Foods To Eat When You Have a Cold

[rme7]

At bedtime, proceed as follows.

Put a mug of water in the microwave and get it cooking for 1 minute or maybe a bit more. In the meantime, cut off a thick slice of lemon and get out a pot of honey. Fill a glass with cold water and take 2 Ibuprofen. When the water is hot, stir in a teaspoon of honey and squeeze in the juice from the lemon. If you want to be sure of comprehensive relief, add a shot [25ml] of good but not top-drawer Scotch or Bourbon. Drink it in bed, getting up only to brush your teeth [if you stay awake that long].

Works for me every time.

Richard

[gourmande]

Chicken broth with rice, and lightly buttered toast and tea. Works for me.

[deltadoc]

There's a reason why garlic is sometimes referred to as the "Russian antibiotic".

Clinical medical studies have shown that fresh garlic (don't know about roasted garlic) has medicinal qualities that make it effective against bacterial and viral infections.

Based on my wife and I using mass quantities of garlic whenever sickness descends upon us, I can vouch for it's effectiveness.

And I guarantee that Crystal brand Louisianna Hot sauce will temper any sore throat! Many skeptical associates have been astounded at the result of my insistence on them trying a TBSP full of my jar I kept at work!!

doc (not an MD)

[Busboy]

Indian food. Red wine.

[Ptipois]

An Indian remedy: one onion, coarsely cut; some slices ginger, a few peppercorns, a couple cinnamon sticks, a few cloves, perhaps one cardamom pod or two. Boil until liquid becomes muddy. Drink warm, three or four times a day.

A personal remedy: just slice one organic lemon and boil it, skin and all, in 1 quart water for about 30 minutes on low heat, covered. Drink the tea, perhaps with a little honey. Very potent and absolutely delicious. Also prevents you from catching a cold when other people near you have one.

A miracle soup of my own creation: chunks of chicken, leg meat, marinated in lime juice, lots of crushed garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, salt, pepper and cornflour. Plenty of chicken stock. A few leeks, white part only, thickly sliced. Some udon or somen noodles, parboiled and drained. Bring chicken stock to boil. Add leek slices, boil for 2 minutes. Add chicken (with all marinade) and noodles, bring back to boil, simmer for a few moments until slightly thickened and chicken is just cooked through. Add more lime juice, sesame oil and soy sauce at table. Garnish with coriander. No cold seems to survive this. Incredibly good.

When too lazy to cook any of these: pho wakes up the dead.

[helenjp]

Deltadoc, when I was young and gullible, somebody recommended swallowing a whole (small) clove of garlic dipped in honey as a remedy for colds. I can testify that I did indeed forget that I had a cold - hours and hours of lying on my bed writhing and groaning in pain put it right out of my mind...

Hot lemon with chilis, a slice or two of garlic (strained OUT of the tea before drinking!!) and honey, now that's a different story.

[artisanbaker]

1. tussinex

2. mulled red wine (vin chaud/glogg)

[Pontormo]

I can't get no satistisfaction.

It's like wine tasting interruptus: Using your left or right hand, you can swirl the food around on your plate with your fork and see how many interesting color and texture combinations ensue.

You can move jaw up and down, lips closed, evaluating mouth feel.

But then, nadda. Zip.

Do you just consider this a great opportunity to save pennies and take a multivitamin while preparing lots of bland, cheap food?

Do you devote the time you might have spent cooking to that book on your shelves that has a bookmark on page 17, or go volunteer?

As the principal meal preparer in your family, is this question academic? You still cook as you normally do and derive pleasure from the nourishment of others?

Or is there some trick you have: lots of cayenne, steam and goblets of lemon juice that you swear restores zing to your tastebuds and unclogs your nose in twenty-one hours flat?

[DTBarton]

Find or make the best hot and sour soup that you can and get it really spicy. The best of both worlds, like Jewish penicillin with a shot of fire to blaze open the sinuses.

[Milagai]

I think all cultures have their cold remedies that seem to be

a version of hot and spicy soup.

Mine is lemon rasam (rasam, + tomatoes + lemon juice instead of tamarind + ginger and green chillies and cumin along with mustard etc in the tarka).

This is a light soup but still has enough dal in it to nourish without overwhelming.

The spice combination will cure head and stomach symptoms....

Milagai

[Gifted Gourmet]

Kleenex Soup

or my own homemade chicken soup with thin, nearly vermicelli noodles:

Click for some great ideas for handling the anguish of a cold ...

As soon as you realize you are getting sick, stop eating solid food. It takes more energy for your digestive system to break down solids.

[Tess]

Tom Yum soup. Also, hot and sour soup with tofu in it. (You need some protein.) Miso soup is very good too.

[moosnsqrl]

There's an Italian place here in KC that makes a killer garlic soup. It has multiple health benefits and I find, no matter how congested or taste-less I am, I can actually detect some flavor in it.

I found a recipe that looks like it might result in something similar to my favorite remedy.

Feel better! One of my houseguests is hacking and wheezing so I'll probably be joining you soon

[Gifted Gourmet]

2 cups garlic cloves, about 4 large heads, chopped

... holy cow! That's gonna kill germs and anyone else in a four state radius ... viva Allium sativum!

[*Deborah*]

I like curries when I'm sick. I can usually find a smidgen of flavour even if my tastebuds are pretty dead.

One day I made chicken soup, then promptly got sick and needed it. I'm not sure of the causality, but it kind of made me wary of making it from scratch.

[Chris Amirault]

Great thread topic, Pontormo! Since as you point out taste is often blunted when you're sick, I wonder if part of the appeal of chicken soup is the mouthfeel of a good, slightly gelatinous stock.

[Rehovot]

If my head is stuffed, I make roasted salsa. Even if I can't taste it, I can feel it working.

I don't mind making chicken soup when I'm sick...it's the crawling out to the store and shopping for the ingredients that I mind...

Soup and hot buttered toast. Maybe, on the 3rd day, some pasta.

All interspersed with gallons of water and juice.

[SuzySushi]

The usual: Chicken soup with noodles, tom yum soup, hot & sour soup, curry, chili. Wasabi is good, too, but sushi's a waste as I can't taste it. Drink plenty of water/juices/tea. Avoid anything milky.

[moosnsqrl]

2 cups garlic cloves, about 4 large heads, chopped

... holy cow! That's gonna kill germs and anyone else in a four state radius ... viva Allium sativum!

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Yes, it's a lot, but no one wants to come near you when you have a cold anyway, so what better time to eat all of the garlic you want?

[bergerka]

Extremely spicy food, either at Grand Sichuan International or Sripraphai. Does the trick every time - sandblasts the sinuses and wakes up the taste buds.

[Carrot Top]

Two shots of good brandy followed by a box of Sugar Daddies.

[Megan Blocker]

Two shots of good brandy followed by a box of Sugar Daddies.

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Wowza.

I go for chicken bun xao from Saigon Grill when I'm sick, with plenty of chili sauce added on top. I'm not a huge soup person, but a noodle dish is a nice substitute,. Plus, they deliver really quickly, so there's less chance of falling back asleep before the delivery guy arrives (this has happened to me a few times!).

[dougery]

Arroz Caldo!

My father in law makes this wonderful Philippine equivilant of chicken soup. It is spiced up with a LOT of ginger and works wonders on my cold! I used to eat Chinese and Japanese Congee until I found this gem.

[monavano]

Chicken soup of course! (am making some as I type for Wedding Soup)

Tom Yum

Hot and Sour

[foodie52]

Tortilla soup with some Tabasco thrown in.