It's been a wicked flu season so far, and we're not through the worst of it just yet. What's a sick food lover to do? Leave it to the pros to come up with a few hot, healing, restorative foods to soothe symptoms.
Chicken soup may be good for the soul, but it's also good for the sick body. Not surprisingly, soup is a favorite sickness remedy among chefs. Chef Michael Solomonov (of Zahav and Federal Donuts in Philadelphia) relies on his homemade matzo-ball soup when he's sick. As he tells Bon Appetit, "The chicken fat-schmaltz-in matzo-ball soup is supposedly great from your bronchial passages." Cathal Armstrong, chef-owner of Restaurant Eve in Alexandria, Virginia, turns to his Korean beef noodle soup: "The spiciness of it helps clear out all the sinuses, and the rich quality of the beef broth, the onions in it—it just makes me feel good inside."
Other chefs' recommendations include green tea, cranberry, celery and kale smoothies (Cleveland's Greenhouse Tavern chef-owner Jonathan Sawyer); "Influenza Sorbet" made with whiskey, honey, and lemon juice (Jeni Britton Bauer of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams in Columbus, Ohio) and arroz caldo, a chicken and rice dish from the Philippines (Paul Qui of Austin's East Side King).
Get all the recipes and read more at the link below!
What are your food remedies when you have the flu?
Get the Recipes: Feed a Cold, Feed a Fever: 6 Chefs' Tasty Flu Remedies | Bon Appetit
Related: From Chicken Noodle to Egg Drop: 6 Soothing Broth-Based Soups
(Image: Hot & Sour Mushroom, Cabbage, and Rice Soup | Faith Durand)
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I always reach for the ginger tea first. My favorite soup when I'm sick is Ochazuke, a Japanese soup with tea, rice, and a little salmon. It's total comfort food and I love it even when I'm not sick, plus it makes a nice change from chicken noodle soup.
I'm a cook, not a chef...but my go to recipe is my
Southwest Chicken Soup
http://www.cookingatcafed.com/2012/03/super-quick-unprocessed-chicken-corn.html
You can make it as spicy or bland as you want - depending on your tummy :)
I read the title of the post as "WHY chefs cook when they have the flu"...as in, why they go to work and cook for other people. That was enough to make me swear off restaurants forever, but I'm glad I just read it wrong.
Jonathan Sawyer is from Cleveland, not New York! Represent!
That sounds so good - can't wait to try the recipe from your blog.
Just coming off a bad bug but made it through with Heidi Swanson's Baby Lima Soup with Chipotle Broth. I used some cooked flageolet beans that were on hold in my refrigerator so this was quick, easy, and spirited. I've also used canned and frozen beans. The chipotle broth is the key.
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/baby-lima-soup-with-chipotle-broth-recipe.html
When I feel really icky I try to at least make a bowl of miso soup. At its simplest it's just a scoop of miso and some boiling water---great when I'm too exhausted to even heat up a can of something.
I always have homemade stock in the freezer and I boil that up with some kluski noodles and lots of garlic and hot sauce. perfect.
Sizzling rice soup is always what I crave when I'm sick. It just feels so good to eat it! Plus I get it as take-out, which is so much easier...
As read_more wrote, Jonathan Sawyer is from Cleveland as is Greenhouse Tavern.
Also, Jeni's rocks!
@Anna K.: it happens quite often, actually. Restaurant people in general get paid crap, receive no benefits, are incredibly hard to replace if they do need a day off. And if that's bad for the kitchen, it's worse for waitstaff who get even less from their employers. Sure, you're not supposed to work sick but in reality it isn't an option to stay home for many people - they can't afford it.
Thanks, all, for the corrections on Jonathan Sawyer! You are right, and the NY part was definitely wrong. Silly mistake. Thanks for catching it!
I also originally thought this said, "Why Chef's Cook When They Have the Flu" and agree with all of what @Kakugori said. They just can't afford to take the time off, and the positions are often easy to find replacements for. It's messed up! But that is what happens, pretty much all across the board.
This soup is easy and absolutely delicious! It has the added benefit of including many ingredients said to fight the flu and colds.
http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/food/17301669-423/soup-sends-flu-packing.html
In South India we make a flavorful broth called rasam with tomatoes, dal, curry leaves, turmeric, cumin, black pepper and garlic. We either drink it hot or mix with rice. Truly wonderful!
When I'm really sick I don't have the energy to make soup the way I like it, but I love near a great Szechuan place that makes a beef noodle soup with bok choy. I love it because the noodles come in one container & the soup in another one. So I can make it as "brothy" or "noodley" as I want.
The combination of salty, savory, spicy, and slightly bitter (from the bok choy) is a miracle cure.
Avgolemono--the combination of sourness of lemon, saltiness of chicken broth and richness of egg makes for perfectly balanced comforting soup.
Yeah, I'm actually not that surprised. In fact, as soon as I wrote that I thought that given the pay and benefits situation it is probably the case. That really sucks. I feel like if I were a restaurant owner it would be top priority to get health insurance and paid time off for my employees! Of course, I know NOTHING about running a restaurant other than what I've learned from Top Chef Restaurant Wars ;) so maybe it's more complicated than I realize for a restaurant owner. Either way, that sucks.