Soft diet
A Mechanical soft diet is recommended in many situations, including some types of dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), surgery involving the jaw, mouth or gastrointestinal tract, and pain from newly adjusted dental braces. This diet is often confused with the soft diet that is a regular diet but without fibers, spiced foods, and highly fatty foods (some people may call it light diet).
A Mechanical soft diet can include many or most foods if they are mashed, pureed, combined with sauce or gravy, or simmered in liquid.
In some situations, there are additional restrictions. For example, patients who need to avoid excessive reflux, such as those recovering from esophageal surgery for achalasia, are also instructed to stay away from foods that can aggravate reflux, which include ketchup and other tomato products, citrus fruits, chocolate, mint, spicy foods, alcohol, and caffeine.
Many of the foods listed here can be adapted for a "full liquid" diet (not a "clear liquid" diet) by processing in a blender with an appropriate thinning liquid such as a vegetable or meat broth, fruit or vegetable juice, or milk.
Grains/starches
- Baked potatoes, skinless, mashed with sour cream or cream cheese
- Breakfast cereal (Cheerios, Cornflakes, Corn Pops, Corn Chex, Rice Krispies), softened in milk
- Cooked hot cereals such as oatmeal, porridge, Cream of Wheat, grits, Cream of Rice, Farina, or Weetabix
- Couscous
- Lasagne with extra sauce
- Macaroni & cheese, cooked soft
- Mashed potatoes and gravy
- Mashed sweet potatoes
- Muffins, pancakes, or waffles, softened with syrup or butter
- Pasta cooked soft
- Polenta
- Potato salad, mashed
- Quinoa
- Rice cooked soft with sauce or gravy
- Rice gruel or congee
- Risotto
Protein
- Baked beans
- Canned tuna or canned chicken
- Chicken salad or tuna salad
- Chili
- Cottage cheese
- Eggs, scrambled
- Eggs, beaten and steamed
- Enchilada pie
- Fish cooked soft
- Meat in soups, stews, or curries
- Meatloaf, meatballs, cottage pie, and other soft dishes with ground meat
- Nut butter such as peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter
- Refried beans with melted cheese, sour cream, salsa, or guacamole
- Sloppy joe
- Tofu
- Yogurt
- Ricotta
Fruits and vegetables
- Applesauce
- Avocados
- Bananas, mashed if needed
- Creamed corn
- Creamed spinach
- Fruit juices
- Melon, ripe and cubed, such as cantelope, honeydew, and watermelon
- Peeled pears or peaches, ripe or canned
- Soup with soft-cooked vegetables
- Vegetable juices such as tomato juice or carrot juice
- Vegetables cooked soft, mashed, or pureed in the blender
Desserts
- Cake softened with milk or ice cream
- Cheesecake
- Cream pies
- Custard
- Fruit smoothies with milk, yogurt, soy milk, or crushed ice
- Gelatin desserts such as Jell-O
- Milkshakes and health shakes
- Mousse
- Pudding
- Pumpkin pie, key lime pie, and other soft pies
- Smooth frozen desserts such as frozen yogurt, ice cream, Italian ice, popsicles, and sherbet
- Whipped cream or whipped topping
