12 cooling things to eat when it’s way too hot in Seattle

It’s too hot.

Last week, 100 million people across the U.S. were under heat warnings or advisories, while Europe experienced a “heat apocalypse.” Right now, the hotness is especially distressing, with hell on earth getting less metaphorical by the minute. While we’re all lying in front of our fans trying not to dwell on climate change, we’ve still got to feed ourselves.

Here are (approximately) 12 things to eat (plus some beverages!) that can help make heat-wave life less horrifying, at least for a little while. Meanwhile, be careful out there: Drink lots of water, take it easy and check in on loved ones (including pets).

• Sandwiches! Specifically, banh mi, with their airy baguettes and slightly spicy bite, make superlative, easy hot-weather eating. My favorite right now is the tofu version from Thanh Son Tofu and Bakery in Little Saigon, and here’s my friend Tan Vinh’s list that adds 11 more recommendations in the Seattle area. Don’t fret about where you go, though; in this heat, the banh mi place closest to your face might just be the greatest one.

• How about a fried chicken picnic by a lake in the shade (or inside, if you’re lucky enough to have air conditioning)? I’ve got four — yes, four! — new favorites in different neighborhoods for you to choose from:
  1.) From the fantastic fried chicken on a stick to a single, possibly perfect dessert, The Chicken Supply on Phinney Ridge rules (and it’s all gluten-free, too).
  2.) From chef Shota Nakajima of recent “Top Chef” fame, Capitol Hill’s Taku sells buckets of super-tasty karaage-style birds to go (and don’t miss the macaroni salad).
  3.) Cookie’s Country Chicken in Ballard makes it the delicious, classic Southern American way (with a 24-hour brine and a 24-hour marinade with 10 spices).
  4.) For KFC — with the K for Korean — in Kirkland, it’s Yeon’s Chicken‘s wings and drumettes (with the right amount of greasiness), and there’s always Ezell’s.
• Do not overlook the greatness of cold noodles. Bún, the Vietnamese wonder-dish of rice vermicelli, is especially great from Dong Thap (Little Saigon) or Ba Bar (multiple locations). Naeng myun, slippery and cooling Korean noodles, are also available from Stone Korean (South Lake Union and Bellevue), Hae-Nam Kalbi & Calamari (Shoreline), Sam Oh Jung (Lynnwood) and maybe your local Korean place. Or try some zaru soba, handmade for dipping into cool broth by Mutsuko Soma at Kamonegi (Fremont) and also available at many neighborhood Japanese restaurants.
• How about a salad? Beloved Café Presse is gone, but sister Le Pichet downtown carries on. Eating the green dream that is the salade verte while drinking chilled rosé there makes everything better, at least for the moment. Also, at lunchtime: the sardine sandwich, with more crisp Bibb lettuce and lots of mayo — get it!
• Speaking of cold noodles and salad, you can make your own cold noodle salad with Red Boat fish sauce, the brand that Seattle chefs swear by (hell, use any fish sauce — it’s too hot to be fussy).
• Grilling is an obvious choice, and hot dogs are the easiest. To find the best, here are the results of my recent great Seattle hot dog taste test. But it needn’t be all about meat. Lots of vegetables and fruits, quesadillas and homemade pizza come out great off the grill without heating up the kitchen (more than it already is).
• There is such a thing as a cold soup, and it is good. If you’re willing to turn on the stove, start early and make a big pot of excellent-served-chilled vegan corn chowder (with tips from chef Kristi Brown of Communion). Or put together some vichyssoise, the potato-leek combo that’s amazingly smooth and soothing. For a no-stove option, how about gazpacho (suggested additions: crab meat, shrimp, avocado, croutons or just vodka, which Thomas Keller calls “the world’s best Bloody Mary”)?
• If corn chowder isn’t your thing, here’s my mom’s recipe for vegetarian corn and black bean salad — lovely with some Juanita’s tortilla chips for a simple hot-weather lunch or supper (or eating out of the bowl in front of the fridge).
• Speaking of salad, Riz Rollins makes the world’s best potato salad, and you can too using the recipe he shared because he is the best person ever (besides my mom).
• The idea of hot and spicy soup may sound challenging, but it really will cool you down. My beloved neighborhood Thai place, Manao on Capitol Hill, makes a rice-noodle version that I ate at an outdoor table on a 93-degree day, and it was fantastic, especially with a big, rich, sweet, cold Thai iced coffee or tea. Your favorite Thai place awaits!
• This might be the pinnacle of hot-weather food, perfected (besides ice pops, below): Here’s how to make the very best tuna salad sandwich from 5 top Seattle-area chefs.
• We all need some frozen treats now. Make or buy some actual-fruit-juice ones, or get capital-P Popsicles if it pleases you — it’s too hot to judge any quiescently frozen choices. (Pro tip for grown-ups: Swizzle in a glass of cold Champagne, crémant, prosecco or vinho verde, lick, sip, repeat until the weather cools down!)