Making baby purées at home sounds like one of those things you should do, but honestly? It can feel overwhelming when you’re already running on three hours of sleep and trying to figure out if your baby is ready for solids in the first place.

Here’s the truth: store-bought purées are perfectly fine.

BUT making your own gives you control over what goes in, costs less over time, and doesn’t require you to be a chef or dedicate your weekends to meal prep.

Why Make Baby Purées at Home?

Cost savings are real

A sweet potato costs about $1.50 and makes 10-12 servings.

Store-bought pouches run $1.50-$2.50 each.

Over six months of solids, homemade can save you $300-500, depending on how much your baby eats.

You know exactly what’s in there

No fillers, no “natural flavors” that could mean anything, no added sugar or salt.

Just the food itself.

If you’re dealing with allergies or want to avoid certain ingredients, homemade gives you complete control.

Flexibility matters more than you’d think

You can make what your family already eats, customize textures as your baby progresses, and introduce flavors that match your cooking style.

Your baby doesn’t need special “baby food”—they need safe versions of real food.

It builds a foundation for healthy eating

Exposing babies to real food flavors early—without added sweeteners or salt—helps them develop preferences for whole foods instead of overly processed ones.

That said, it’s not for everyone, and that’s completely okay. Some weeks you’ll have time to steam and blend. Other weeks you’ll grab pouches at the store. Both are fine. The goal is feeding your baby safely, not winning a homemade-food award.

This isn’t about Pinterest-perfect veggie blends or elaborate recipes. It’s about turning regular food into baby-safe purées without overcomplicating it. By the end of this guide, you’ll know exactly how to make basic purées, which foods to start with, what gear you actually need, and how to store everything safely—without the stress.

What You Need to Make Baby Purées

You probably already own most of what you need.

Essential Tools:

  • Something to cook with – A pot for steaming or boiling, or an oven for roasting. That’s it.
  • Something to blend – An immersion blender, regular blender, or food processor all work. Even a fork for softer foods like banana or avocado.
  • Ice cube trays or small containers – For freezing individual portions. Standard ice cube trays work perfectly and each cube is about 1 oz.
  • Basic kitchen tools you already own – Cutting board, knife, peeler, measuring cups.

Nice-to-Have (But Not Necessary):

  • Dedicated baby food steamer/blender combo – Convenient if you plan to make a lot, but not essential.
  • Silicone freezer trays with lids – Easier to pop out frozen cubes and keeps them cleaner in the freezer.
  • Baby food storage pouches – Reusable pouches are great for on-the-go, but not a must-have starting out.

Don’t buy anything until you know you’ll actually use it. Start with what you have and upgrade only if it makes your life easier.

How to Make Baby Purées: Step-by-Step

Making purées is dead simple: cook the food until soft, blend until smooth, thin if needed. That’s it. Here’s how to do it with different methods.

Method 1 – Steaming (Best for Preserving Nutrients)

What works well: Vegetables (sweet potato, carrots, broccoli, peas), fruits (apples, pears)

Steps:

  1. Wash, peel if needed, and chop into even pieces (about 1-inch chunks).
  2. Steam until fork-tender—usually 8-15 minutes depending on the food.
  3. Blend with a little cooking liquid or water until smooth.
  4. Adjust consistency by adding more liquid as needed.

Pro tip: Use a tiered steamer to cook multiple foods at once. Sweet potato on the bottom, carrots in the middle, peas on top. Three purées in one session.

Method 2 – Roasting (Best for Flavor)

What works well: Sweet potatoes, butternut squash, root vegetables

Steps:

  1. Wash, peel if needed, cut into chunks.
  2. Roast at 400°F for 25-35 minutes until soft and slightly caramelized.
  3. Let cool, then blend with water, breastmilk, or formula.

Roasting brings out natural sweetness, which babies often love. It’s also hands-off—you can prep other things while it cooks.

Method 3 – Boiling (Fastest Option)

What works well: Potatoes, peas, softer vegetables and fruits

Steps:

  1. Peel and chop into even pieces.
  2. Boil in water until tender (usually 10-15 minutes).
  3. Drain, but save some cooking liquid for thinning.
  4. Blend to desired texture.

Some nutrients leach into the water, but it’s still perfectly fine and often the fastest method when you’re in a rush.

Method 4 – No-Cook Purées

What works: Ripe avocado, banana, mango, papaya

Steps: Mash with a fork or blend until smooth. Done.

These saved us so many times while traveling with the kids. No cooking equipment needed, just ripe fruit and a fork. Perfect for quick meals or introducing new flavors without any prep.

Best First Foods for Baby Purées

Start simple with single-ingredient purées so you can watch for reactions and know exactly what caused them if something comes up.

Easy Single-Ingredient Purées (6+ months):

Vegetables: Sweet potato, butternut squash, carrots, peas, green beans Fruits: Apple, pear, banana, avocado, mango

Why these: They’re naturally sweet or mild, easy to digest, and low allergy risk. Most babies take to them quickly.

Slightly More Advanced (After a Few Weeks):

Once your baby tolerates the basics, add iron-rich foods like oats, lentils, chicken, and beef. Babies need iron starting around 6 months, and their stores from birth start running low.

Simple Combinations (Once Baby Tolerates Single Foods):

  • Sweet potato + apple
  • Pear + oatmeal
  • Chicken + sweet potato + peas
  • Lentils + carrots

Babies have opinions from day one. Don’t take it personally—keep offering and eventually most foods become acceptable.

Getting the Texture Right (By Age and Stage)

Texture matters more than you’d think. Too thin and babies don’t learn to manage thicker foods. Too thick and they’ll gag, which is scary but normal as they learn.

Early Purées (6-7 months / just starting):

  • Very smooth, no lumps
  • Consistency: Like thick yogurt or applesauce
  • Should drip slowly off a spoon

Add liquid (breastmilk, formula, or water) until it reaches this consistency. Start thick and add gradually.

Progressive Textures (7-9 months):

  • Slightly thicker, some texture is okay
  • Mashed instead of fully blended
  • Consistency: Like mashed potatoes

This is when babies start learning to move food around their mouth instead of just swallowing.

Chunky Purées (9-12 months):

  • Soft lumps, minced textures
  • Pieces small enough to gum (pea-sized or smaller)
  • Transitioning toward finger foods

How to thin homemade baby purées:

  • Breastmilk or formula adds familiar flavor and nutrition
  • Water or cooking liquid works fine too
  • Add a tablespoon at a time and blend until you hit the right consistency

Watch your baby’s cues. If they’re gagging frequently (different from gagging occasionally while learning), the texture might be too thick or lumpy for their current stage.

How to Store and Freeze Baby Purées Safely

Batch cooking and freezing is what makes homemade purées sustainable. Otherwise you’re cooking every single day, which isn’t realistic.

Refrigerator Storage

  • Store in airtight containers
  • Use within 48-72 hours depending on the food (meat-based purées on the shorter end, fruit and veg can go longer)
  • Label with date and contents—you will forget what’s in there

Freezer Storage (The Game-Changer)

Ice cube method: Freeze purées in ice cube trays, pop out when solid, transfer to labeled freezer bags. Each cube is about 1 oz, which is a perfect portion size for starting solids.

Lasts 1-3 months depending on food type:

  • Fruits and vegetables: 2-3 months
  • Meat and fish: 1-2 months
  • Combination purées: 1-2 months

Best practices:

  • Freeze in single servings so you only thaw what you need
  • Date everything—frozen sweet potato looks identical to frozen squash
  • Lay bags flat for easy stacking and faster thawing

Freezer purées saved us during busy weeks and travel. We’d pack a small cooler with frozen cubes, and they’d thaw by mealtime.

Reheating Safely

  • Thaw in fridge overnight (safest method) or use the microwave in 15-second intervals
  • Heat until steaming, then let cool to lukewarm before serving
  • Stir well to eliminate hot spots
  • Never refreeze thawed purées
  • Toss anything baby’s spoon touched after 1-2 hours at room temperature—saliva introduces bacteria

Food safety reminder: When in doubt, throw it out. It’s not worth the risk of food poisoning in a baby.

Conclusion

Making baby purées is straightforward: cook until soft, blend until smooth, store safely. Start with simple single-ingredient foods, progress textures as your baby develops, and don’t stress about having fancy equipment—basic kitchen tools work fine.

Batch cooking and freezing is your sanity saver. It turns one hour of weekend prep into a week’s worth of meals. Mix homemade and store-bought without guilt. Both are feeding your baby, which is the entire point.

What we wish we’d known starting solids the first time: it doesn’t have to be perfect, babies are more resilient than you think, and you’ll find your rhythm. Some days you’ll nail it. Other days you’ll serve pouches and move on. That’s real parenting.

Pin this guide for when you’re ready to start, and check out our tested baby feeding gear recommendations for bowls, spoons, and bibs that actually work.