Tofu

A few days ago, I made some miso soup.  This was the first time that I have served tofu on the dinner table and Mowgli didn't gag when he tried it.  I keep serving tofu, because it's one of the few things I can be absolutely certain that Mowgli doesn't like.  Or at least that was my plan.

See, Mowgli's a smart kid.  He knows the 'right' answer.  He knows what adults want to hear.  So when we ask him if he liked X.  The reply he always gives is "I like X."  always with the same sing-song intonation. 

Was that a good apple?
It's a good apple.
Was that a good brownie?
It's a good brownie.
Was that a good mushroom?
It's a good mushroom.
Did you like those noodles?
I like noodles.
Did you like the tofu?
I like tofu.

Many parents would give anything to quit hearing but I don't like it.  Sometimes my brother is one of them.   But this is a real problem for us!  Mowgli's not answering the question, he's just giving us the response that he thinks will satisfy us.  And really, he's at an age where it's developmentally appropriate to think about favorites.  Favorite colors, favorite movies, favorite stories, favorite shirts...  We've got to get past just replying it's good to everything. 

But tofu made him gag.  Mowgli would tell me it's good around choking on it.  It was a golden opportunity.  So my glorious plan was to periodically serve tofu until he would tell me It's yucky! I don't like it!

Well, that was my plan until tonight.  Tonight I used the tofu leftover from the miso soup to make mabo dafu, a lovely combination of tofu & ground beef with a thick sauce.  Tonight he ate the rice and the tofu.  He picked the ground beef off of the tofu.  Ate the tofu.  Then asked for seconds of tofu.  He did not want seconds of rice.  He wanted tofu.  And he ate the seconds too. 

I can't tell if I'm winning or losing this battle.