Vegan/Vegetarians: What to eat when feeling under the weather???

[liveloveat34]

I know chicken noodle soup is out, or a steaming bowl of pho which would be my pick...

I found myself dating a vegetarian who has many friends/family that are vegan. Whenever someone is sick or just needs a curative and restoring meal I find myself struggling with what to make. I have done lentil/mushroom soups before and i know soups will probably be the common theme..

So now I'm curious as to what fellow vegetarian or vegan hounds make when they are sick?

Thanks!

[megjp]

This is restorative, vegan, and I've left out the beans before if an upset stomach is the problem: http://www.theppk.com/2011/11/dilly-s...

You could also make a sweet potato chipotle soup -- it's spicy for sinuses, and sweet potatoes are packed with vitamins.

[IndyGirl]

Stomach: a nice salty egg-drop soup, or vegetable broth and rice
Cold: very spicy soup of some kind (either african peanut soup made with veg stock, or a very spicy thai curry soup)
Agree that something like lentils is not good for a touchy stomach, but could still work for a cold.

[luckyfatima]

A friend of mine has a stomach virus and I just dropped off a pot of moong lentil and rice khichri at her house yesterday. The rice and lentils were obliterated together in a pressure cooker, though you could still see some grains of rice. It was a wet gruel. It can also be made thicker with very mushy rice with the daal more intact. This lentil and rice combo is actually classic tummy-ache food in the subcontinent, served with very little seasoning for the ill, but it can also be made well seasoned and with vegetables added to it just to enjoy as a meal. Probably whole lentils could cause stomach distress, but the thoroughly cooked, mushy lentils in khichri make a healthy, nourishing carb-protein combo. With rice and lentils in the pressure cooker I added a large amount of ginger pureed in water, some turmeric powder, salt, and whole black pepper corns. When the khichri was done, I added some jaggery, a very light tempering (less than 1 tbs oil for a large pot of khichri) of asofetida and ajwain seeds. At the end, I added lime juice. It actually tasted like a good, light soupy porridge on its own. But as each of the ingredients I added is known to have anti-nausea and anti-flatulence properties, and it is very nourishing, it was also great for a sick friend. Depending on the type of stomach upset one has, this can also be eaten with yoghurt.

Other types of subcontinental style porridge that are good for being under the weather since they are nourishing and easy to digest: semolina (sweet or savory), broken wheat, broken wheat-rice-channa daal combo (khichda...little different than khichdi), wheat flour, oats, finger millet flour/raggi flour,and watery tamarind soup-tamarind is excellent for an off tummy and supposedly has detoxifying properties.

[tazia]

I always love Indian food, especially if it's a rich curry. Something to do with lots of spices and fat, methinks.

[sourgirl]

for colds, coughs, hangovers, and just about everything except severe stomach upsets, I like either plain old homemade vegetable broth, or vegetarian pho, canh chua, or tom yum. soup is a cure-all!

[piccola]

When I have a cold or the flu, I make vegetarian hot and sour soup or kimchi soup. It it's stomach trouble, then congee (with veggie broth) or soft polenta. Sometimes tofu scramble -- using silken tofu -- works too.

[mvi]

Carrot soup with a little ginger, peanut soup, lentil soup or pea soup. Mashed potatoes made with almond milk and Earth Balance, sweet potatoes, vegan mac and cheese, applesauce and eventually a good sticky bun.

[will47]

Congee / jook, much the same method as yaridog. Good veg condiments are preserved bamboo shoots in chili oil, salted duck-egg or century egg, scallions, wheat gluten and peanut (comes in a jar or can), preserved lettuce, radish, cucumber, or other Chinese style pickled veg.

Veg / "no-chicken" broth with noodles

Haven't tried it myself, but I think a vegetarian pozole or tortilla soup would be super good in this situation, especially if it's a little spicy.

[Muchlove]

Dal-chawal. Or khichdi-kadhi (just khichdi and curd is also great). Or kanji.

[katecm]

Vegetable pot pie with biscuit topping. Warm, cozy, comforting and full of vitamin-packed veggies.

[antimony]

Soup is still a good bet, although I would find lentil/mushroom too fiber-y for a touchy sick stomach. Something with a clear-ish broth and noodles, and for me spicy is always a plan. (Vegetarian pho/udon noodles good.) Or spicy coconut milk soup, IF you can find/make some with no fish sauce.

Spicy peanut noodles for non-soup things, too. If I have to make my own sick-comfort food, miso, hot pepper, ginger, peanut butter, noodles go into a soup bowl and I call it done, although I don't worry too much about balancing taste when I can't taste much anyway.

[will47]

Good idea on the coconut milk soup. Making a veg laksa type thing is pretty easy if you cheat a little and use pre-made Thai curry paste - some varieties have fish sauce / shrimp paste / ground shrimp, but plenty do not. My wife makes it sometimes, with fried tofu, okra, Thai chilis, and some other vegetables.

[Allice98]

I remembered another one! My husband was very sick recently and had to take it very easy on his stomach for a while so I made rice with veggie stock that i had made instead of water and added flakes of asiago that got mixed in when served. It was absolutely delicious and perfect for being sick. We did add in some frozen peas at one point. I honestly can't wait to make it again. Using the very hard cheese it had a crunch to it when you were eating it.

[liveloveat34]

that's a great idea!

thanks for all the replies so far :-)

[mym]

Miso soup!

[hill food]

definitely miso

[guilty]

Another vote for miso soup.

[Fiona]

Another vote for miso soup! I have two daughters who were both vegan for a long time - only one is still. When they are feeling blech miso soup with a lot of garlic and ginger does the trick. If the sickness allows a bowl of soba noodles with lots of ginger, garlic and soy sauce is also good. As you can tell I am a believer in the curitive properties of garlic and ginger.

[odkaty]

Frittata or a spicy daal.

[cackalackie]

When I was growing up, my mom would always make potato soup for us when we were under the weather.....

[yaridog]

I make jook with vegetable stock, a lot of ginger and scallions. It reminds me of the chicken rice porridge my dad used to make me when I was sick.

[Allice98]

Risotto!!!

I also love making tomato sauce while I am sick weather I do it on the stove or in the slow cooker.

Truthfully though the one thing that i want the most when not feeling well is Thai food, though you might want to leave that up to your local restaurant.