knowledge → control → choice → exploration
Food, on your
own terms.
Edable Foods is a self-guided resource for understanding food — its textures, smells, and how simple changes put control in your hands. No pressure, no judgment. Just information and tools you can use when you're ready.
Today's Tip
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✦ Start Here
Build Your Sensory Profile
Before diving into the resource, take a few minutes to tell us about your relationship with food. We'll ask you about all 58 foods — a quick reaction for each one — and use your answers to show you a personal map of your sensory landscape.
About 5–8 minutes
Stays on your device only
Skip any food — no pressure
Change answers anytime
1
Foods
58 common foods with sensory-focused descriptors — neutral, no pressure
Diet:
2
How Preparation Changes Sensory Experience
"The food didn't change — the experience did."
Reframes food preparation as sensory customization, not "cooking skills."
Each method below is a tool for shaping how food feels, smells, and behaves — giving you more control over your experience.
What change do you want in your food?
Choose a goal — then pick the prep method or kitchen gadget you want to try.
Pick Your Prep — Card Game
Read the food goal below, then pick the prep method card that gets you there. See what outcome each choice creates.
Round 1 of 8
0 pts
Your food goal
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3
Kitchen Gadgets
Kitchen gadgets organised by what they change — granting control over your food experience
What change do you want in your food?
Choose a goal — then pick the prep method or kitchen gadget you want to try.
Pick Your Kitchen Gadget — Card Game
Read the food situation below, then pick the kitchen gadget that solves it. Discover what outcome each gadget creates.
Round 1 of 10
0 pts
Your food situation
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4
Translating Knowledge to Practical Use
"I know what I need — here's how to ask for it."
Sensory need → Kitchen Gadget → Restaurant / Dining Language.
The same control you have at home with kitchen gadgets, you can apply in restaurants — using words instead of equipment.
Sensory Need → How to Order
Food Change Finder
Remember
- Asking for changes is normal.
- Restaurants expect requests.
- Your sensory needs are valid.
- Comfort comes first.
- These changes help you enjoy your meal.
🏠 At Home
🔧 Tool-based control
🧪 Practice environment
✅ Full control
😌 Low pressure
💪 Builds confidence
🍽️ At a Restaurant
🗣️ Language-based control
🌍 Generalization environment
🤝 Shared control
🎯 Real-world success
🏆 Confirms confidence
Ordering Simulator
Practice Ordering
Scenario-based practice — real restaurants, real situations
Choose a restaurant scenario
Each scenario puts you in a real dining situation. You'll pick a meal, then choose how to communicate your sensory needs to the server — using real ordering language.
🎓 Skills practiced this round
5
Encouraging Exploration
Discovery at your own pace — exploration is always your choice
🌿 Your Points Bank
🏦
0
points earned
+10 Explore a food
+5 Rate a food
+5 Explore paths
+3 Check in
+25 Build profile
+10 Order simulator
Exploration is tied to choice, not compliance.
You decide when, how, and how much to try. Small variations within foods you already know are the starting point — not a requirement. Every step is yours to take, on your own timeline.
How are you feeling today?
A quick check-in — shapes which foods and paths appear below
Based on what you've explored and rated, these path cards offer personalised starting points for your next step. Each one is different — some suggest a familiar food in a new form, others introduce a food with a similar texture to one you already know. There's no right or wrong path. Choose what feels interesting, and leave anything that doesn't.
🗺️ Personalised to your journey
⏱ Each path takes 2–5 minutes
✦ Always your choice
My Food Journey
Your personal sensory reflections, saved as you explore.
Your Progress Snapshot
Key metrics from your food exploration journey
Exploration Log
No explorations yet. Head to the Foods tab, click a food card, and tap "Explore This Food" to begin.
🪪 Build Your Food Communication Card
Fill in your preferences below and generate a card you can show to restaurant staff, a caregiver, or anyone helping with your meals.
This reduces the need to explain verbally in a busy or stressful moment.
My main sensory needs when eating
Food Communication Card
Please read this before serving my food. Thank you for helping me eat comfortably.
Foods that work well for me
My sensory needs
How to help
Please prepare food as described above. If a change isn't possible, let me know calmly so I can choose something else. My sensory needs are real and valid.
Hi! I'm Rocky 🦝
Work with me to learn secrets only I know!
Work with me to learn secrets only I know!
🥤
Blender Challenge
Use the blender to smooth your ingredients
🧀 CHEESE! 🧀
🏴☠️ Treasure Cheest! 🏴☠️
A secret full of cheese
🛒
Let's Build a Grocery List
Add ingredients from your Foods list — we'll match them to recipes you can actually make
✓ 40 recipes
50 ingredients
5 food groups
What's going in the cart?
These 50 ingredients come directly from the Foods page — the same items you explore and rate. Tap to add what you have or want to buy, then find the recipes that match what's in your cart.
Your Cart
0 items
Your cart is empty — tap items below to add them
Quick-add from the Foods page
🍎
ED-ABLE FOODS
Recipe Formula Card Game
✦ Pick a Recipe
Choose a recipe to build. You'll lay down the base ingredients — then draw Power-Up cards one at a time and tell us how you feel about each one.
Sensory Vocabulary
Plain-language definitions of terms used throughout this resource.
📚 Clinical & academic terms
Used in research, clinical, and academic contexts
ARFID
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder. A feeding condition where a person significantly limits the types or amounts of food they eat — not due to body image, but due to sensory sensitivities, fear of choking, or traumatic food experiences. Recognised in the DSM-5.
Common in clinical and occupational therapy contexts.
Food Chaining
A therapeutic approach that gradually expands a person's food repertoire by moving in small steps from accepted foods — changing one sensory element at a time (colour, texture, flavour, brand). Developed by Fraker et al. (2007).
The foundational methodology behind the Explore section of this resource.
Interoception
The body's ability to sense and interpret its own internal signals — including hunger, fullness, temperature, and physical discomfort. Differences in interoception can affect how intensely a person experiences the act of eating.
Relevant to understanding why certain textures or temperatures feel overwhelming.
Neurodiversity
The natural variation in how human brains are wired — including autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other neurological differences. Neurodivergent individuals are statistically more likely to experience heightened sensory sensitivities around food.
This resource is designed to be inclusive of neurodiverse experiences.
Sensory Modulation
The brain's regulation of its responses to sensory input — adjusting how intensely a sensation is experienced. People with sensory modulation differences may experience tastes, textures, or smells as significantly more or less intense than others.
Foundational concept in occupational therapy and sensory integration theory.
Texture words
SoftGives way easily when you bite or press. Low resistance. Examples: banana, yogurt, steamed carrot.
SmoothNo lumps, bumps, or variation. Feels the same all the way through. Examples: applesauce, peanut butter, pudding.
FirmHolds its shape. Requires more effort to bite through. Examples: raw carrot, cheese, cooked chicken.
CrunchyBreaks apart with sound and pressure when bitten. Can feel loud in your head. Examples: crackers, raw apple, toast.
ChewyBounces back when you bite — takes effort and repetition before it breaks down. Examples: bread crust, gummy candy, well-done steak.
StringyPulls apart in long thin strands. Can get stuck between teeth. Examples: celery, pulled pork, some cooked chicken.
SlipperySlides or moves in the mouth unexpectedly. Hard to control. Examples: cooked noodles, canned peaches, cooked spinach.
GrainyHas tiny particles that create a slightly rough feeling. Examples: some oatmeal, cornmeal, underblended smoothies.
FlakyBreaks into thin dry layers. Can feel scattered or inconsistent. Examples: white fish, flaky pastry, dry crackers.
MixedMore than one texture in the same food or bite. Can be harder to predict. Examples: soup with chunks, stew, casserole.
MushyVery soft and wet — loses its shape easily. Examples: overcooked vegetables, very ripe banana, soggy cereal.
CrumblyFalls apart into loose dry pieces. Unpredictable in the mouth. Examples: ground beef, dry cake, some crackers.
Smell words
Low smellVery little or no noticeable odour. Easy to be around and eat. Examples: plain rice, white bread, banana.
Medium smellA noticeable smell that most people can detect. May feel strong if you are smell-sensitive. Examples: cooked egg, broccoli, tomato sauce.
Strong smellIntense or lingering odour that can be smelled from a distance. Can feel overwhelming. Examples: fish, certain cheeses, fried foods.
Taste words
MildVery little taste. Neutral and easy. Examples: plain rice, white bread, banana.
ModerateA clear, present flavour. Noticeable but not overwhelming for most people. Examples: ground beef, ketchup, peanut butter.
StrongIntense flavour — could feel like too much. Examples: blue cheese, very ripe fruit, heavily seasoned food.
TartSharp, almost sour taste. Creates a puckering feeling. Examples: lemon, plain yogurt, unripe apple.
UmamiA deep, savoury taste — sometimes described as rich or meaty. Hard to describe but easy to notice. Examples: mushrooms, soy sauce, meat broth.
Predictability words
ConsistentLooks, smells, and tastes the same every time you have it. Easy to prepare mentally. Examples: branded crackers, plain rice, yogurt.
VariableCan change between batches, preparations, or sources. May surprise you. Examples: fresh fruit, restaurant dishes, home-cooked meals.
PredictabilityHow reliably a food behaves the same way each time. High predictability = fewer surprises = easier to feel ready for.
General terms
SensoryRelated to the senses — touch, taste, smell, sight, sound, and the feeling of movement or pressure in your body.
Sensory profileA personal map of how your senses respond to different inputs — what feels comfortable, what feels too much, and what you are still exploring.
TactileRelating to touch and physical sensation — including the feeling of food in your hands, mouth, and on your lips.
Oral motorThe movement of the muscles in your mouth — chewing, swallowing, and moving food around. Some textures require more oral motor effort than others.
Safe foodA food that feels reliably comfortable and manageable for you — in texture, smell, taste, and how it behaves. Not a medical term, just a personal one.
ExposureBeing around a food without needing to eat it. Seeing it, smelling it, or touching it counts. Repeated low-pressure contact can gradually reduce anxiety around a food.
