Be patient but persistent and your child will give peas a chance.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—It’s a question parents have been fretting over since time immemorial: How do I get my kids to eat those doggone vegetables? And a positive kids-vegetables experience is more important than ever, given the exploding childhood obesity epidemic. Fortunately, Dutch researchers at Wageningen University in the Netherlands may have some answers.

THE DETAILS: In a study done last year, the researchers served a group of kids (aged 4 to 12) two vegetables: carrots and string beans. The vegetables were served either mashed, steamed, boiled, stir-fried, grilled, or deep-fried. Turns out the kids liked the boiling and steaming methods the best, because these methods were best at preserving the vegetables’ original crunchiness, color, taste, and texture.