What you do eat when your sick?

Question

Me, I have homemade soups and tea with lots of ginger and lemon to soothe my throat and clear my sinuses. Today I made a beef broth soup with lemon juice, a an egg, lots of grated ginger and garlic, dried mushrooms and a packet of ramen noodles it feels really good.

Answer

Toast, dry.
Cheerios, dry.
Pretzels.
Trader Joe's lemon ginger echinacea juice, diluted by half with water and heated up with a few extra squirts of lemon.

Answer

Doctored up ramen, ice cream. And if the sickness is not in my tummy (like a cold) rotisserie chicken and mashed potatoes from the grocery deli often hits the spot. 
And lots and lots of oranges. Just to get all that vitamin C.

Answer

It depends. A sore throat usually means soup or scrambled eggs. 

If it's nausea-inducing sickness? Usually just toast with a thin schmear of raspberry preserves to see if I can keep it down. And flat ginger ale.

Answer

Lately I have been leaning heavily toward hot and sour soup, miso, and yes, good old chicken soup.

Answer

A hot shredded wheat biscuit with butter and a fried egg on top.

Answer

I prefer Campbell's Tomato soup, preferably with a toasted cheese sandwich. This is virtually the only time I eat Campbell's tomato soup. I prefer Tomato Bisque, but will eat regular tomato.

Answer

creamy scrambled eggs that have been cooked low and slow with dry toast on the side, or oriental ramen noodles (has to be the oriental flavor)

Answer

I had the flu for two weeks, which made me cough all the time and feel delirious. All I wanted to eat were canned soup (Progresso, mostly split pea and different versions of chicken soup) and Haagen-Dazs Strawberry ice cream.

I haven't had canned soup since the 1980s. It wasn't that bad.

Oh, and for a while, lemon and honey for my throat (honey doesn't taste as good, though, as it did when I was a kid).

Answer

+1 on Top Ramen, chix, pork, or Oriental flavors. Also any kind of jook, or congee. Flat ginger ale to sip.

Answer

not much.

Hot tea; chicken soup (canned is fine, I'm too sick to make any), dry toast, applesauce, maybe a banana. and always Diet Coke and Crystal Lite (Raspberry Ice)

Answer

McDonald's chicken mc nugget meal. Seriously. I love it when I'm sick, maybe it's the saltiness. I had a lung infection last summer and I made my SO go to McDonald's at least 3 times that week. 

Also I love simple toast with butter and cinnamon and sugar. It's what my mom made me when I was sick when I was little.

If we're talking stomach flu or something like that... not interested in eating anything.

Answer

Thai Curry Chicken soup, Pho, Hot and Sour soup - all of these make me feel better. Tea with cinnamon and honey, toast with butter, oranges, sometimes a grilled cheese. If the nature of my sick feeling is alcohol related, nothing makes me feel better than a McDonald's double cheese burger.

Answer

Simple is best. Dry toast, easy-to-digest soup such as (of course) chicken noodle, Vernors ginger ale/soda, English Breakfast tea, chicken flavored ramen noodles, perhaps a hard-boiled egg.

When the stomach is "stable", oddly enough American goulash is very welcome to this sick person, which surprised the ever-loving crap out of me when my mother suggested it way back when. It sounded *awful* in theory (ground beef, tomatoes, onions, elbow macaroni, salt/pepper/garlic powder/sugar), but when I had it, it was absolutely wonderful, and *very* easy on my stomach. To this day, it surprises me that it's good sick food.

Answer

Pho, with buckets of Cilantro.

Answer

Like others have mentioned, toast - lightly buttered with a little bit of cinnamon and sugar. Ginger ale for stomach bugs, with saltine crackers. For the flu or a cold, spicy chicken soup with corn tortillas from my favorite taco shop.

Answer

Invariably, either a tin of Heinz Cream of Tomato soup or, if I'm not feeling too bad, a tin of sardines, coated in flour and fried in their oil (nice slice of cheap sliced white bread is perfect with either).

Answer

If I have a sore throat, then soup and lots of it - tom yum, chicken, goat, hot & sour... And herbal tea - ginger/lemon/honey. Went through a metric tonne of these in the last month.

If it's nausea, then whatever I can get down without feeling worse, which usually isn't much. :(

Answer

It depends on my sickness.

For general illness, then a Beef & Barley Soup, with plenty of Triskets, would be fine.

OTOH, that might be over the top, and not welcomed.

I do brew several teas, but again, it depends on the sickness.

Hunt

Answer

As others have said, it depends on the sickness.

Cold and similar - hot and sour soup is great (clears the sinuses), or anything with horseradish or wasabi (ditto) or just good chicken soup (given that I live in NYC, I would order in from a deli).

Stomach/nausea etc - very little. Ginger ale (I only drink soda when I am ill). Maybe some plain broth or some toast.

Answer

When I'm dealing with flu/head cold/sinus infection then I usually find my taste buds dulled to the point of only really tasting things that are very salty or very sweet.

This results in Chinese takeaway soups and lots of sweet tea.

Answer

I had the flu over two years ago. One day it was good Texas BBQ, the other pizza from two cousins from Queens. I washed them down with a couple glasses of wine and back to bed.

Answer

Homemade chicken soup, then to sleep!

Answer

It depends. If I have a respiratory ailment, I'll probably go for spicy soup. Pork in red chile, Sriracha tamarind soup with pork ribs, hot and sour are all fall backs. Having had the flu and several colds this season, I am ready to branch out!

If I just have a stomach ailment, I usually need something starchy. Plain rice or arroz caldo, yogurt with toast, rice or eggs, maybe just fiber crackers with Marmite and a bit of cottage cheese. 

And if there are no antibiotics involved, I can always hope a G&T has enough quinine to beat something.

Answer

It depends on a lot on what I'm sick with. I'm actually currently at the tail end of a cold which seems to consist of coughing, a stuffy nose, and rather a lot of dryness in my nose and throat. So congee, ice cream, v8 juice (they do recommend gargling salt water, so I guess it makes sense that this feels good...) have been staples. I have to be careful to avoid stratchy foods right now (oats, sadly, aren't so great at the moment). Oh, and putting about a tablespoon of Nin Jiom Pa Pei Koa into hot water is magical. It's like a cough drop tea, with the mentholy steam as an added sinus clearing bonus. 

Say, stomach flu, on the other hand, mostly involves not eating.

Answer

I am impressed that people have an appetite when they are ill. I cannot eat if I am ill. I pop promethazine so I can keep fluids down.

Answer

If I get sick, I eat, and I eat hard. If I get a chest cold, I'm gonna put down a steak and a potato and a few martinis - hell, maybe ever a few glasses of wine. Gimme a burger and a half a pizza. I've even fried a bunch of chicken once when I was quite peakish.

My Grandmother was the one who espoused the notion that sick people need to eat - "more they eat, the faster they get good". Always worked for me. Even with a stomach flu (which I haven't had in too many years to count), I would make myself eat as much of whatever substantial food that might interest me. If I puke I puke, but if I can hold it down, I'm gonna be well as soon as possible.

Answer

depend on the type of illness

Cold/flu? soup, preferably spicy and asian in flavor, maybe with a dumpling too. spicy thai rice or sichuan noodle dishes. lemon/ginger tea, lots of it. 

Stomach bug/nausea? dry toast, saltines, ginger tea, Schweppes ginger ale, as I feel better the toast might get some butter, clear soups.

Migraine/severe headache? nothing really except maybe something with caffeine

Hangover? steak and cheese sub with fries, big greasy burger and fries. sausage/egg/cheese biscuit

Answer

My recent concoction is good strong home made chicken or turkey broth, with LOTS of fresh squeezed lemon, ginger and cayenne pepper. Serve very hot.

Answer

Am just getting over a stomach virus. What I've eaten? Lots of crackers. Some mac and cheese that didn't sit well. Back to crackers. Had chicken noodle soup (canned - Progresso) but didn't interest me.

So I can say - I eat almost nothing. A cold would be a different story. Lots of soup.

Answer

Tea and toast, maybe a little jam.

Answer

For a cold with or without a sore throat:

- green tea w lemon, ginger and honey
- hot & spicy food - likely Sichuan
- Liptons Chicken Noodle Soup (the only one that will do)

For stomach ailments:

- potatoes (normally I'm not a big fan of potatoes but for some reason, if I'm ill, they really appeal to me) baked potatoes is a first choice but as I start feeling better, like a poster below, I crave fries...something I rarely eat otherwise
- salt and salty things (again, I don't normally salt my finished meals but if I'm ill, I crave salt
-saltines (see above)
- tea and plain white toast if I'm really feeling ill
- steamed basmati rice
- I tried congee for the first time this week and I'm fairly confident I'll crave that the next time I'm ill....it was really comforting

Answer

Cold, flu, or sinus garbage: Campbell's chicken soup (none other will do) and saltines, with peppermint tea, and a hot toddy before bed.

Tummy bug: Flat Vernor's ginger ale and bread pudding, my mother's recipe. Maybe dry cornflakes.

Migraine: A fat lot of nothing. There is only lying very still in a dark room.

Hangover: Tator tots and scrambled eggs with ketchup, salt, and pepper. Biscuits and gravy. Maybe a cheeseburger or slice of pizza.

Answer

Ugh. I've had a killer stomach flu since Christmas Day. I'm just getting over it now. All I've had was a ton of flat ginger ale, Immodium and...Campbell's chicken noodle soup. That's it. Tonight, I will make an attempt at a tiny bowl of pasta. plain. just a bit of salt. that's it. Cannot even deal with tea right now.

Answer

Very close to your concoction: I make chicken broth with lots of fresh lemon juice, garlic, ginger and enough cayenne pepper to make it quite hot. Strain the solids out and drink it. This will clear your sinuses and warm your bones.

Topics

Locations

Your post has been published!

What you do eat when your sick?

More from Chowhound

Guides

The Ultimate Spring Produce Guide: What's in Season & How to Use It

Recipe Round-Ups

Quick and Easy Instant Pot Breakfast Recipes for Less Morning Stress

Guides

How to Care for Enameled Cast Iron So It Lasts a Lifetime

Home

The Best Tool to Clean a Wood Cutting Board Is Probably in Your Compost Bin

Trending Discussions

Chowhound Recipes That You are Saving

A Final Goodbye for Chowhound

Favorite Chowhound Memories

NY Times: Chowhound Closes After 25 Years of Food Obsession, Wisdom and Debate

January–April 2022 Baking COTM: DESSERT PERSON by Claire Saffitz

Quick Links

Latest Discussions

Cookbook of the Month

Dish of the Month

Weekly Menu Planning

Get fresh food news delivered to your inbox

12 Irish Foods to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day That Aren’t Corned Beef and Cabbage

Chowhound

Policies

Community

Editorial

Content