Welcome to Pouch Project – where we take those oh-so-popular baby food pouch flavours and remake them BETTER. We’re recreating the recipes with better balance and better nutrition, and comparing what's more affordable. 

In this recipe we're making our version of the Rafferty's Garden - Chicken, Vegetables and Rice. You can read our full review on this particular pouch here. 

Rafferty's Garden Ingredient Break Down

Water, Potato (19%), Carrot (14%), Dried Apricot ( 5%), Chicken (5%), Onion (4%), White Rice (3%), Rice Flour, Canola Oil, Olive Oil, Oregano.

Cost 

$2.30 per 120g/packet ($1.92 per 100g) 

Our Pouch Project Ingredient Break Down

Chicken breast (39%), Baby Potato (19%), Brown Rice (12%), Carrots (11%), Onions (9%), Water (6%), Extra Virgin Olive Oil (4%).

Cost $

$6.95 per 820g  Total Recipe (85c per 100g)

The difference: 

Straight up the cost of our version is a lot kinder on the budget and bank account than the commercial version.

As you can see chicken breast is the highest percentage ingredient in our recipe and its therefore no surprise our recipe is a lot higher in overall energy content coming in at 773 kJ per 100g. It's also a lot higher in protein and fat and has less energy coming from carbohydrates meaning it's going to keep your bub satisfied for longer. It's hard to provide an exact breakdown as the commercial versions don't list specific vitamin and mineral content however given the increase in chicken content and the inclusion of brown rice its safe to say our recipe will also provide more iron, zinc and fibre in each serving.

Allergens: 

None present.

Age: 

Suitable from around 6 months when starting solids. 

This makes quite a smooth puree to replicate the pouch variety. 

Taste: 

Not surprisingly given our ingredient distribution - our recipe actually turns out tasting like chicken. It somewhat resembles a roast chicken dinner with the hints of carrots and onion.

Chicken, Vegetables and Rice

Makes: 820g or (8 x 100g Servings)

Time: 35 mins

Food Storage:

Fridge: Consume within 24- 48 hours.

Freezer (Below -18°C): Consume within 2 months.

We are currently writing a resource on food safety and food storage for little ones. Stay tuned.

Ingredients

• Chicken Breast 350g (1 Small Breast)
• Basmati Rice 100g (1/2 cup)
• Olive Oil 65ml (1/4 Cup)
• Carrots 100g (2 Small)
• Potatoes 165g (2 small)
• White Onion 80g (1/2 Small)
• Water - 500ml (2 Cups)

Method

1. Roughly dice your chicken breast potato, onion and carrots. No need to be neat and tidy. Pop aside.
2. Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the water to the pan and heat for 1 minute.
3. Add chicken breast, and rice to the pan. Boil for 5 minutes. 
4. Add carrots, potatoes and onions - simmer for a further 15 minutes.
5. Remove from heat. Add olive oil into the pan and mix.
6. Place mixture into food processor and process until it is the desired consistency.
7. For smooth puree like ours this will be 1-2 minutes. Add extra olive oil or water if needed to make a smoother puree.

Hint:

If making this for an older baby and wanting a thicker mashed consistency you could drain off most of the water and pull the chicken to shreds with forks and mash the rest of the vegetables. Or simply just don't blend for as long in the final step.