‘Koodies' are gastro wave of the future

"America is beginning to see a more sophisticated and adventurous palate from its children," said Phil Lempert, a food trends analyst and CEO of The Lempert Report and supermarketguru.com. Lempert has coined the term "koodie," from "kid" and "foodie," to describe kids with more of a passion for chanterelles than chicken fingers (see www.koodies.net ).

Trend watchers such as Lempert took notice last summer when then 12-year-old “critic” David Fishman, an Upper West Sider in Manhattan, ended up with his big-night-out story in the New York Times. Fishman, tired of the hummus place in his neighborhood and sans parents for the night, asked for a table for one at Salumeria Rosi, an Italian restaurant on Amsterdam Avenue, and got it -- creating a bit of a buzz.

Koodies like Fishman are becoming a prevalent part of the food chain, according to Lempert. “I’m finding some kids know a lot more than their parents do about food, where it comes from, and how to cook it,” he said.

Eight-year-old Annie Petersiel isn’t exactly sure how to spell her last name, but she is focused and attentive when chef Lynn introduces her to the bean sprouts that will go into her egg foo yung. “I usually make dinner at home,” she said, confidently stirring soy sauce and sea salt together to create a dipping sauce for her dumplings.

“We need to instill a deeper understanding of where our foods come from and how to prepare them,” Lempert said, citing that unless we do, it’s unlikely we will reverse food related diseases and obesity. Koodies, Lempert said, are a key factor.

Jennifer Fox, the owner and director of the Young Chefs Academy in Sandy Springs, said that families are returning to the old-fashioned notion that cooking is an important life skill. “I see cooking as a gender-neutral skill that allows kids to take care of themselves, know more about their diet and take accountability for their health,” she said.

Fueled by shows on the Food Network, Fox notes that the kids in her kitchens have gotten savvier in the last few years. “I’ve noticed a difference in what they know – foods, herbs and spices – even the knowledge of what goes with what. There’s a real understanding of Italian foods and cheeses.”

Cookbooks from “Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father's Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater” from writer and former restaurant critic Matthew Amster-Burton ($23, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009) to Nancy Tringali Piho’s “My Two-Year-Old Eats Octopus: Raising Children Who Love to Eat Everything” ($16.95, Bull Publishing, 2009) are chronicling the need (and love) foodie parents (should they be called “poodies”?) have to create not just healthier, but more culturally interesting meals for their kids, no matter the age. “Monkey” includes recipes for beebimbap and frittatas that even 4-year-olds can make.

Meanwhile, Jasmine Clark, 7, is impatiently watching a pot of boiling water, waiting for her Chinese dumplings to float while Young Chefs Academy owner and director Rita Glaser keeps a watchful eye.

“When they float, I get to fish them out,” Clark says with glee. “Then I’ll give them a little try.”

Young Chefs Academy Toco Hill

Toco Hill Shopping Center

2903 North Druid Hills Road, N.E.

404-633-2633

Young Chefs Academy Sandy Springs

220 Hammond Drive

Suite 368

Sandy Springs

404-255-9263

YCA also has locations in Lawrenceville and Duluth/Johns Creek. www.youngchefsacademy.com

Kids cooking classes also are available at The Cook's Warehouse, located in Midtown, Decatur and Brookhaven (www.cookswarehouse.com ) and at the Viking Store (www.vikingcookingschool.com ).