A pinch of low-cal!

Eating right is crucial for good health. But often we end up eating less instead of finding the right diet. Here are some tips on how not to starve and be in perfect health

Is making a beeline for fat farms the only way to shedding those kilos? Fortunately not. Health is a matter of lifestyle. Yet the fact doesn’t drive home because it requires one to change – both the way one cooks and one’s eating habits. While completely excluding fat or sweet from one’s diet may not be recommended, there are ways of limiting these ingredients in our diet. Low cal food need not be insipid. All it needs is some attention and a dash of innovation. For the beginners, here’s an easy guide to stay healthy on the go!

 

• The essential switch comes in kitchen utensils. Reach out for the pressure cooker and non-stick pans instead of woks that take up a lot of oil in cooking. Yes the idea is to boil, pressure cook or stir fry your meal.

 

• Instead of frying foods, go for a ‘dry roast’ or ‘braise’ treatment. While preparing the tadka or tempering, for dals or veggies, 1 tsp oil is enough to roast the masalas and spices. Onions too may be braised (cooked in liquid). Veggies can be stir fried for a healthy crunchy culinary experience. 

 

• The microwave can also be used to cook food that is fatless and savoury. Roasted sweet potato and zero fat potato wafers can be made in matter of minutes. Similarly Papads can be roasted in a microwave.

 

• Avoid coconut, cashews and poppy seeds to thicken curries. Use tomato puree or roasted plain flour to thicken curries and gravies instead.

 

• Make sure that you remove skin and fat from all meats. To keep the meat tender, opt for a marinade.

 

• Be innovative. In place of frying onions, tomatoes, garlic and ginger in oil, try boiling these with the dal or the vegetables and add the tempered spices – cumin, mustard seeds or red chilli powder - later, to cut down on oil. Try new flavourings like dried pomegranate seeds for a tangy flavour in curries or curds.

 

• Fried dumplings or ‘koftas’ made of bottle gourd and paneer no doubt are delicious but also pack in a fair amount of calories. One need not give up one’s taste for ‘koftas’ as there is a healthy way out. Try baking them instead.

 

• For flavour and aroma try mixing and matching the main ingredient with seasonings like bay leaves, celery curry powder, garlic, pepper, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, thyme, vinegar etc. Most stir fried vegetables go well with dried herbs.

 

• Finally, switch to non-fat or skimmed milk. One way of doing this at home is by refrigerating boiled milk for 24 hours and then removing the cream that forms on the surface.

 

• Artificial sweeteners are easily available in the markets today.  Indulge your sweet tooth by gorging on carrot-halwa or kheer but take care to make these in skimmed milk with artificial sweetener.

 

Top off these minor changes with a moderate exercise regimen and you’re bang on your way to good health.