Recipes for Pureed Foods – Entrees, Vegetables, and Salads
A number of medical and dental conditions require special care to ensure complete and balanced nutrition while maintaining a soft diet. Information follows to help guide your choices.
While you are having difficulty chewing or swallowing, use these recipes for preparing pureed meals . They can be the basis for developing your own recipes. Be creative! You can puree almost any food. Serve foods attractively and try a variety of herbs and seasonings. Do not limit yourself to plan foods and milkshakes. Experiment and enjoy!
Blenderized Meats
Beef Stew
Roast Meat and Potatoes
Chicken and Noodles
Spaghetti and Meatballs
Steak and Mushrooms
Macaroni and Cheese
Meat Loaf
Tuna Noodle Casserole
Mashed Potatoes
Blended Vegetables
Broccoli and Cheese
Guacamole
Spinach Souffle
Cole Slaw
Genatin Salad
Cottage Cheese and Fruit
Potato or Macaroni Salad
Entrees
Blenderized Meats
- ½ cup cooked meat or 1 jar baby strained meat
- 6 tablespoons hot broth
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place meat and broth in blender. Cover. Process on low speed until smooth. Add salt to taste. Yield: 1 serving
Beef Stew
- 1 cup cooked beef stew
- 1 cup beef bouillon
Put all ingredients into blender. Blend well. Yield: 1 serving
Roast Meat and Potatoes
- 3 ounces cooked roast beef (beef, chicken or pork)
- ½ cup mashed potatoes
- ½ cup gravy
- 1 cup hot water or broth
Put meat in blender and process until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and puree to desired consistency. Yield: 1 serving
Chicken and Noodles
- 1 cup boiled chicken and noodles
- ½ cup mashed potatoes
- 1 cup hot chicken broth
Put chicken, noodles and potatoes in blender. Blend until smooth. Add broth and puree. Yield: 1 serving
Spaghetti and Meatballs
- ½ cup cooked spaghetti noodles
- 2 meatballs
- ½ cup spaghetti sauce
- ¾ cup hot water
- Parmesan cheese or seasoning to taste
Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend well. Yield: 1 serving
Steak and Mushrooms
- 3 ounces cooked steak
- ½ cup mashed potatoes
- ¾ cup mushroom gravy or soup 1 cup hot milk
Put steak in blender. Blend until finely minced. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Yield: 1 serving
Macaroni and Cheese
- 1 cup baked macaroni and cheese
- 1 cup hot milk
Add all ingredients to blender. Blend well. Yield: 1 serving
Meat Loaf
- 3 ounces meat loaf
- 1 small boiled potato
- 1 small boiled carrot
- 2 tablespoons brown gravy
- 1 cup beef bouillon
Cut meat load, potato and carrot into cubes. Put all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth. Yield: 1 serving
Tuna Noodle Casserole
- 1 cup tuna noodle casserole
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 cup hot milk
- 1 cup hot water
Put all ingredients into blender. Blend until smooth. Yield: 1 serving
Vegetables and Salads
Mashed Potatoes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups milk
- 2 tablespoons margarine
- 1 cup instant mashed potato flakes
Combine salt, milk, and margarine in saucepan and simmer. Add instant potatoes and mix well. If too thick, add hot water to desired consistency. Yield: 2 cups
Blended Vegetables
- ½ cup cooked vegetables
- 6 tablespoons milk or hot broth
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place vegetables and liquid in blender. Cover. Process on low speed until smooth. To test if smooth, rub a small amount between your fingers. If any large particles can be felt, process again. Add salt and pepper to taste. Heat and serve. Yield: 1 serving
Broccoli and Cheese
- 8 ounces frozen broccoli in cheese sauce
- 3 tablespoons milk or water
Cook broccoli as directed. Add milk or water. Blend until smooth. Yield: 1 cup
Guacamole
- 2 ripe avocados
- 1 tomato
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Garlic salt to taste
Peel avocados and cut into small pieces. Mash with a fork. Cut tomato into small pieces. Add lemon juice and garlic salt. Blend all ingredients until smooth. Yield: 1 ½ cups
Spinach Souffle
- 1 package frozen spinach souffle
- ½ can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
Cook spinach souffle according to directions. Heat soup. Place cooked souffle and hot soup in blender and blend until smooth. Add water as needed to make more liquid. Yield: 2 – 2½ cups
Cole Slaw
- 2 cups finely chopped cabbage
- 1 tablespoon of your favorite dressing
- Salt to taste
Put cabbage in blender with enough cold water to cover. Process on chop cycle. Pour into strainer and drain well. Put drained cabbage, dressing, and seasoning into blender. Blend until cabbage is no longer visible. Yield: 2 cups
Gelatin Salad
- 2 tablespoons flavored gelatin powder
- 1 cup boiling water
- ½ cup fresh or cooked fruit
Put gelatin into boiling water. Stir until dissolved. Put gelatin and fruit into blender and blend until smooth. Let cool to drinkable temperature. Drink warm. Yield: 1 cup
Cottage Cheese and Fruit
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- ½ cup cooked or canned fruit
- ½ cup fruit juice
Add all ingredients to blender. Blend well. Yield: 1 serving
Potato or Macaroni Salad
- 1 cup potato or macaroni salad
- 1 cup milk
Put salad into blender. Blend until smooth. Add milk and blend until of liquid consistency. Yield: 1-1/2 cups
This information originally appeared in the Journey Guide Patient Handbook developed by the Ireland Cancer Center at University Hospitals, and was adapted for use on NetWellness with permission, 2013.
More About Pureed Meals
- Guidelines for Pureed Meals – Proper Nutrition on a Pureed Diet
- Recipes for Pureed Foods – Beverages, Shakes and Desserts
- Recipes for Pureed Meals – Breakfast, Fruit and Yogurt Blends
- Recipes for Pureed Meals – Soups
For more information:
Go to the Diet and Nutrition health topic.