Healthy eating does not necessarily mean bland boring food. There are many ways to still enjoy your favorites and cut the fat and calories. For those who are dieting and watching their calories and fats there are many alternatives to starving and eating nothing but chicken or rice cakes.
Starting with the protein portion of your meal, don’t completely dismiss pork. There are some cuts that are as lean and low cal as chicken such as the tenderloin or any other loin cuts. Pork is more flavorful in many recipes than chicken and can be used in a variety of different ways. Ground pork is another great trick. Use ground lean pork instead of beef in your recipes to cut the fat and calories and add tremendous flavor. Sloppy Joe’s are great when prepared with pork.
Don’t sacrafice the flavor of your favorite foods. There are many flavor alternatives available that will help enhance the flavor of your food. The butter substitute sprays are low or zero cal and add a pretty good imitation flavor of butter. Do not mistake these for non-stick spray. These butter sprays are in the dairy case and packaged in a pump spray bottle. They are a great replacement for pan sauteing or on veggies.
As for cooking vegetables, to add flavor without adding fat or calories, try cooking all your vegetables in chicken broth. May sound strange, but it adds so much flavor to the veggies they rarely need butter/butter spray. You can use pre-made broth or just add bouillon to the water before you cook the vegetables.
There are many condiments that can be added to your food to keep them from getting bland. Parmesan cheese is a good one for full flavor and low impact on the calorie and fat intake.
When you are dieting, you may need to get a little creative, but it can be done. Substitute the full fat items for low fat. Eat whole grain pasta when you can, mix it with plain pasta to add volume without sacrifice. Read and compare labels of everything you purchase. Some brands are considerably less fattening than others.
There are so many ways to keep your diet interesting and still cut the fat and calories. It just takes a little creative thinking and a lot of substituting. You can lose weight without losing flavor.