Mushy food recipes
Crispy, crunchy, and chewy. All are words associated with toothsome eating experiences. So are dense, textured, crusty, crackling, and we could go on, but we won’t for now because, at the moment, we’re finding ourselves more fascinated by the possibilities that may be offered by “soft foods.” Although the phrase “soft foods” tends to bring to mind bland, boring foods that are more about sustenance than actual enjoyment, we know for a fact that’s not the whole story.
Certainly, there are situations that call for only the most mildly flavored and textured soft foods. Your health care professional might, for example, decide that a soft food diet is appropriate after general anesthesia (per the Cleveland Clinic), which temporarily causes the digestive tract to cease its normal activity, therefore requiring a gentle transition back to regular eating habits. And when babies are learning to eat? Doctors, of course, recommend only soft, bland foods such as bananas and cream of rice.
However, there are plenty of other circumstances that call for a soft food diet in which only the literal softness of the food is at issue. For instance, Healthline points out that after dental surgery, you may need to stick with soft food for a while, but that soft food needn’t be bland; it can be flavorful or even highly textured. And that’s quite fortunate because we’re about to present to you 25 soft food ideas that are so filling and satisfying that the fact that they are, indeed, “soft foods,” seems almost beside the point.
Eggs (in Every Way)
Eggs are known by many a nutrition expert as the “perfect protein.” This is because, as registered dietitian Mackenzie McCune shared with the Shore Medical Center, a single large egg delivers around 6 grams of high-quality animal protein and 13 essential vitamins and minerals. And all of that at the caloric cost of a mere 70 calories.
Although, every so often, some new clinical study attempts to challenge the egg’s right to wear its arguably well-deserved health halo, the nutritional benefits of eggs continue to stand up to scientific scrutiny. As recently as February of 2022, researchers from the University of Arkansas were advocating in the academic journal Nutritional Reviews for public-health efforts to be made toward supplying more eggs to people who may be dealing with food insecurity. The reason? Because eggs are so nutritionally “efficient.”
Since there is virtually no way to prepare an egg that does not fall within the category of “soft food,” eggs make soft-food eating easier than you might ever imagine. They can be scrambled, fried, poached, boiled, steamed, or turned into an omelet (with soft fillings such as cheese, jam, or spinach). But they’re also a great add-on for many other soft foods discussed below, including polenta, creamy grits, and mashed potatoes.
“efficient” forms of protein, both in terms of cost and calories. Similarly, it’s reasonable to argue that shepherd’s pie — a classic British pub food and family-dinner favorite — is one of the most efficient ways to consume a nutritious savory meal in the event that you are temporarily restricted to soft foods but are still able to tolerate small pieces of soft-cooked vegetables, as Healthline explains many on soft food diets are.
