HeySolids
Choking risk
Haddock is a moderate choking risk for babies - the soft flakes are easy to manage, but bones and dry, firm pieces are not.
Flake it finely, run your fingers through every flake to pull out bones, remove the skin, and keep it moist. See how to serve for age-by-age prep.
Allergens
Fish is a common food allergen, and a fish allergy is usually lifelong.[2]
Introduce haddock on its own, in a small amount, on a day you can watch baby, and watch for a reaction. Once your baby is comfortable with it, keep it in their regular diet.
Fish and shellfish are separate allergens, so being fine with one does not mean the other is safe.
If baby refuses
Haddock is one of the mildest fish and usually goes down well. If it's refused, stir flaked haddock into mashed potato, fish cakes, or a pasta sauce, kept moist. New foods often take a good few goes before they land.
Food safety
Cook haddock to 145°F, until it's opaque throughout and flakes easily, and check carefully for bones as you flake it. Serve it plain - skip salted and smoked haddock, which are high in salt. No added salt in the first 12 months, kept low after that.[5]
How to serve
6+ months old
Flaked into soft food, or a soft patty
A strip the width of two adult fingers, or flaked
Cook haddock until it flakes, then flake it finely - checking carefully for bones - and stir it through a soft, moist food like mashed potato, or a mild white sauce, so it doesn't dry out. A soft haddock fishcake, bigger than a mouthful, also works for baby to hold and gnaw. Haddock is mild and low in mercury, so it's a good fish to offer regularly.
How to cook
Poach, bake, or steam haddock until opaque and it flakes easily, to 145°F. Cool a little, then flake finely and check for bones. Keep it moist by mixing into a soft food. No added salt.
12+ months old
Flaked through family dishes
Bite-sized flakes, or in fishcakes and bakes
Offer haddock flaked through family meals - into fish pie, pasta, chowder, or a rice dish - or as soft fishcakes cut into strips. Keep checking for bones as you flake, and keep it moist so it doesn't dry out. Haddock's mild flavour and low mercury make it an easy regular fish. Offer a fork for practice.
How to cook
Poach, bake, or steam to 145°F until it flakes, then flake and check for bones. Use in fish pie, chowder, fishcakes, or stirred through pasta. Skip smoked and salted haddock, which are high in salt, and keep added salt low in dishes shared with baby.
Tips
- Poach it in milk for the softest result. Haddock can dry out and toughen if overcooked, but gently poaching it in milk keeps it soft, moist, and mild - and the fish comes out easy to flake. The milk also mellows the flavour, which suits a baby, and you can use some of it in the mash or sauce you serve it with.
- Flake it with your fingers, not a fork. Once cooked and cooled a little, run the fish through your fingers rather than a fork - you'll feel any pin bones far more reliably than you'd spot them, and haddock's bones are fine enough to miss by eye. It's the surest way to get every bone out.