What to eat after that??

80 foods to try with esophageal erosion

Start with soft, moist, mild foods such as oatmeal, ripe banana, mashed potatoes, soft scrambled eggs, poached white fish, and smooth squash soup. These may be easier to swallow while the esophagus heals. If acid reflux caused the erosions, a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) is a proven treatment to help heal the lining. Food choices can help control symptoms, and the best choices depend on what you tolerate. PMC (opens in new tab)

The numbers count the options. Each group gives you foods to try based on texture and tolerance.

1–10. Grains and starches

#	Food	How to prepare it
1	Oatmeal	Cook until soft and creamy.
2	Cream of wheat	Make it smooth and serve warm.
3	Cream of rice	Cook with enough liquid to keep it soft.
4	Grits	Cook until creamy.
5	Polenta	Serve spoon-soft.
6	White rice	Cook until very tender and moisten with broth.
7	Rice congee	Cook the rice down into a soft porridge.
8	Pastina	Cook the tiny pasta until tender in mild broth.
9	Egg noodles	Cook until soft and serve moist.
10	Macaroni	Cook until tender and add a mild, non-tomato sauce if tolerated.

11–20. Mild vegetables

#	Food	How to prepare it
11	White potato	Peel and mash with broth or low-fat milk.
12	Sweet potato	Bake or steam, remove the skin, and mash.
13	Butternut squash	Steam or roast until soft, then purée.
14	Pumpkin	Use plain cooked pumpkin or canned pumpkin purée.
15	Acorn squash	Scoop out the soft cooked flesh and mash.
16	Carrots	Steam until fork-soft or blend smooth.
17	Parsnips	Peel, boil, and mash.
18	Turnips	Cook thoroughly and mash.
19	Zucchini	Peel if the skin bothers you and cook until soft.
20	Yellow summer squash	Steam or stew until tender.

21–30. More vegetables

#	Food	How to prepare it
21	Green beans	Cook until very tender, then chop finely or purée.
22	Green peas	Cook and mash or blend.
23	Cauliflower	Steam thoroughly and mash.
24	Broccoli florets	Cook until soft. Start with a small serving if it makes you feel bloated.
25	Spinach	Cook well and chop finely or blend into soup.
26	Beets	Peel, cook until tender, and mash or dice finely.
27	Rutabaga	Boil and mash until smooth.
28	Celeriac	Peel, boil, and purée.
29	Eggplant	Peel and stew until very soft.
30	Chayote	Peel, remove the seed, and cook until tender.

31–40. Soft fruits

#	Food	How to prepare it
31	Banana	Choose a ripe one and mash it if needed.
32	Pear	Try a peeled ripe pear or a poached pear.
33	Apple	Try smooth applesauce or a peeled baked apple. Skip it if it stings.
34	Peach	Choose peeled, soft peaches or peaches canned in water.
35	Nectarine	Peel and poach until soft.
36	Apricot	Use soft, cooked apricots. Skip them if they sting.
37	Papaya	Choose ripe, soft flesh and mash it.
38	Cantaloupe	Choose ripe melon and cut it into small pieces.
39	Honeydew	Serve ripe and soft, in small pieces.
40	Watermelon	Choose seedless and serve in small pieces.

41–50. Eggs, poultry, and fish

#	Food	How to prepare it
41	Scrambled eggs	Cook gently so they stay soft and moist.
42	Egg whites	Scramble gently or stir into a fully cooked egg-drop soup.
43	Chicken breast	Poach, shred finely, and moisten with broth.
44	Skinless chicken thigh	Braise until tender and shred finely.
45	Ground turkey	Cook in broth so it stays moist.
46	Cod	Poach or steam and flake carefully.
47	Haddock	Bake covered so it stays moist.
48	Tilapia	Steam or poach until tender.
49	Sole	Poach and serve in small, soft flakes.
50	Salmon	Bake gently and flake. Try a small portion if higher-fat foods trigger reflux.

51–60. Beans and other plant proteins

Try these in small portions if beans tend to leave you feeling full or bloated.

#	Food	How to prepare it
51	Silken tofu	Serve soft or blend into soup.
52	Soft tofu	Mash into warm rice or broth.
53	Red lentils	Simmer until they break down into a smooth stew.
54	Green lentils	Cook until very tender and purée.
55	Split peas	Cook thoroughly and blend into a smooth soup.
56	Cannellini beans	Mash with mild broth.
57	Navy beans	Cook until soft and blend smooth.
58	Black beans	Purée without hot peppers.
59	Pinto beans	Mash with broth.
60	Chickpeas	Make a smooth purée. Leave out lemon, garlic, or chili if they bother you.

61–70. Dairy and dairy alternatives

#	Food	How to prepare it
61	Plain low-fat yogurt	Choose a smooth variety if you tolerate its tang.
62	Plain low-fat Greek yogurt	Stir until smooth or thin it a little if the texture feels too thick.
63	Low-fat cottage cheese	Blend smooth if the curds bother you.
64	Part-skim ricotta	Stir into soft pasta or mashed vegetables.
65	Low-fat milk	Try a small serving or use it in porridge if tolerated.
66	Lactose-free low-fat milk	Use in cooked cereal if lactose causes symptoms for you.
67	Unsweetened fortified soy milk	Use in oatmeal or rice porridge.
68	Unsweetened fortified oat milk	Use to soften cooked cereal.
69	Vanilla custard	Choose a smooth, lower-fat version if tolerated.
70	Rice pudding	Cook until very soft. Skip raisins or nuts if swallowing is sore.

71–80. Soups and soft meals

#	Food	How to prepare it
71	Chicken and rice soup	Cook the rice until very soft and shred the chicken finely.
72	Turkey and noodle soup	Use tender noodles and finely minced turkey.
73	Potato and carrot soup	Blend until smooth.
74	Butternut squash soup	Use mild broth and serve warm.
75	Pumpkin and rice soup	Simmer until the rice is tender, then blend if needed.
76	Zucchini and potato soup	Cook both vegetables until soft and purée.
77	White bean and carrot soup	Blend thoroughly and add enough broth for a smooth texture.
78	Red lentil and sweet potato stew	Cook until it can be mashed easily with a fork.
79	Soft white fish with mashed potato	Add a little broth if the fish feels dry.
80	Soft scrambled eggs with mashed sweet potato	Keep both moist and take small bites.

What makes meals easier on the esophagus

• If swallowing hurts, take small bites and keep food moist. Dry toast, chips, crackers, nuts, and tough meat can be harder to swallow. Serve food warm or cool if very hot food causes pain. Cedars-Sinai (opens in new tab)
• If reflux is the problem, try smaller meals and finish eating about 3 hours before lying down. Common triggers include fried or high-fat foods, tomato, citrus, chocolate, mint, coffee, alcohol, and spicy food. Limit the ones that reliably worsen your symptoms. PMC (opens in new tab)
• If an endoscopy showed erosions, the cause matters. Reflux, pill injury, infection, and eosinophilic esophagitis can require different treatments. Contact your clinician promptly if swallowing is painful, getting harder, or food repeatedly catches. Get emergency care if food is stuck and won’t pass, you can’t swallow your saliva, you vomit blood, or you develop black, tarry stools or new severe chest pain.