger foods stage at 9 months, so it is important to cook and serve them properly.

Cooked in Half, Thick Slice or a Puree (6+ months): These forms will be easier for your baby to pick up at this age. If they are ripe enough, you may not even need to cook them as long as they are soft. Make sure to remove the core before serving halves, so your baby does not eat the seeds. You can offer purees and still allow your baby to lead the way with self-feeding by placing some spoonfuls directly on your baby’s tray or bowl to let them explore on their own, or you can hand them a pre-loaded self-feeding spoon.

Cooked in Chunks or Grated (9+ months): Baby starts to develop the pincer grasp around this age, so serving chopped pieces or grated will help give them practice. Continue to cook them until soft.

Uncooked in Thin Slices, Bite-Sized or Whole Fruit (12+ months): If you haven’t already, offer these with the skin on for more antioxidants and to give your toddler practice with chewing the texture of the peel.

Storage

You can store these cooked green beans in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

2 pears, cored, and cut in half or long strips
pinch cinnamon

In a medium saucepan, bring 2" of water to a boil over high heat. Add a steamer basket and add the pears, cover and cook for 10-12 minutes or until tender when pricked with a fork. Remove from heat and let cool.
Pinch a little cinnamon (if using) on the pears and toss, then cut in an age-appropriate way.

Age: 6+ months

Yield: 8 small portions for baby

Storage: you can store this recipe in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.

Spices/Herbs: Adding spices to your baby’s foods is a great way to introduce more complex flavors at an early age. Some great spices and herbs to add to cooked pears are a pinch of allspice, anise, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, ginger, mint, nutmeg, rosemary, or thyme.

Puree for Self-Feeding: Yes, it can be done! You can offer purees and still allow your baby to lead the way with self-feeding.

Place a few spoonfuls of purees directly on the tray or in a bowl for your baby to dip fingers into. Model how to dip your fingers into the puree and bring them to your mouth, to taste some.
Offer your baby a pre-loaded self-feeding utensil and hold it out for them to grasp or set on their tray.
Use a solid food as a dipper. You can also offer a soft stick-shaped piece of food, such as a soft roasted carrot or bread lightly toasted and cut into strips to dip into the puree.

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Pear for Babies - MJ and Hungryman

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Here's how to safely prepare and serve pear to babies 6 months and up! You can puree or offer as a finger food for baby led weaning.

Jump to:

When Can Babies Eat Pears?
Health Benefits
Are Pears Safe for Babies?
How to Know If Pears are Ripe
Best Ways to Store
How to Serve to Baby (Video Tutorial)
How to Cut pears for Baby Led Weaning
EASY pear recipes for baby
You May Also Be Interested In:
Pear Hummus for Babies and Kids

When Can Babies Eat Pears?

If soft and ripe, pears can be introduced to babies as soon as they’re ready to start solids, usually around 6 months. It’s important to remember that your baby is unique and that rather than going by the calendar, you need to make sure your baby is DEVELOPMENTALLY ready to start solids.

If you’re unsure, be sure to grab this FREE handout!

Health Benefits

Pears are a great source of many vitamins and minerals, including vitamin K and potassium, as well as immune-boosting antioxidants, such as vitamin C.

They’re also a fiber powerhouse, ranking higher than almost every other fruit with 6 grams in just one pear. So next time your baby is constipated, this juicy fruit just may do the trick!

Are Pears Safe for Babies?

As long as the fruit is soft and ripe and is served in an age-appropriate way, it is safe. For kids and adults, slightly ripe but still firm mangoes are ideal as they hold their shape better once cut.

However, for babies, allow the mangoes to get super ripe so it's easy for them to mash with their gums.

Pear allergy is pretty rare as well.

How to Know If Pears are Ripe

An interesting fact! Pear is one of the few fruits that doesn't ripen on the tree! It is harvested when it is not yet ripe and allowed to reach maturity and get sweet and juicy at room temperature.

Apply gentle pressure to the neck of the pear with your thumb. For adults, ideal ripeness is when the area near the stem yields to gentle pressure (but the middle of the pear may remain firm).

For a pear to be safe for serving to babies raw however, the skin and flesh should be soft to the point you can mash between your fingers. If so, slice about the width of your index finger with or without skin

Best Ways to Store

Leave firm, unripe pears at room temperature. You want to check the neck daily. Once it ripens, enjoy immediately or refrigerate to slow down the ripening process. It will keep for 3-5 days.

If you want to speed up the ripening process, place in a paper bag with other ethylene-releasing fruits, like apples and bananas.

How to Serve to Baby (Video Tutorial)

How to Cut pears for Baby Led Weaning

My favorite variety for babies is Bartlett and Comice because they ripen to soft. Bosc and Anjous are firmer and great for steaming.

6+ Months Old

If the pear is ripe, slice about the thickness of your index finger with or without skin. You can also mash with a back of a fork and preload onto a spoon or add to other foods, like oatmeal and yogurt.

If the pear is firm, peel and either:

Cook. I personally love to steam them. It’s better to keep the pieces large as they will shrink during cooking. If they are too thin, they will get easily crushed in baby’s hands.
- They will be be quite slippery so try rolling in hemp seeds, ground flaxseeds, nuts, finely shredded coconut, etc. to help with the grip as well as provide a nutrient boost.
- Mash and add to other foods as suggested above.
Grate using a box grater

A note on skin: Keep in mind, as with many fruits and vegetables, most of the nutrients in pears are found in the skin. It is safe to leave on if the skin and flesh are really ripe and soft.

Your baby may spit it out, but this is great texture exposure nonetheless! For crisper pears with thicker skin, be sure to peel and cook or grate. You can leave it on when serving a very thin slice to an older baby, but always follow your heart and comfort level.

9+ Months Old

If the pear is ripe and the skin and flesh are super soft, you can dice into bite-sized pieces.

With firm pears, in addition to the suggestions above, you can thinly slice (with or without skin).

EASY pear recipes for baby

Iron is essential for baby’s brain, body, and immune system development. There are two types of iron - heme (found in animal products) and nonheme (found in plant foods). Heme iron is absorbed much more readily compared to nonheme iron.

Therefore, if your family is vegetarian or your baby doesn’t like meat, poultry, or seafood, you may be concerned that your baby is at risk for iron deficiency.

The good news is there are so many great plant-based iron sources. Just remember to always combine them with vitamin C rich foods, like pears, to enhance iron absorption.

Related: Best Iron-rich Foods for Babies

Pear Hummus

You can serve in a bowl with a spoon, although most likely your baby will dive right in with their hands. Embrace the mess! It's an important part of learning to self-feed. You can also preload onto a spoon and hand it over.

Here are our favorite baby bowl/plate and spoons!

You can also spread the hummus on toasted bread, or stir into oatmeal, lentils, quinoa, or yogurt.

Check out the recipe below!

Lentils with Pear

There's no need to measure anything!

Related: How to Cook Lentils for Babies

Pear Muffins

fluffy and moist with juicy pear spread throughout, these delightful pear muffins are perfect for babies and the entire family!

Pear Oatmeal

Serve as-is or shape into balls to make it easier for babies to eat with their hands. Add some shelled hemp seeds for a boost of iron, protein, and fat.

If the pear is ripe enough that you can mash the flesh between your fingers, you can dice with skin on for babies 9+ months. Depending on your comfort level, you can leave the skin on. It’s where most of the nutrients are and will make it easier for baby to grip the slippery pieces.

Related: Homemade Baby Oatmeal

Edamame Pear Guacamole

This is another no recipe recipe. Simply mash ripe avocado with mashed or grated pear.

Cooked pear is quite slippery so roll in hemp seeds, ground flaxseeds, nuts, finely shredded coconut, etc. to help with the grip as well as provide a nutrient boost.

Nuts and Seeds for Babies

Pear Hummus for Babies and Kids

Here's how to safely prepare and serve pear to babies 6 months and up! You can puree or offer as a finger food for baby led weaning.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 10

Author: Min | MJ and Hungryman

▢
Blender

▢ 1 cup (170g) cannellini beans
▢ 1 cup (150g) diced ripe pears
▢ 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Can use canned or dried beans (be sure to cook). Any white beans or chickpeas will work. Here's everything you need to know about cooking and serving beans to babies!

Transfer to an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Course Snack

Cuisine baby food

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Pear Puree Encyclopedia Baby Food

(4) 6-7 Months Gluten Free Milk Free Flour Free Meat Free Sugar Free Egg Free Boil Second Breakfast Low Calorie Lunch First Food Snack Cooked Puree Recipes Fruits and Berries

3 Comments

Not only are pears a very tasty fruit, but they also contain fiber, vitamin C and potassium. These nutrients have a positive effect on the heart, immunity and digestion!

Most parents recommend pears as a first food because they easily affect the digestive tract. The peel of a pear contains three to four times more antioxidants than the flesh and protect the body from cancer! The pear is classified as a slightly allergenic product, but we still monitor the reaction. Usually, when introducing complementary foods, a pear is the second green fruit after an apple.

Baby pear puree recipe suitable for baby 6-7 months old. Introduced products in complementary foods: green pears.

Pear

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Simple recipe for pure pure for infants.

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Instructions

Peel and cut into pieces, remove seeds.
Gently steam until tender if baby is under 6 months old. You can also boil it in water over a fire.
Place in a blender / food processor and puree until smooth; You can just use a fork!
Leftover fruit decoction can be used if desired, but pears tend to be very runny and watery with no added liquid. Since I cooked a pear with a peel, I had to peel it at the end before whipping. It is better not to cook mashed potatoes with the peel, it is difficult to digest at first.
Add oatmeal or rice flakes (optional and if included in diet) to thicken.

Recipe notes

Great for constipation.

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