I just had all my upper teeth pulled in prep for implants. I Don’t want to live on Cream of Wheat, Broth, and Mashed potatoes for the next 3 weeks while this heals. I get temp dentures in 3 weeks. I need some bone grafts still in preparation for the implants.
So… have you been told to eat only soft food? Can you still use your mouth to process food a bit? If you’re all stitched up you want to keep it to soups and purees and drinks that you don’t have to process at all. I know someone who misunderstood “soft food” for “stuff that isn’t too tough” and had to seek medical attention when a bunch of stuff got loose in there. Talk to your doctor if in doubt, that wasn’t pleasant.
But hey, from that experience, there are a few things I learned you can do if/when you can process your food in your mouth a bit.
Starchy snacks will melt easily and not taste like cardboard. Chips, bread sticks, that type of thing are all doable.
Yogurt and dairy desserts, unsurprisingly. Lots of flavours and textures in that supermarket aisle. Try mixing jams and other spreads into sharper stuff like kefir instead of having just the industrially flavored boring stuff.
Surprisingly, some cold cuts of meat. If you buy it cut at the shop and ask them to go as thin as possible you will be able to shred it with your hands or a knife as you eat it and essentially still make it through a deconstructed sandwich if you pair it with untoasted soft bread.
Ditto for fruit salad. Banana, finely chopped strawberries and other stuff that is soft or can be cut small and swallowed whole.
Soups, creams and stews. Overcook veg and potatoes, and chop any meat quite small (and be ready to cut it smaller when eating) but it’ll be fine. I’m not a fan, but it’s a thing.
Smoothies, milkshakes and chocolate milk. Get some of the nutrients without having to make it taste the same each time.
Eggs. Omelettes, scrambled eggs, poached eggs, whathaveyou.
Pasta. Get over the instinct to keep it al dente and overcook a thicker shape a bit. Just keep the sauce less chunky. Also rice and couscous if you’re bored of pasta.
Flaky fish. Experiment, but there are plenty of kinds that will flake small and be very soft when cooked. Get some garlic and parsley on there, grill it a bit, it’ll taste great.
The idea is to keep it to things that will melt in your mouth with little coaxing or things cut so fine that all the work has been made and can be swallowed whole. It can be a sustainable diet that isn’t unpleasant with a bit of adjustment.