Food for braces

Just started to wear braces. My gums and teeth are still adjusting, so they hurt all the time, so I'm taking some ibuprofeins as suggested. Some food to consider : here and here

Suggestions By Category

Dairy

• Smooth yogurt, or yogurt without a lot of chunks. You could also take chunky yogurt and puree it in a blender to break down the chunks. Also, try the new yogurt in a tube, available at most grocery stores.
• Various soft cheeses, such as brie, cottage cheese, and thinly sliced Swiss, cheddar, harvarti, etc.
• Milk-based drinks
• Custard
• Pudding

Breads and Baked Goods

• Any type of soft bread that does not have seeds, nuts, or pieces of whole grains. If you like whole-wheat bread, look for one that has a smooth texture. Tear off the crust if necessary.
• Muffins without nuts or chunks
• Corn bread, corn muffins
• Soft cakes
• Tortillas (corn and flour, microwaved or steamed until soft)
• Pancakes
• Saltine crackers and matzo are often soft enough to smoosh at the roof of your mouth with your tongue

Grains

• Couscous
• Quinoa
• Pasta
• Noodles
• Soft-cooked rice, risotto
• Bulgur
• Kasha
• Farro wheat (cooked very soft like risotto)
• Polenta
• Matzo balls
• Grits

Meats and Poultry

• Soft-cooked chicken
• Bar-b-que type soft cooked meat
• Meatloaf
• Chicken salad
• Thinly sliced lunch meats
• Meatballs
• Many meat recipes that you make in a crock pot or pressure cooker are very tender
• Chicken nuggets cut into very small pieces

Meat Alternatives

• Tofu can be made in many ways and is always easy to eat.

Seafood

• Soft-cooked fish
• Fish croquettes (salmon, tuna)
• Fish loaf (tuna, salmon)
• Tuna, salmon, or whitefish salad
• Frozen flavored fish filets
• Crab cakes
• Fish sticks (non-crunchy, cut into small pieces)

Soups

• Look in your local grocery store for soups that either don't contain chunks, or have very mushy ingredients.

Vegetables

• Soft-cooked carrots, squash
• Mashed potatoes
• Potato pancakes
• Smooshed potato salad
• Cole slaw
• Spinach or corn soufflé (Stouffer's makes a frozen one)
• Fresh spinach, chard, kale, or other greens, cooked very soft or steamed and cut up.
• Avocados, guacamole
• Salsa (non-chunky)
• Beans (mashed it necessary)
• Hummus, various Middle Eastern dips

Fruits

• Mashed bananas
• Applesauce
• Baked apples
• Fruit juice, juice smoothies (protein powder can be added)
• Other ripe fruits that get mushy

Treats

• Ice cream without nuts or chunks, frozen yogurt, sorbet, sherbet, granita
• Milkshakes, smoothies
• Most cold drinks make your teeth feel better - iced tea, iced coffee, etc. But be careful not to inadvertently drink too much caffeine!
• Soft cakes
• Cheesecake that has been microwaved for 30 seconds to one minute (it gets a bit mushy and easier to eat)
• Cream pies
• Jell-O (gelatin)
• Custard or flan
• Pudding

Shakes and Bars

• Protein shakes, Slim Fast, etc.
• Zone Perfect Bars (when you can chew a little bit. These are the least chewy protein bars I've found so far, with a texture like Rice Krispy Treats).

Suggestions by Meal Type

Breakfast

• Scrambled eggs. Add cheese for more protein.
• Frozen cheese blintzes (available in some grocery stores)
• Hot cereal (oatmeal, cream of wheat, etc)
• Cold cereal that has gotten mushy with milk
• Pancakes
• Soggy waffles
• Muffins without nuts or chunks
• Matzo brie - soak a piece of matzo in water until soft, drain water, mix mushy matzo with one or two eggs, fry in butter or cooking spray until mixture is cooked. Serve plain or with cinnamon sugar.
• Breakfast grits made with milk and butter

Lunch

• Macaroni and cheese
• Ramen noodles, chopped up
• Spaghetti, chopped up. Canned varieties are usually very soft.
• Tuna or chicken salad
• Egg salad
• Cottage cheese
• Various soups: Miso, egg drop, chicken, etc.
• Thinly sliced lunch meat, broken into bits
• Noodle side-dishes (Lipton makes one, for example)
• Bean and cheese Mexican dishes (burritos, enchiladas, etc) You can find some frozen ones in your grocery store.
• When eating out, look for dishes that obviously have soft foods, and no nuts or hard-to-chew chunks.
• Quiche

Dinner

• Meatloaf
• Shepard's pie
• Soft cooked fish - steamed or simmered is usually best. Or fish cakes/croquettes.
• Bean and cheese enchiladas or burritos
• Chili (mash it up if necessary)
• Sloppy Joes. Try making them with various sauces for more variety, such as bottled Indian sauces, Creole sauces, or your favorite marinating sauce. Substitute ground chicken or turkey for variety. A great BBQ chicken sloppy joe uses boneless chicken thighs. Mince in a food processor until they are a gooey mess, then fry it in a pan until it looks like ground chicken. Add BBQ sauce and cook down -- on soft bread they are easily eaten by semi-chewers. Non-chewers can cut it up with a fork into small bites.
• Cooked steak, shredded in a food processor. Top with caramelized onions and/or shredded cheese (or a dipping sauce - BBQ, Teriyaki, etc.) and it becomes a shredded hot salad.
• Pasta, ravioli
• Asian fried rice or noodles with tiny bits of meat and soft veggies
• Lasagna
• Enchilada Pie (layers of corn tortillas, beans, cheese, and sauce. Add bits of meat if desired)