Ready to kick-start your natural healthy living plan? Here are some small changes you can make in the kitchen to reduce the amount of fat, salt and sugar in your diet.
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Ways to reduce fat:
• Use water rather than oil when stir frying or sautéing vegetables. You’ll be surprised to find very little difference in the flavour!
• Grease your trays with baking paper, instead of oil or butter. Baking paper should be cut large enough to line the base and sides of the tray and then be tucked over to surround the food and create a seal. This helps retain moisture, speeds cooking time and prevents food from drying out.
• Reduce the amount of oil in salad dressing and use dressings sparingly.
• Use some mild hummus (garlic reduced), or tahini, to substitute for butter or margarine to reduce spreadable fats. -
Ways to reduce salt:
• Tamari is a low salt variety of naturally fermented soy sauce. Low salt soy sauce could be used to substitute for Tamari.
• Add herbs, spices, garlic and citrus to flavour meals instead of salt.
• Choose whole, unprocessed foods such as fresh fruit and vegetables as they are generally lower in salt.
• If using canned beans or vegetables, drain and rinse them first to reduce the sodium. -
Ways to reduce sugar:
• Use fresh fruit where you can as they have less sugar than dried fruit.
• To reduce the sugar content in dried fruits, soak them in water overnight, remove the water and replace with fresh water. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
• Add vanilla powder or spices like cinnamon to recipes in place of sugar.
• Use less sugar that what is recommended in the recipe.
