Cooking for someone who cannot chew

[sparrowgrass]

My friend's mom had cancer surgery that removed part of her tongue and jaw. She has had her stomach tube removed, and is eating, but everything has to be pureed or liquid. She is losing weight like mad, because she gets tired of mashed potatoes and pureed string beans.

Any ideas? I seem to remember a thread on something like this, but I can't find it.

[Pebs]

Have you considered making pureed soups that use heavy cream? It will kick up the calorie content. When I had my tonsils taken out at age 27, my sister showed up and made about 6 varieties of soup. It kept me from being bored.

[PopsicleToze]

Egg drop soup would probably work. Use an old hen to get a real strong chicken taste when you are making the stock.

Homemade soups are a good option -- and can be put in a blender to make them smoothe.

I've seen several threads on congee(sp?) and while I'm not that familiar with it, it seems like that would be a good option.

Creamy grits and butter.

[Marigene]

Could her meals be supplemented with pureèd meats, even the jarred ones for babies. At least that way she would be getting some protein. Custards would also have quite a bit of protein.

[Beebs]

Savoury steamed egg custards, like the Japanese chawanmushi, but without all the solid bits.

Smoothies with plenty of protein powder.

[insomniac]

a friend of mine in a similar situation loved home-made icecreams and sorbets....lots of egg yolks for protein (ice cream) , sugar and full fat cream to boost calorie intake, fresh fruit puree (sorbets) and she loved the coldness of the confections which she told me were very comforting...

[Dejah]

As mentioned up-post, make congee (Chinese rice soup - comfort food)with a chicken carcass for stock. Add marinated chicken "tenderloins" or fish. They would add lots of protenin and flavour.

[GordonCooks]

Not so fast with all the fattening cream and such. Breakfast could be some high protein smoothies - skim milk, frozen banana, frozen berries or peanut butter, and whey protein. Most high quality proteins are 25 grams of protein a scoop.

Tex Mex Refried Beans

Ground Sausage Marinara

Silky Tofu

etc

Keep it healthy by all means, please

[sparrowgrass]

She is losing weight, and her nutritionist actually recommended adding half and half or cream where ever possible.

She cannot eat anything that is larger than a grain of rice, so chunks of meat won't work.

Refried beans with some olive oil and cheese sounds good, and the egg drop soup might work.

She is 83, and kinda set in her ways, so "country" style cooking is best.

[Sugarella]

.....but everything has to be pureed or liquid.  She is losing weight like mad, because she gets tired of mashed potatoes and pureed string beans.

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Ideally, anything can be pureed or liquified, any vegetable, fish, or meat, so try not to limit her to just a few items. No reason you can't still use herbs and add lots of flavour. Try braising things like fish and meats and use the braising liquid for pureeing it in. For vegetables, steam or roast them with some great tasting stocks then puree with the stock included; there's lots of ways to make things taste just as interesting as they would normally. You can even whip & puree soft cheeses that she can eat. To help her gain a little weight, try the inside soft parts of bread pureed warm with some cream or whole milk. That doesn't taste too bad either. Rice and cream or potatoes and cream (think herbed scalloped potatoes, just made with a little extra liquid then pureed.) Have fun with it and get creative!

P.S. Here is a thread on smoothies....

Edited July 23, 2008 by Sugarella (log)

[dockhl]

Any ideas?  I seem to remember a thread on something like this, but I can't find it.

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seems to me there was a thread on someone's brother being mugged and having his jaw wired? I cannot find it..................

[annecros]

So how much of a problem is swallowing? Not chewing, you can get around that pretty well. But, having experienced mild to moderate dysphagia, I know for a fact that you can't breathe coffee. It just doesn't work.

I'd go potlikker (collards, as an ideal) and cornbread, of course - nutritionally dense and easily digestible. And pretty low in fat in the grand scheme. Tasty and good on a tummy that has been insulted recently, and loaded with so much nutrition the numbers are gobsmaking. Coming off the feeding tube back to whole food is going to be a huge transition as her tummy is very fragile right now.

The fatty, tasty, things are fine. Just make sure she is getting some nutrition. I hate ensure, but darn it, some times it is the only way to make sure that everything is OK. I have gone so far as to substitute Instant Breakfast and half/half for Ensure, and got a very desirable result.

Good luck. Difficult for you, and best wishes.

[Mayhaw Man]

Yeah, I know, I'm from the South. What else is new?

Have you thought about grits in their many delicious forms.

Not only are grits of a fine texture, but they can be cooked so many different ways, and with so many bases/stocks, that they can be not only tasty but damned nutricious, as well.

You can cook them in stocks of all sorts (ham stock, of course, is the way that I like to go) and put them into many, many recipes.

http://recipes.egullet.org/recipes/r1015.html

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...1&mode=threaded

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=22793

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=75102

http://recipes.egullet.org/recipes/r237.html

That should give you a start. Give them a try. Once you start eating grits, you'll never want another side of hash browns!

B

[Abra]

My husband was in a related situation after 5 months with a feeding tube and limited swallowing. Milkshakes were his salvation, and oatmeal porridge with a lot of cream. Either one can have some peanut or almond butter mixed in for additional protein. And there's milk toast - toasted good bread, well buttered, soaked in hot milk, is one of the most delicious things on earth.

[Toliver]

Any ideas?  I seem to remember a thread on something like this, but I can't find it.

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seems to me there was a thread on someone's brother being mugged and having his jaw wired? I cannot find it..................

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I recall the same discussion. Many years ago I had all of my wisdom teeth taken out at one time and I couldn't chew for a while. I put everything in a blender. Lasagna worked well (which can be soft to begin with) as would most pasta dishes.

[sparrowgrass]

She actually has been off the feeding tube for quite some time, but has been losing weight. The doc threatened to reinsert the tube if she continues to lose.

From what I understand (this is the parent of a friend, and I don't know her) she does have a sensitive stomach and a sore mouth, so anything spicy is out.

Mayhaw Man, I did suggest grits to my friend, even though I'll have the hashbrowns, thank you very much.

[jgm]

There have been enough suggestions here, that I think it's time to sit down and talk with her. I think that you could puree something like vegetable beef soup, if that sounds good to her, and if she would like to have some beef.

Part of the equation here is determining what she's willing to eat. A lot of vegetables could be made into a soup by just pureeing them with half and half. I also like the tofu idea. It would provide some extra calories and some nutrition, if blended into other things. The milk toast Abra suggested really sounds good, too. Myself, I like Malt-O-Meal a lot.

Ask her what she'd eat if she could eat anything she wanted. That might start some ideas on how to adapt things for her.

[prasantrin]

You can also add protein powders (whey or isolate--pure, not those flavoured mixes) to different things to help with protein consumption.

Pretty much anything can be pureed, so you could take her favourite foods and just puree them if she's willing to eat them like that.

[MissAmy]

You could even do a dessert out of chocolate and silken tofu, making a protein-power pudding.

[sparrowgrass]

Thanks for all the suggestions, folks, but. . . . .

The more I talk to my friend, the more I think this not eating is a depression issue, not a food issue. Zoloft might help more than tofu or heavy cream.