In this blog post, I am happy to share a thoroughly researched in-depth list of the 101 best soft foods to eat after oral surgery.
It is perfect for anyone recovering from tooth extraction, wisdom tooth removal, dental implants, or other invasive dental procedures like gum surgery.
All of the soft foods on my list are gentle on the mouth and require a minimal amount of chewing.
The great thing about these soft foods is that they don’t require a lot of preparation and many require no prep at all. Alas, now is a time when you should take it easy and focus on your recovery. Be good to yourself and your chompers!
Video Review: Soft Food Diet Post Dental Surgery
Without further ado, I’ll start off with this great short video that I found out on YouTube from DentaVacation of soft foods to eat after oral surgery.
Next, I’ll follow up with many more of the best soft foods to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner as well as some “sweet” soft desserts and snacks. My list is dentist-approved (from numerous respected and dentists and oral surgeons around the web) and guaranteed to make you smile.
What follows is my list of 101 dentist-approved foods to eat after oral surgery.
21 Soft Foods to Eat at Breakfast
Here are 21 soft foods to eat after oral surgery for breakfast.
#1. Instant Oatmeal, especially Cream of Wheat which is very soft.
#2. Soft-boiled eggs – Soft-boiled egg whites are the best option here; avoid any yolks which may have a little more chew to them. Pro tip: Try adding some soft cream cheese on top instead if you’re feeling fancy and want a creamier texture with some added flavor.
#3. Pancakes/crepes without lumps in them; also, avoid waffles that are harder to chew.
#4. Cottage cheese.
#5. Greek Yogurt.
#6. Sliced Bananas in Milk with a little sugar.
#7. Warm Coffee (not hot!)
#8. Warm Tea (not hot!)
#9. Milk, stay away from most juices for a few days after your surgery as they can be acidic.
#10. Soft pieces of bread.
#11. Soft muffins.
#12. Soft bagels – not toasted.
#13. Cereal made soft, e.g., cream of wheat, or let it sit in milk for a while until it softens.
#14. Breakfast sandwiches – Avoid croissants or anything crispy; instead, go for soft untoasted bagels. You can also try an egg sandwich made on bread instead of toast.
#15. Scrambled eggs with soft cheese – I like American best but cheddar or swiss will also work.
#16. Cereal bars – or *soft* granola bars, protein bars, etc. No nuts please.
#17. Fruit salad – Steer clear of acidic citrus fruit or anything with seeds since they can get caught in-between your teeth easily. Try soft fruits like bananas, melons, or cantaloupe which can be especially yummy when mixed together in a soft fruit salad!
#18. Cottage cheese – Soft cottage cheese with pineapple, peaches, or other soft fruit can be delicious. Plus, it is low carb and high in protein.
#19. All types of yogurt – Avoid crunchy granola on top! Go for plain yogurt which is soft already (no chunks). You may be able to add a bit of fresh soft fruit on the top depending on how you feel.
#20. Carnation or similar types of instant breakfast drinks.
#21. Soft Doughnuts. Honey-dew is my favorite.
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20 Soft Foods to Eat at Lunch
Here are my 21 best soft foods to eat after oral surgery at lunch.
#1. Tomato or Squash Soup – Again, avoid anything with lumps or pieces of hard food in it, e.g., tomato soup- blended smooth is best! You can also get premium Squash and other blended soups from national brands like Panera at your local supermarket.
#2. Peanut butter and seedless jelly sandwiches on soft plain white bread can really hit the spot for lunch.
#3. Chicken or Vegetable Soups – Soft vegetable soups are great options to eat after oral surgery. Pro Tip: Make your own at home and freeze individual servings for even more softness later on! Shredded chicken might work if you can handle chewing it.
#4. Grilled cheese sandwich – This is a big go-to here in the USA! Avoid bread with crispy crusts. Soft white bread works best to hold your soft melted cheddar cheese in the middle.
#5. Soft casseroles.
#6. Quiche (Who says real men don’t eat quiche?)
#7. Creamy soups – Creamy vegetable or soft creamy chicken noodle could work nicely too. Pro tip: blend smoothly in a blender if needed instead of straining the soup through a sieve.
#8. Soft Chicken Nuggets with or without french fries (depending on how crispy).
#9. Soft sandwiches such as turkey breast and cheese on or maybe plain tuna mashed up fine.
#10. Soft bread with a bit of honey or jam.
#11. Avocado toast – Mash avocado with soft cheese and spread on a soft bagel, sourdough, etc.; add some extra ingredients if needed such as boiled egg whites for protein.
#12. Soft tacos – Be sure to use a soft tortilla with soft chicken or soft fish, shredded cheese, and extra ingredients of your choice. Avoid crunchy veggies such as crisp lettuce or hard bell peppers; instead, go for soft diced tomatoes or maybe a little guacamole. Yum!
#13. Soft hamburger – Make sure you use a soft bun with medium to rare beef patty and soft cheese. Avoid making it into a sandwich by adding the top half of the bun since this will be difficult to eat after oral surgery; you can just enjoy an open-faced burger for now.
#14. Protein bars – soft protein bar such as soft chocolate brownie Avoid anything too “crunchy” like granola bars.
#15. Soft serve ice cream – Avoid any hard toppings like nuts, sprinkles, etc.; soft chocolate sauce with soft caramel is the best way to enjoy your soft vanilla ice cream. Add some extra softness by adding whipped cream too if you want.
#16. Baked potato – Remove skin and mash-up good with your fork before eating.
#17. Broccoli – Steamed soft broccoli is delicious.
#18. Clam Chowder or as we like to say in Boston “Chow-dah.”
#19. Meatballs or a meatball sub on a soft roll or sandwich bread.
#20. Miso Soup. Me so think it is delicious!
20 Soft Foods to Eat For Dinner
Here are my picks for the 20 best soft foods to eat after oral surgery at dinner:
#1. Soft pastas like ziti.
#2. Spaghetti soft noodles – Boiled soft and then drained well so the water is gone before eating them.
#3. Other Pasta dishes – Spaghetti/linguine are the easiest types to eat soft at first after oral surgery but you can try others if your mouth feels up for it! Remember no crunchy noodles though ?
#4. Mashed potatoes/sweet potatoes – Make sure they are boiled soft and mashed up well. Mix them with a little bit of butter and milk to make them creamy and delicious! Instant mashed potatoes are great too!
#5. Mac & cheese – Follow the instructions on the box to cook noodles until soft.
#6. Soft Pizza – Play this one by ear and avoid anything with crust as this is too hard for your mouth! Look for pizza places that offer “hand-tossed” which means no crunchy/hard edges from where they fold it over. Also, be careful about crumbled toppings as these can get caught between teeth so best to avoid these until you are feeling better.
#7. Fried rice – Avoid egg bits as these may be too hard on your gums, otherwise just make sure that there aren’t any big pieces of vegetables sticking out which could get caught between teeth so finish eating those separately before enjoying the soft rice underneath. Chicken fried rice may work better than pork especially since most places offer soft chicken pieces.
#8. Soft Curries – Stick with plain curry (no coconut milk) and then add hard/soft items yourself such as boiled eggs, carrots, etc. Top off with some nice soft naan bread on the side if you like. I certainly do! Yum!
#9. Hamburgers – As mentioned in my lunchtime list, these can be enjoyed if you skip the hard bun or other hard toppings, so bacon just yet! Go for soft hamburger buns and softer toppings such as tomatoes, onions, mustard/ketchup only.
#10. Soft tacos – Look for ones with soft tortillas to hold your fillings! Avoid crunchy taco shells which will be difficult to eat after oral surgery.
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#11. Peeled veggies, cooked until soft.
#12. Meatloaf – Soft mashed potatoes are great with soft meatloaf on top; avoid anything too “crunchy” like the ketchup, gravy, etc.
#13.Quesadillas – Like tacos, look for ones with soft tortillas to hold your favorite innards!
#14. Baked or Black Beans – mash em up if necessary.
#15. Squash – Mash it up Thanksgiving Day style.
#16. Broccoli – This can make the perfect side dish, steamed soft – of course!.
#17. Ground Turkey. This can be added to pasta thrown in a soup or eaten on its own.
#18. Ground Beef/Pork. Ditto here.
#19. Ground Chicken. And here. Be creative try to have fun with food while you recover.
#20. Split Pea Soup. Even canned soups can work great!
20 Soft Foods to Eat for Dessert!
Here are 20 soft foods to eat after oral surgery for dessert:
#1. Ice Cream – soft serve vanilla ice cream is easier to eat; go for regular hard scoops of your favorite flavor if you want a little crunch but still soft enough that it won’t hurt your mouth! Avoid fruit-flavored ice creams since they usually have bits of fresh fruit in them that may not be soft yet and get caught between teeth easily (which will only cause more pain than needed). You’ll also want to avoid anything with nuts and hard candy for sure. We all scream for ice cream!
#2. Cake – Soft chocolate cake or vanilla cakes are the best! Stay away from carrot cake or other cakes that have nuts and sprinkles. I mean, who doesn’t love cake!?
#3. Soft brownies – Avoid processed hard brownies or anything nuts or other “chunks” in it.
#4. Gelatin mix/puddings/blended drinks with no lumps or pieces of fruit in them, e.g., Jell-O, Gatorade, Ensure Plus, etc. There’s always room for Jello! Oops. I am probably dating myself again!
#5. Custard. Soft, jiggly and delicious!
#6. Ice pops – Again, no lumps or chunks of fruit are allowed in these. They must also be soft enough that you can eat them with minimal chewing required. If your mouth feels really sore, consider sucking on one of these or eating it through a straw so there’s less pressure on your jaw during consumption.
#7. Cupcakes – Avoid anything hard like cake pieces etc., just stick to frosting which should melt into soft goodness once it has been inside your mouth for a while allowing you to enjoy only the delicious flavor without any discomfort at all.
#8. Banana bread – Soft banana bread without any chunks of banana works best for this one! Pro tip: Consider adding some soft cream cheese or your favorite icing on top for some extra goodness ? !
#9. Pudding – Bill Cosby would be proud if you go for pudding without chunks in it. Plain chocolate, vanilla, and or course van-choc swirl are all good options.
#10. Mousse – A soft mousse is a perfect treat after oral surgery! At the risk of repeating myself, you should avoid any mousse with crunchy bits of nuts or fruit since those can get stuck between your teeth.
#11. Smoothies.
#12. Milk Shake or ice cream shake.
#13. Frappe or Frappuccino.
#14. Cheesecake!
#15. Crème Brule.
#16. Cupcake.
#17. Custard.
#18. Key Lime Pie.
#19. Apple Pie.
#20. Pumpkin Pie.
20 Soft Foods to Eat for Snacks
#1. Smoothies – Go for soft fruit only (no crunchy bits) e.g., bananas, strawberries, etc.; add honey/syrup if needed for sweetness ?. Avoid citrus fruits like oranges since the juice can get caught between teeth easily even though they may be soft already. Instead, go for a smoothie bowl where you can enjoy all of these flavors mixed together.
#2. Yogurt soft serve (no chunks).
#3. Pieces of soft fruit without the skin and seeds such as strawberries, blueberries, etc. – you can blend these for smoothies! Avoid citrus fruits like oranges which are very acidic.
#4. Soft Crackers -Avoid anything too salty or crunchy like saltines, Ritz, etc. instead go for softer crackers such as Wheat Thins.
#5. Soft cheeses – Soft mozzarella sticks, soft cream cheese, etc.
#6. Bread pudding – Ensure this is made soft with no croutons or bread pieces.
#7. Soft gummy bears.
#8. Softer nuts – soft unsalted nuts are the way to go after oral surgery! Avoid crunchy ones which can get stuck between teeth easily.
#9. Mangoes.
#10. Cantelope.
#11. Green Melon.
#12. Watermellon without the seeds.
#13. Mascarpone Cheese.
#14. Kefir.
#15. Applesauce.
#16. Baby food!
#17. Nachos – You might be able to eat some nacho chips if they are super soft but watch out for any crunchy or hard toppings e.g., jalapenos, veggies, etc.; soft cheese sauce is best to eat first before adding on harder items such as soft meat.
#18. Tapioca Pudding.
#19. Guacamole.
#20. Ice Cream! (So good I included it twice!)
16 Foods to Avoid Post Dental Surgery
Here is a list of 16 foods that you should definitely avoid after dental surgery as they could interfere with the healing process:
#1. Hard or crunchy foods.
#2. Foods with seeds e.g., apples, grapes, etc.; soft fruit without skin and seeds such as strawberries, blueberries, etc. instead.
#3. Citrus fruits – Oranges are highly acidic so avoid them, especially after oral surgery since the pulp can get stuck between your teeth easily even though they may be soft already.
#4. Raw hard vegetables.
#5. Anything with hard/crunchy chunks in them such as soft bread; soft meat or fish is okay (if you can tell just by looking at it) ? .
#6. Jawbreakers or sour candy or any candy that sticks to your teeth (e.g., lemons, gummy bears, etc.)
#7. Hard chocolate – I know – sorry!
#8. Anything with seeds like soft fruit without skin and seeds such as strawberries, blueberries, etc. instead; soft applesauce or smoothies are great options to consider.
#9. Most nuts.
#10. Hard cheese.
#11. Hard cookies or crackers.
#12. Bread with seeds.
#13. Pizza with a hard crust.
#14. Spicy foods.
#15. Crusty pieces of bread.
#16. Super hot foods.
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Soft Foods to Eat After Oral Surgery: Conclusion
When consuming any of these soft foods to eat after oral surgery, remember to focus on nutrient-rich foods which is a great way to get the required vitamins and minerals despite changing your diet. Ground chicken or soft fish are a good source of protein. And there are plenty of liquid foods that can be a good source of nutrients too.
Also, if you are looking for some general guidelines on what to do to promote healing and full recovery after oral surgery, check out these guidelines from the American Dental Association (PDF).
The UW School of Dentistry has a nice PDF with guidelines as well.
I hope you found my list of foods helpful. Happy eating!
