Gentle GLP-1 recipes for low-appetite days
20 recipes, each with its nutrition calculated.
Some days on a GLP-1, a full plate is out of the question. These are the meals for those days: smaller, softer and milder, cold or warm rather than hot, and still carrying protein, because a small appetite does not shrink what your muscles need.
If you are being sick, cannot keep fluids down or have severe stomach pain, food is not the answer: call the clinician who prescribes for you.
- Recipes
- 20
- Median protein
- 27 g
- Median energy
- 320 kcal
- Median time
- About 7 min
How these were chosen
Every recipe here is soft, mildly flavoured and small, chosen for days when a full plate is too much. They are meals, not treatments: none of them is a remedy for a side effect. Sorted by protein per serving, highest first. Nutrition is calculated per serving from USDA FoodData Central, and the figures are medians across this list. How we develop our recipes, or download the nutrition data.
Chicken and rice congee with ginger
A loose, savoury rice porridge with fine shreds of poached chicken and a little ginger. It is mild, there is almost nothing to chew, and it is easy to eat a few spoonfuls at a time on a day when a full plate is too much.
About 1 hr 20 min · 385 kcal · 42 g protein · 2 g fibre per serving
Poached chicken with soft mashed potato and carrots
Chicken breast poached slowly in stock with thyme, sliced and served with a smooth mash and soft carrots. A plain, mild plate in a modest portion, with a cup of the poaching broth alongside.
About 45 min · 430 kcal · 42 g protein · 7 g fibre per serving
Smooth chicken, potato and carrot soup
A GLP-1 friendly chicken soup blended completely smooth, with the chicken worked into the soup itself rather than left in chunks. A small bowl is mild, soft and still substantial.
About 50 min · 400 kcal · 37 g protein · 6 g fibre per serving
Milk-poached cod with mashed potato and spinach
Cod poached gently in milk, served on a soft mash made with that same milk, with wilted spinach. A mild, tender plate that flakes apart with a fork.
About 35 min · 385 kcal · 36 g protein · 6 g fibre per serving
Peanut butter and banana protein shake
A peanut butter and banana shake built on milk and a scoop of whey, about 350 ml. For the mornings when you are not hungry but know you need something, it is a drink you can finish slowly.
About 5 min · 360 kcal · 31 g protein · 4 g fibre per serving
Miso soup with silken tofu, egg and spinach
A single bowl of miso soup made more substantial with silken tofu and soft ribbons of egg. It is light, mild and quick, and the tofu needs no chewing at all.
About 15 min · 300 kcal · 30 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Peach and vanilla skyr smoothie with oats
A soft peach and vanilla smoothie with skyr and a few oats, about 400 ml and mild all the way through. A good one for a warm morning when a plate does not appeal.
About 8 min · 280 kcal · 28 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Blueberry and oat protein smoothie
A filling blueberry and oat smoothie with milk and whey, soaked for ten minutes so the oats blend smooth. About 375 ml, and gentle enough for a morning when solid food does not appeal.
About 15 min · 340 kcal · 28 g protein · 6 g fibre per serving
Mixed berry smoothie with skyr and flaxseed
A thick, sharp-sweet smoothie of three berries and plain skyr, about 400 ml in the glass. On a morning when a plate looks like too much, a cold drink is often easier to start than a bowl.
About 5 min · 275 kcal · 28 g protein · 7 g fibre per serving
Chocolate banana kefir smoothie
A cold chocolate and banana smoothie made with kefir, which gives it a gentle tang under the cocoa. About 375 ml, mild and smooth enough to sip through a morning when appetite is low.
About 5 min · 280 kcal · 28 g protein · 5 g fibre per serving
Green smoothie with spinach, pineapple and Greek yoghurt
A bright green smoothie of spinach, pineapple and fat-free Greek yoghurt, with lime to keep it fresh. The pineapple leads the flavour, so it tastes of fruit rather than leaves.
About 5 min · 280 kcal · 27 g protein · 5 g fibre per serving
Strawberry cheesecake smoothie with cottage cheese
Cottage cheese blended until it is perfectly smooth tastes surprisingly like cheesecake filling, and here it carries frozen strawberries and a little vanilla. About 400 ml, cold and soft.
About 5 min · 295 kcal · 27 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Greek yoghurt with mashed banana, honey and vanilla
A cold pot of fat-free Greek yoghurt with ripe banana folded through, a little vanilla and a trickle of honey. It takes three minutes and is soft, mild and small.
About 3 min · 265 kcal · 27 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Mango and lime lassi with Greek yoghurt
A thick mango lassi made with strained Greek yoghurt rather than thin yoghurt, so a 400 ml glass carries most of a breakfast's protein. It is cold, smooth and mild, which can be easier than a plate on a low-appetite morning.
About 5 min · 265 kcal · 26 g protein · 2 g fibre per serving
Vegan chocolate smoothie with silken tofu and almonds
A vegan chocolate smoothie with the body of a milkshake, built on silken tofu and soya milk. There is no coffee in it, so it suits any time of day, and it comes to about 400 ml.
About 5 min · 335 kcal · 26 g protein · 5 g fibre per serving
Cherry and almond smoothie with kefir
Cherries and almond are an old pairing, and here they come together with kefir and fat-free Greek yoghurt in a cold, deep pink smoothie of about 400 ml a glass. Mild and smooth, it is easy to drink on a low-appetite morning.
About 5 min · 285 kcal · 26 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Smooth overnight oats with skyr and banana
Overnight oats blended smooth before they soak, so they set into a soft, spoonable pot with no flakes to chew. Made the night before and eaten cold or barely cool.
About 4 hr 5 min · 355 kcal · 25 g protein · 6 g fibre per serving
Cottage cheese with apple sauce, cinnamon and almond
Cottage cheese blended until smooth, with cinnamon apple sauce spooned through it and a little ground almond on top. Five minutes, no cooking, and soft enough to eat a spoonful at a time.
About 5 min · 300 kcal · 25 g protein · 3 g fibre per serving
Soft scrambled eggs with cottage cheese on toast
Two eggs scrambled slowly with cottage cheese and served on a single slice of soft white toast. A small, mild breakfast that is easy to eat in a few bites.
About 8 min · 350 kcal · 24 g protein · 1 g fibre per serving
Vanilla rice pudding with skyr
A slow, creamy stovetop rice pudding with vanilla, finished with skyr once it has cooled a little. Eat it warm or cold, in a small bowl.
About 50 min · 370 kcal · 23 g protein · 1 g fibre per serving
Read next
These recipes are meal ideas, not individual nutrition prescriptions. They have been checked on paper and not yet cooked, and each recipe page says what is still outstanding. Talk to the clinician who prescribes for you before changing how you eat.