A Desperate Plea: Food for the Doubly Infirmed

Some of you may recall I had an impending dental procedure looming not that long ago, and I was hunting for soft foods such as tapioca pudding.

Well, the procedure (apicoectomy to be precise) has come and gone, time will tell if it was successful, but I'm sitting here suffering the multiple after affects and longing for some sort of sustenance that will suit me in my infirmed state.

Here are the complications:
I can't really chew anything. Nothing that I can bite down on is acceptable, but relatively soft foods that can be very, very gently chewed on the back teeth are okay.

To add insult to injury, I have a raging sinus infection as a result of them stirring up bacteria in that general area. This means everything tastes bland and crappy.

I've basically been subsisting on pudding, mashed potatoes, mashed bananas and grits since Saturday. I'm dying for something that has you know, some actual flavor and maybe something of an ethnic persuasion.

Oh, and it has to be delivered or picked up by my husband since I'm super-doped up and can't operate heavy machinery. Heck, I can barely operate this computer. And, we live in Bucktown, which isn't exactly a hotspot for intriguing culinary choices.

Maybe some sort of Asian soup? Soft noodle dish devoid of crunchy vegetably or chewy meaty bits? I'm out of ideas and if I eat mashed potatoes one more time I swear I might cry.

Any delivery/pickup ideas would be appreciated. Simple recipes capable of being cooked by the cracked out would also work....

Thanks in advance!

Congee, if you like it, would fit the Asian soup category and be soft.

Completely different, steel cut oats and real maple syrup might be nice.

Sounds likeyou could handle either Italian or asian thin noodles if they were simply sauced without chunks of things. A purreed tomato sauce with lots of garlic or herbs or anchovies. Or aglio-olio, or soy-based saucing for soba or something.

I don't have a recipe memorized but my mother used to make several varieties of carrot pudding: a colonial american one, and a gingery one. Very rich, mashed potato texture, lots of flavor. I bet you could find a recipe.

Baked filets of fish could probably be swallowed easily any number of flavorful treatments.

That's all that comes immediately to mind.

A trip to Argyle for some pho sounds like it's in your future! Would have to be picked-up tho.

It'll help your sinuses a lot - you can probably get it served simply as broth with the herbs and peppers for your condition too.

If pick-up isn't an option, Tom-Yum from one the local thai spots would work.

You might make a trip to Argyle with a detour to Shan on Sheridan. Lots of their dishes are soft textured with highly spiced sauces. I particularly like the Okra, which is stewed soft. I am not sure if the chickpeas would or would not work.

My favorite post- wisdom teeth extraction was clam chowder, with a dash of hot sauce.

Your husband might also check out the steam table at the back of the Argyle Thai Grocery on Broadway at Argyle...or any of the steam table take away joints on Devon for highly spiced stews.

FYI-Caveat, some of these spiced stews are not kind to my tummy when I am also taking post-op antibiotics.

pd

+1 for congee (from Chinatown or otherwise). i'd just make this at home until you've recovered. jok + soysauce for 2 please. (ick)

alternative: tofu flower from any of the Chinese bakeries? sugary, gingery, completely slurpable and full of protein.

I had the same problem after my lap band surgery. I could eat, but it had to be very soft foods. I found great relief and much missed flavor in the rice plates from the Thai place across the street from Honey 1.

I asked for the Chicken in the Basil Garlic Chicken to be minced and then pre mixed with the Rice.

When you haven't had tasty food for a few days, it can be awfully good.

My local grocer also sold some premade pasticcio out of his deli that suited me well in that period.

Pho sounds like the ticket, but instead of torturing yourself by eating around the noodles and beef, maybe just get one of the pre-fab pho broth mixes (there are cello bags with all of the herbs and spices already measured out for you). Drop it in beef broth and you've got a seriously aromatic and sinuses-be-damned flavor party in your mouth. The pho bouillon/bag mixes at the stores around Argyle are all pretty good.

If getting out isn't happening, maybe add some wasabi to your mashed potatoes?

A lot of these great soups can be "synthesized" if you don't have a place to pick them up, or can't find a restaurant that will leave out the chewy bits. Combine chicken broth, lime juice, and a dash of hot sauce, you you're close to the flavor of Tom Yum Kai, but with nothing to bite on. Add coconut milk for Tom Ka -- adds a lot of nutrition, too. People have lived for a long time on nothing but coconut.

Kikoman makes a nice hot and sour soup mix where you just stir in a beaten egg. Carry-out might have cruncy veggies, but this dried mix has nothing except vivid broth, and the egg adds protein.

Anyplace that sells Indian prepackaged food is likely to have Palak Paneer-- fresh cheese squares in spicy spinach sauce -- in retort pouched, ready to eat with a little heat. Mash the cheese squares well, and this should make a flavorful but still non-chewed dish. (Actually, any of the dishes sold in retort pouces that use paneer/fresh cheese could be treated this way, and that would give you a bit of variety, good nutrition, and the kinds of spices known to help with sinus infections.)

Hope this helps.

I'll second the tom yum, and add tom kha -- the heat should clear out the sinuses. Watch out for the very, very chewy lemongrass.

Hot and Sour soup is usually soft enough to slurp.

Jalapeno cheese grits?

Any number of indian dishes, such as mutter paneer (cheese&peas), paneer makhani (cheese w/o peas), chole channa (chickpeas), channa dal (lentils) should help satisfy the spice cravings, and all be soft enough to mash at worst.

Ma po tofu -- again, should be pretty slurpable, depending on the recipe.

YourPalWill wrote: I found great relief and much missed flavor in the rice plates from the Thai place across the street from Honey 1.

That's Thai Eatery. How is that place for the non dentally impaired... I ask because it's on one ofthe routes I can take home and I've been looking for a at least decent alternative to having to head north on Western from Diversy to Sticky Rice (though it is obviously far superior to anything in Bucktown, UV, ow WP) just to turn and head south to my place at Western and Chicago after work. Would any who have tried it give it a passing grade for simple weeknight take out or should I just stick with Loc Tham?

How about hummous or baba ghanoush from Sultan's Market or Babylon?

leek wrote:How about hummous or baba ghanoush from Sultan's Market or Babylon?

I thought about that... but how gauche is it to eat hummos with a spoon? Any pita bread you don't need to chew won't scoop either, will it.

I think all matters of food and propriety fly out the window when you're hungry and virtually toothless.

Hummus sounds tasty...lick it out of the container if it works.

That just reminded me of a snack my mom used to make for us: peanut butter and honey spoons. Just a scoop of peanut butter drizzled with honey. Get a jar of smooth PB and you might have dessert worked out, too.

crrush wrote:I think all matters of food and propriety fly out the window when you're hungry and virtually toothless.

Amen to that. I decided to go with som Tom Yum w/ tofu (nutrition plus "squish factor" and some steamed rice that I'll throw some into the soup, and eat some with some soy sauce.

A note to all: if an endodontist ever describes a procedure to you as "simple" and "easy"-- don't believe them!!!!

bananasandwiches wrote:I was hunting for soft foods such as tapioca pudding.

Banana,

Here's a past post from when I was dentally challenged Hoang Thanh (+ Tofu for the Dentally Challenged)

Hope you have a speedy recovery.

Enjoy,
Gary

When I can't chew, but want to eat, I always want corn pudding.

Since Hoxie's closed, I just make my own when I've got that rich, corny feeling. I hear Chicago Diner makes a nice one.

JoelF wrote:I thought about that... but how gauche is it to eat hummos with a spoon? Any pita bread you don't need to chew won't scoop either, will it.

I actually saw a cookbook once in which the author had, from her love of hummus, developed a hummus soup -- essentially, just slightly thinned hummus. But it gave her an excuse to do just what you suggest -- eat it with a spoon. (Not that I haven't just opened the take-out container from Pita Inn and just grabbed a scoop, without any attempt to convert it to soop.) Hummus is a great idea.

Cynthia wrote:

JoelF wrote:I thought about that... but how gauche is it to eat hummos with a spoon? Any pita bread you don't need to chew won't scoop either, will it.

I actually saw a cookbook once in which the author had, from her love of hummus, developed a hummus soup -- essentially, just slightly thinned hummus. But it gave her an excuse to do just what you suggest -- eat it with a spoon. (Not that I haven't just opened the take-out container from Pita Inn and just grabbed a scoop, without any attempt to convert it to soop.) Hummus is a great idea.

Maybe Iam just not a big hummus fan... but Ive done the above fairly
often with Pita Inn's Babaganoush. That too would fit very well
indeed - and you can have it with soft white bread if you need to
(with the crusts removed if neccessary

A trip to the grocery stores at Argyle would work great too - I have
thei pre-packaged soups quite often, find them very good. Iam
thinking of things like "Chand Tom Yum" , the Mama's brand etc.There
are wheat-noodles and rice-roodles, I prefer the rice option (its
softer too, and would work). They have a little red-powder packet
and a little garlic packet in them - add the full amounts of both
packets to the soup-base (in the hot water), and you have a terrific
sinus-clearing soup. (And they cost about 33 cents I think, at
a couple of the Vietnamese grocery stores).

For the Indian stuff from Devon.. the spinach stuff would work
(Saag Paneer etc). But Iam not sure Id risk the chick-pea items,
a lot of the times the chick-peas are not as well-cooked as they
should be, and are pretty hard (unless you are going to mash
them before you eat them anyway, I suppose).

Of course, if you were in Bombay, you could at at Noor Mohammadi
and get their Nehari - which, they boast, is tender enough to be
eaten by a toothless person


c8w

While alot of these ideas are not quite to your requests, I've found them really helpful after some major dental surgery. So here goes: This is where a blender comes in REALLY handy. Cold soups, hot soups (be careful to hold the cap on carefully w/ hot soups - and only blend a bit at a time). I make a bastardized gazpacho w/ organic tomato juice and tzatiki sauce and some good white bread. Also a bastarized vicchysoise, w/ knorr swiss leak soup mix, chicken stock and boiled potatoes and cream. There's minimal cooking involved w/ the later. Your S.O. should be able to do it.

You can treat yourself to chocolate mousee, custards, flan, angel food cake, etc. Think soft and bad for you. On that same page are souflees - stoufers makes a both a spinach and a corn souflee that are I like. Eggs, eggs and more eggs. Softly scrambled, poached, baked, fluffy omelettes w/ a pureed filing of, oh, say, mushrooms and a little cream cheese or perhaps some creamed spinach - no real chewing involved.

The last surgery I had was extensive and for some reason I craved curry noodles like nobody's business - Ann over at Spoon Thai was happy to omit the bamboo shoots and over cook the noodles and use tofu instead of chicken for me. It was wonderfully satisfying.

One more note: if you're that sick of potatoes, stop eating them now - it took me months to look at another potato again. And there's always a nice baked sweet potato. Best of luck to you.

Cynthia wrote:I actually saw a cookbook once in which the author had, from her love of hummus, developed a hummus soup -- essentially, just slightly thinned hummus. But it gave her an excuse to do just what you suggest -- eat it with a spoon. (Not that I haven't just opened the take-out container from Pita Inn and just grabbed a scoop, without any attempt to convert it to soop.) Hummus is a great idea.

I used to frequent a little Israeli place in the garment district in New York where they served a cold chickpea-tahini soup with topped with yoghurt and cumin.

bryan wrote:Think soft and bad for you.

What about a bit of foie gras?

bananasandwiches, I am sorry for your suffering mouth and culinary longings. I hope you will recover soon. Your predicament is particularly interesting to me right now as I have the opposite problem. I am experiencing an absence of appetite since I broke my leg a couple of weeks ago. Any thoughts on reviving the appetite?

c8w wrote:Of course, if you were in Bombay, you could at at Noor Mohammadi and get their Nehari - which, they boast, is tender enough to be eaten by a toothless person

Or she could go to Hilltop BBQ*


*Not actually recommending Hilltop for BBQ, just wanted to post a picture of the sign. They have a Chicago style Aquarium smoker, but it's no longer in use. They use a Ballantyne 'smoker', an odd steam/pressure setup. The three sisters who run the place are super nice and the hot links are spicy and tasty. (It's been a couple of years, at least, since I've been to Hilltop)


Hilltop BBQ
6701 S Racine
Chicago, IL 60636

Satgger, Thai Eatery does hold a candle to Sticky Rice. But, it's not a bad place for Thai if you're in the neighborhood. I used to work nearby and would stop fairly frequently on my way home.

Back to the Asian soup string for a second. . .

If you're near a Korean Grocery, such as Chicago Foods, you can pick up a jar of spicy bean paste. It's vivid red and they sell it in all sizes- including gallon buckets.

Once you get it home, stir a spoonful or two into boiling water, along with some sugar and soy sauce to taste. It's a broth I promise you will taste.

And, when you feel better, you can make it again with noodles, vegetables, tofu, beef or almost anything else you've been dying to bite into.

Get well.
ee

YourPalWill wrote:Satgger, Thai Eatery does hold a candle to Sticky Rice. But, it's not a bad place for Thai if you're in the neighborhood. I used to work nearby and would stop fairly frequently on my way home.

Thanks for the reply YPW. I take it you meant it doesn't hold a candle. I wouldn't expect it to as there are not many places that can compare with Sticky rice. But for a quick pull over on the way home at night it may be just what the doctor ordered.

Sorry for the thread hijack.... When I had my last round of dental work I just lived on milkshakes. The sad thing is that 10 days later when I could go back to eating solid food, I still wanted milkshakes!

When else are you going to be able to eat cheesecake daily with impunity?

I highly reccommend Cheesecakes by JR on Howard St. - they don't deliver, but they do ship a cheesecake sampler which isn't pretty but tastes incredible.

https://secureserver30.appliedi.net/jrdessertbakery/html/order.asp

JR Dessert Bakery
2841 W. Howard Street
Chicago, IL 60645-1228