No Stupid Questions

In Mexico it's

• Quesadillas
• Tacos of any leftovers
• Torta of any leftovers
• Cereal (I think this one is universal)

Question frames it as neglect or neglect-with-excuses. Could also be the kids are practicing independence and life skills.

Which I guess may be a cultural difference by itself. :) Apart from the attitude towards it, Norway has pretty similar ones I guess.

• Sandwiches
• Toast with butter
• Cereal
• Fruit from the fruit bowl
• Microwaved bread with cheese
• Leftovers with ketchup
• Carrots from the fridge

Maybe not age 6, but pretty early:

• Fry egg
• Soup (from bag, add hot water)

(Most homes have electric induction stoves, so the risk of catastrophic fire injury is low)

There's an entire generation of Americans who were cooking for themselves and using the stove in elementary school because their parents were nowhere to be found. Everyone always forgets about them. They're known as Generation X, or the Latchkey Kids.

Traditional Danish lunch is rye bread with a variety of spreadings, sliced sausages and patés. Think of a simpler kind of smorgasbord (depending on the content in your fridge). There's a lot of traditional combinations all based on a thin sliced rye bread with butter, the main spread and often one or two toppings that go with the spread.

The kids learn to make these kinds of "sandwiches" in kindergarten, and it comes in handy when they get older and come home from school hungry.

It makes for a more varied choice than toast or jam sandwiches.

Examples: https://imgur.com/a/ZgGGUhy

I always just did a sandwich with kaviar (not the fancy type) and cheese or a sandwich with spreadable liver paste and cucumber

Edit: Swedish

In the UK it's tea and toast, a lot of kids by 4 or 5 can make tea and toast.

I live in the Netherlands and I learned to make my own lunch from an early age. Can't say for certain at which age, but 6 or 7 sounds about right. I made lasagna when I was 11 and cooked other stuff regularly. My parents always stimulated me being self sufficient. And I saw the same happening with my friends.

I'm the US, the first foods I was taught to make were breakfast foods. First the safe stuff like cereal, frozen hash browns, frozen Pop tarts, then (around age six) pancakes and French toast. Deviled eggs were also an early first.

How was teaching a kid how to make a sandwich neglectful?

In your sentence you say“ If parents have an emergency, or to take to lunch for themselves because parents don’t have time”

How about parents who teach their kids how to make food so they have a life skill?

I have two teenage kids, one in college, and when is about to be in college. Since they were young, they have learned how to cook, make sandwiches, salad, fish, pretty much whatever they want. When they were around five or six years old, we started building out a weekly schedule of food and then budgeting it and going to the grocery store together and buying everything. Now they know how to take care of themselves in life even as a first year college student.

My kid in college shares with me that their classmates don’t even know how to do their laundry or read an analog clock, let alone cook anything for themselves.

I guess my long-winded point is there are actual parents out there like myself who teach their kids how to take care of themselves, including make a sandwich at six years old. We’re not neglectful. We’re not too busy, it’s teaching kids at an early age to take care of themselves and be responsible.

Beans on toast is probably one of the first meals most of us learn here in the UK. Or a Pot Noodle, once you figure out how the kettle works.

Instant noodles or rice with fried eggs and/or luncheon meat.

The first things I recall learning to make for myself were marmalade sandwiches and this concoction of pinto beans, sausage and cheese. I'd heat it in the microwave, which in classic American tradition was made by an offshoot of a defense contractor, Litton. The first thing I learned to cook on the stove, when I was 7, was scrambled eggs.

In the Netherlands open faced sandwiches are pretty common snacks kids will make. Slice of bread commonly with toppings like ham, gouda, hard boiled egg, etc. Also peanut butter is a popular topping for bread, though having it with jam is a lot less common than in the US.

A very specifically Dutch thing would be piece of toast with butter and then literally sprinkles on top (like you might put on ice cream). The Dutch eat a shitload of that stuff. Also popular on buttered toast or rusk are little anise seeds coated in sugar, referred to as muisjes.

Apart from simple sandwiches my kids know how to open cans, cook pasta and fry eggs. Oh and make dino nuggets and fries and other stuff in the oven.

Norwegian here. My family grew up in the 90s on mostly on oatmeal in milk, with some jam or sugar added. I love it. Quick to assemble and doesn't make much of a mess to clean up.

Australian.

Vegemite and cheese sandwiches/on toast. Or Devon and tomato sauce sandwiches. Pretty standard in most houses for young kids.

When my kids were 4 they got out bread and cheese and made themselves sandwiches. I felt like i must be neglectful, but i was proud of them for being self sufficient. McD's used to have 20 cent burgers on Wednesdays so i would buy a few plain ones each week and put them in the fridge. In kindergarten my kids could get one out and microwave it.

Great lakes area of the US. Cheese sandwich or peanut butter sandwich super young. Cereal was also allowed. I can't think of anything else off-hand. As I got older, and we had more money, granola bars and the like and maybe microwave meals if/when we had them. My mom was too afraid I'd burn the house down if I actually used the stove. Once I was probably around 10 or 12, all manner of egg dishes.