What is comfort food?

Spaghetti and meat balls, Brisket of beef with mashed potatoes and broccoli, etc. I define comfort foods as the stuff I grew up eating and loved then as well as now.
 
I agree with JoeC about the definition. Some of my faves are beef stew, chicken a la king and spaghetti with meat sauce.
 
Comfort food to me is dishes that bring you back to fond memories and make you feel all warm and fuzzy :D
My favorites are....Corn Beef and Cabbage, Pot Roast with veggies, fried chicken and all the fixins, Roasted chicken and mashed potatoes, fresh baked chocolate chip cookies.....I can go on and on :D
 
What a good question, Andy. I would define it as food that, for whatever reason, gives you that warm, fuzzy feeling that all is right with the world. For me, it would be foods like mashed potatoes, sliced ripe tomatoes, banana pudding, fruit cobbler, bacon & eggs with toast.
 
Comfort food is the meat and potatoes of what comes from a crock pot as the weather grows cold, or turkey stuffing shared with family during holiday celebrations, or an edible la-z-boy.
 
Hearty soups & stews with homemade bread and butter. Roast chicken with giblet stuffing, carrots and potatoes all cooked together and covered in Mom's pan gravy (with a few lumps). Homemade pies, cakes and cookies.

In short, any food that takes you to that special level of satisfaction.
 
Foods that make you remember your childhood without a care in the world........mashed potatoes and gravy, pot roast, chicken paprikash, Babcia's chili, grilled cheese and tomato soup, meatloaf, beet soup, creamed eggs on toast, spaghetti and meatballs, scrambled eggs with bacon mixed in.

And that meal Andy made the other night...............
 
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Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.
Fried chicken and mashed potatoes.
Mac and cheese with stewed tomatoes.
Biscuits and gravy for dinner with sweet corn on the side.
Baked beans on buttered toast.
Potato soup, and more potato soup. :D
Shit On The Shingle with peas or carrots (and a good b&w movie-yes, trust me lol)
Fried pork chops and scalloped potatoes.
Bean soup and corn bread.
PBJ and a glass of milk.
Popcorn--big bowl, buttered with garlic salt and parmesan cheese and root beer.
Sliced boiled egg sannie on white bread with 2 T of mayo slathered on and a lot of ground pepper.
 
I had a guilty reason for starting this thread. I was hoping to get some kind of an idea for a shellfish comfort food for the IC. I figured there had to be something. I can see that there is not.

In reading the answers, I better understand the term. Thank you all for that. For me it would be chili and a fresh hot loaf of bread on a rainy day, a beef stew after smelling it simmer all day. Fresh homemade chicken soup. I got the idea after having Goulash from the hot bat in the city yesterday, so I guess that is there too.

Unfortunately, none of mom's meals stand out in my mind. This brings out another aspect of comfort food for me. Maybe the company and the feeling of being comfortable among friends is a big part of what is comfort food.

Thank you all.

Andy
 
Whatever makes you feel like you are cocooned in velvet. Generally, comfort foods are foods that remind you of your mom and a time of safety and contentment - childhood (for those that had a saturday night post childhood, that is).
Anything that conjures images of hearth, home and family; cold winter nights; sunday afternoon dinner; holiday traditional food, etc.
 
How about a fish pie using shell fish/molluscs. I would see that as a comfort food especially with a smooth creamy mash involved.
 
I had never heard the term before watching the new cooking shows and hanging out on foodie forums. From what I gather, comfort food is a large meal, or let's say it includes meat, veggies and a starch, usually with gravy in there somewhere. BBQ a chicken and serve with corn on the cob and potato wedges, good food. Take that same chicken and roast it, have the kernels on your plate, mash the potatoes and make gravy, comfort food. IMO
 
OK - That's it - Let's rig the system - How about next week's IC is comfort food in honor of the change of the season.
 
Adillo303 said:
I had a guilty reason for starting this thread. I was hoping to get some kind of an idea for a shellfish comfort food for the IC. I figured there had to be something. I can see that there is not.
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You know Andy, I'd always considered oysters atop a nice cracker with dijon mustard a comforting snack food.

Here's a recipe that could be worked with.

http://whatscookingamerica.net/OysterScalloped.htm

Sounds delish to me!
 
Adillo303 said:
I had a guilty reason for starting this thread. I was hoping to get some kind of an idea for a shellfish comfort food for the IC. I figured there had to be something. I can see that there is not.

In reading the answers, I better understand the term. Thank you all for that. For me it would be chili and a fresh hot loaf of bread on a rainy day, a beef stew after smelling it simmer all day. Fresh homemade chicken soup. I got the idea after having Goulash from the hot bat in the city yesterday, so I guess that is there too.

Unfortunately, none of mom's meals stand out in my mind. This brings out another aspect of comfort food for me. Maybe the company and the feeling of being comfortable among friends is a big part of what is comfort food.

Thank you all.

Andy
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I think a creamy, thick clam chowder is comfort food.


Adillo303 said:
OK - That's it - Let's rig the system - How about next week's IC is comfort food in honor of the change of the season.
Click to expand...

Second that idea!
 
Adillo303 said:
I had a guilty reason for starting this thread. I was hoping to get some kind of an idea for a shellfish comfort food for the IC.
Click to expand...

IC??

Looks at Adillo's avitar

Comfort food for a Internal Combustion?

I suppose that would be Leaded Ethyl and motor oil with a High Paraffin Content.

?

:)

I figured there had to be something. I can see that there is not. ..
In reading the answers, I better understand the term. Thank you all for that.
Click to expand...


The term Comfort Food seems to have changed meaning ofer the years. As has been pointed out the Classical meaning of Comfort Food is that food that reminds someone of a simpler, less complicated, happy and less worrisome time of ones life. As V noted, comfort food takes people back to the time of their childhood if they had a Norman Rockwell upbringing.

Now it seems the term Comfort Food means a food that what, makes one feel good? This wouldn't surprise me since there seems to be a great number of the population who are addicted to food, obsessed with food and not in a good way.

On a different note, I've heard Twinkies and Little Debbie's referred to as "comfort food". New or old meaning of comfort food, thats Sad. If one is going to fill themselves with crap shouldn't it be crap worth eating? And how sad it it that mass produced poop that doesn't even make a poop is what reminds people of their childhood? I hope there is an apple pie or a cake in there somewhere.


Unfortunately, none of mom's meals stand out in my mind.
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Lucky you. I wouldn't eat meat loaf till I was 40 .... I'm just saying :yum:


This brings out another aspect of comfort food for me. Maybe the company and the feeling of being comfortable among friends is a big part of what is comfort food.
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Thats an interesting observation.

I guess if one has a happy and content or pleasent experience and they associate that experience with a particular food that food would become a comfort food.

With that in mind I'm looking to add more comfort foods tho the list.

:thumb:

;)
 
The first thing that popped into my head, on reading the opening question, was; Borscht. My mom makes the best borscht I've ever eaten. :wub:
 
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