When you are feeling under the weather, it’s hard to come up with solid and easy recipes for when you’re sick. Many of us go rummaging through the freezer looking for some frozen meals, or hoping we’ve stocked up on some canned chicken noodle soup.
We have reached that time in the year that I refer to as soup season. It’s the the 3 to 5 months (depending on where you live) characterized by short days, cold air, and icy sidewalks. It’s when we spend a lot of time indoors around a lot of other people.
During this time frame, I eat enormous quantities of soup. Unfortunately, it’s also cold and flu season, that same time frame (regardless of where you live) during which you are more likely than usual to get sick with a cold, the flu, strep throat, or bronchitis or, or, or…well, you get the idea. You need recipes for when you’re sick!
Cold Weather Brings Health Challenges
Cold weather is not your immune system’s friend. But winter often exacerbates another problem, according to New York-based dietician nutritionist Laura Lu: “So many people are deficient in vitamin D,” she says, “but even more so during the winter months, because of the lack of sun exposure.” That deficiency can not only affect bone health and calcium absorption; it’s also important for the immune system.
Lu recommends, in general, foods such as fish, milk, eggs, fortified cereals, and soy milk which have a wide variety of vitamins and minerals in them. It’s also essential to get your vitamin C in, of course. “It won’t necessarily prevent the cold or flu,” says Lu, “but can shorten the length of time it lasts.” She recommends citrus fruits, bell peppers, and leafy greens such as spinach. It’s no coincidence that citrus season is in winter, right? (Shopping seasonally and then cooking the same way makes a lot of sense!)
What to Eat When You’re Sick
One of the most popular recipes for when you’re sick, of course, is chicken noodle soup (please try our homemade chicken noodle soup recipe or the veggie version in the WWL program!). So soothing and delicious. But what if, like me, you don’t eat meat? Or you’re looking for something that will actively make you feel your best during the cold winter months, even if you’re not sick? Or maybe you want something that’s easy to make and you don’t have any cans of chicken noodle around. A pantry item recipe for when you don’t feel like trekking all the way to a grocery store?
I’ve got 14 recipes to help you out, whatever the situation. And yes, many of them are soup, but some of them are not (ginger ale, lookin’ at you!). Happy soup season! A lot of them will keep you properly nourished through the coldest months of the year.
While eating a variety of foods can help us feel well, no food can be solely responsible for helping you avoid illness or cure an illness. These are just the foods that are easy to prepare and will warm you up if you’re feeling under the weather.
Recipes to Make When You’re Sick
7 Minute Sick Day Soup – Karissa’s Vegan Kitchen
All you need here? Seven minutes and a few pantry-friendly ingredients to throw together this warming vegan soup. This is probably one of the easiest recipes for when you’re sick. Rice works well here, too!
The Ultimate “Immune-Boosting” Soup — The Healthy Maven
Credit: The Healthy Maven
I mentioned it’s soup season, right? I’ve spent many a long workday craving nothing more than a bowl of soup to warm me up and soothe me when I get home, only to spend upwards of half an hour prepping and making it. This soup is a great one to meal prep with over the weekend so that after an icy commute, you can come home, heat it up, and feel that cozy, soupy comfort in the space of about ten minutes. Put this one at the top of the list recipes to make when you’re sick. And even when you’re not!
Citrus Salad With Blood Orange Vinaigrette — Zucker & Jagdwurst
Credit: Zucker & Jagdwurst
If you need vitamin C, I feel like eating this salad is almost as effective as injecting it directly into your veins (is that a thing?). But it’s also super tasty and refreshing, especially when you’ve spent weeks eating holiday food. Not that it’s bad! I treasure the opportunity to eat enormous amounts of lasagna. But I do find that after eating lots of potatoes for a few days straight, my body starts begging me for some fresh fruits and veggies, and this salad is the perfect answer to that craving. All of those citrus fruits offer so much flavor and so many vitamins.
Egg In The Hole Avocado Toast – Averie Cooks
If you’re all about eggs and toast when you’re feeling sick, this is a great upgrade to that classic sick day meal! Avocado tastes great with eggs.
Gingery Poached Egg Soup — The Kitchn
Credit: The Kitchn
Remember that long-day-at-work, desperately-craving-soup scenario we talked about? Well, this recipe is perfect for if you don’t have a pre-prepped soup stored away in the fridge or freezer, and also if you’re trying to fight off a cold. It’s got ginger, which Lu says is great for preventing colds because of its anti-inflammatory properties, along with leafy greens and even an egg. Yum.
Honey Chamomile Popsicles — Vanilla and Bean
Credit: Vanilla and Bean
Popsicles are a well-known childhood sore throat soother, but they’re not just for kids! The honey and chamomile have soothing properties of their own that, in popsicle form, will truly work wonders. Also, it’s just a fact of life that popsicles are fun to eat. We don’t think you’ll disagree.
Sopa de Ajo (Garlic Soup) — Food52
Credit: Food52
Yes, more soup. I did warn you! Garlic is, in my opinion, a miraculous ingredient. It is one of my favorites for the winter. In fact, one of my go-to cold remedies is tea made with raw garlic and ginger. But I digress! The point is, garlic is good. And this soup contains a lot of it, along with bread, which is both delicious and helpful against nausea, and eggs, which are delicious and also provide that protein. Egg drop soup is a favorite for me, so the egg drop element is what really sold me on this recipe.
Kimchi Fried Rice with Extra Greens — The Kitchn
Credit: The Kitchn
This has all the comforting goodness of fried rice, which I’ve always found to be a great stomach neutralizer, with the addition of nutritious greens and probiotic kimchi, both solid immune system pals and also delicious in general. Plus, because this is a one-pot recipe, it’ll be pretty easy to whip up (and clean up) when you’re feeling under the weather.
Soba and Maitake Mushrooms in Soy Broth — Bon Appétit
Credit: Bon Appétit
You are probably tired of me talking about the endless benefits of soup, but this Alison Roman recipe simply had to be included — it’s full of nourishing ingredients that will help you avoid or get over that cough. Also, soba noodles, which are gluten-free, if that is a concern. Rice noodles or spaghetti would work in a pinch, too. That is all.
One-Pot Every Day Lentil Soup – Minimalist Baker
This soup recipe is perfect when you’re having a sick day. It’s mild in flavor, and lentils will fuel you up. It is, of course, cozy and mercifully you only need one pot to make it, too!
“Immune-Boosting” Wellness Smoothie — Ambitious Kitchen
Credit: Ambitious Kitchen
I had to include a smoothie in this roundup of recipes for when you’re sick! They are hard to resist! I love them and they’re a great way to get all your nutrients in a form that is easy to make, tastes really good, and is soothing to a sore throat. No slicing or dicing necessary. This recipe lets pineapple shine through, propped up by immune boosters including spinach, ginger, and turmeric. Feel free to tweak the ingredients here and there. But you can’t go wrong by putting something this green into your body when you don’t feel well.
Brown Butter Parmesan Pasta — The Kitchn
Credit: The Kitchn
For when you’re nauseous and can’t keep down anything but the plainest of flavors, this is a slightly more dressed up version of the most basic pasta and butter combo. Of course, it’s still pretty easy and quick to make. Pasta feels like the ultimate comfort food. Add some red pepper flakes if your sinuses feel clogged.
Ginger Ale — Bon Appétit
Credit: Bon Appétit
Ginger ale is generally always drunk by those who are sick and nauseous, but it’s unclear how much the extremely diluted version sold in a can will actually help. I kind of love the idea of home-made ginger ale, and it’s actually really easy to make! Just honey, ginger, and club soda. Sickness is often accompanied by boredom, so this gives you something to do for fifteen minutes with a result that will genuinely help you feel better.
Easy 30-Minute Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup — Averie Cooks
Credit: Averie Cooks
Finally, I had to include the classic. Everyone has their own chicken noodle soup preferences and ours are made clear with our recipe. However, I think this recipe is a nice compromise. It’s not just straight-up canned soup, but it’s also not asking you to make broth from scratch. It takes shortcuts where it makes sense to, but still includes the fresh herbs and veggies. This feels like the right amount of effort.
Helpful Tools For Cooking Recipes For When You’re Sick
- SouperCubes for freezing meals
- Bag clips to make it easier to freeze meals in Zip Loc bags
- Stasher bags if you want to reduce plastic, but still freeze food in something like a Zip Loc
- Our favorite Dutch Oven
- An Instant Pot for when you just can’t be bothered to turn on the stove
- Meal prep containers so you can cook once and enjoy your meals multiple times (saving energy is so important when you’re not feeling well!)
One Final Immune System Shot
I’ll leave you with an intense drink recipe recommended by Lu: Combine orange juice, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and a drop or two of oregano oil in a glass. We already know the oranges and lemons contain vitamin C. She says the cayenne contains capsaicin, which can clear the nasal passages, and oregano oil, which has antimicrobial properties and is an anti-inflammatory.
And remember, listen to your body. We hope you stay healthy and warm during this season!
