So My apologies that i have been away on for work and have not posted anything for weeks..But the good news is that this gave me a chance to review few things.I noticed that eating out for a lot of people is a problem and they tend to gain weight simply because they do not know the right choices.So here i am writing this article to help you order like a diva and make food choices that will never make you gain weight.Whether its Indian or Italian read on to know the best food choices
Clues to Unhealthy Dishes
Thumbs Down:
- Fried, au gratin, braised, buttered, creamed, escalloped
- Hollandaise, cheese, or cream sauce
- In gravy, pan-fried or -roasted, rich, in butter sauce.
Clues to Healthy Nutrition
Grilled chicken vs. fried chicken. Broiled fish vs. fried fish. When dining out, look for possible code words to healthier food with less saturated fat.
Thumbs Up:
- Baked, broiled, grilled
- Poached, roasted, steamed
- In its own juice, garden fresh
No Substitutions? No Problem
What if your server says, "Absolutely no substitutions"? Try these 4 tips:
- Ask that fries be left off your plate.
- Peel the skin off fried chicken.
- Skip the butter.
- Drink tea instead of coffee with cream.
Healthy Chinese Food
Thumbs Down: Egg rolls, egg drop soup, fried wontons, Sweet and Sour Pork, and fried rice. They are prepared with lots of oil, sodium, and MSG.
Thumbs Up: Steamed or stir-fried seafood, chicken, bean curd, or vegetable dishes -- plus steamed rice -- for heart health. If possible, ask the cook to use less oil, soy sauce, and MSG
Greek Food to Savor
Thumbs Down: Moussaka, gyros, and baklava. You'll never lose weight eating them. If you're counting calories and saturated fat, get real about high-fat meats (like lamb and beef), cheese, and butter in these dishes.
Thumbs Up: Appetizers with chickpeas, eggplant, tomatoes, grains -- like hummus, baba ganouj, tabouli, dolmas. Also, shish kabob, chicken with pita, fish cooked in tomatoes.
Healthy Choices for Indian Food
Thumbs Down: Samosas and creamy curries. Many Indian dishes are full of high-fat ghee (clarified butter), coconut oil and milk. When you're eating out on a diet, read the menu closely.
Thumbs Up: Tandoori meats, vegetable or dal curries, and shish kabobs. South Indian food offers spicy vegetarian dishes -- with cauliflower, peas, tomatoes, eggplant, lentils, rice, and chutney.
Mexican Food Fiesta
At Mexican eateries, dining out is a party. But beware the lard and cheese.
Thumbs Down: Chips, fried tacos, refried beans, quesadillas, and chimichangas. They're loaded with saturated fat and sodium.
Thumbs Up: Start with black bean soup or grilled shrimp. Share chicken or shrimp fajitas. Try grilled shrimp or fish, with fresh salsa; chili verde (pork); or arroz con pollo (chicken).
Healthy Italian Food
Pasta is the essence of Italian dining. But it can be a saturated fat-and-calorie disaster!
Thumbs Down: Creamy, cheesy sauces (like Alfredo). Fried calamari, pastas stuffed with cheese.
Thumbs Up: Light sauces, like primavera (vegetables); marsala (wine, mushrooms, beef stock); marinara (tomatoes, onions, garlic); or clam sauce. Have minestrone for starters, plus a heart-healthy glass of red wine.
How Pizza Can Be on Your Diet
Follow these healthy eating tips:
- Order a thin crust.
- Pile on vegetable toppings, and skip the meat.
- Ask for extra sauce -- and half the cheese.
- Start with a salad.
- Stop after one or two slices, and take the rest home.
Healthy Fast Food
Thumbs Up: Grilled chicken, chicken fajita pitas, turkey sandwiches, baked chips, or frozen yogurt.
Thumbs Down: Jumbo burgers, fried fish sandwiches, fried chicken, tacos, French fries, potato chips, milk shakes, cheese, mayonnaise, bacon.
Some Fats Are Good for You
Monounsaturated fats: Substituted for saturated fats in your diet, they help lower bad LDL cholesterol and don't reduce good HDL cholesterol. Found in canola oil, olive oil, olives, avocados, nuts, and nut butters.
Polyunsaturated fats: Help lower cholesterol. Found in fatty fish, vegetable oils, and nuts and sunflower seeds.
Cutting Fat Can Help Weight Loss
Ask your server about healthy substitutions:
- A vegetable or fruit instead of French fries
- Skinless chicken that's broiled instead of fried
- Low-fat milk for your coffee, instead of cream
Fish Is Good for Your Heart
Fish is a healthy choice when dining out. Ordering seafood such as salmon and tuna adds omega-3 fatty acids to your diet. They are a type of polyunsaturated fat that helps lower your heart disease risk. You’ll also find omega-3s in walnuts and edamame (soybeans).
Avoid Fried Foods and Added Cheese
Eating out often means getting too much saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and calories.
How can you spot the dangers? Saturated fats come mostly from meat and whole-fat dairy foods. Tropical oils like palm oil and coconut oil, and butter are also saturated fats. Cholesterol is found in animal fats. Primarily the saturated fat and the cholesterol in the foods you eat increase your cholesterol levels.
Lean Choices
If you're counting calories and saturated fat, hamburgers, rib eye, porterhouse, or T-bone steaks don't score well.
Thumbs Up:
- Barbeque or grilled chicken, pot roast, meat loaf
- London broil, filet mignon, flank steak, sirloin tip, tenderloin
- Seafood, boiled shrimp, oysters on the half shell
Spotting High-Sodium Foods
Restaurant foods can be very high in sodium, or salt. If you are watching your sodium as many Americans need to, watch for:
- Foods that are pickled, smoked, in broth or au jus
- Cocktail sauce, soy, or teriyaki sauce
- MSG
Look for low-sodium soy sauce. And ask that your food be prepared without added salt or MSG.
Have a Heart
Some restaurants have tuned into heart-healthy eating. They offer low-fat, low-salt, low-cholesterol menu items, designated with a heart icon.
Don't confuse this with the favorites icon. That can be a flag for popular, fatty choices. One delicious heart-healthy option: A grilled fish filet, a natural source of omega-3 fatty acids.