Week Seven: Dining Out

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Mexican
Mexican food can be hearty and still healthy. Traditional dishes include plenty of vegetables, cornmeal and salsa.

Regrettably, westernized versions have brought large amounts of fats and sodium into the kitchen. Mexican restaurants in the U.S. are notorious for their huge portion sizes and their sometimes excessive use of cheese, lard and fat.

A seemingly innocent basket of tortilla chips and salsa can be extremely high in calories, fat and sodium. Guacamole dips are loaded with fat. You are better off with warm corn tortillas and fresh, home-made salsa.

Both Nachos and Quesadillas are made with copious amounts of cheese and meat, which makes them high in fat as well. The traditional Ceviche is much leaner and a good source of protein to boot. Pico de Gallo is an excellent appetizer salad. Don’t spoil it with too much dressing and hold the sour cream.

Tacos, Taquitos, Burritos and Chile Rellenos are all deep-fried items. Some contain more than a day’s allowance of fat. See if the Chile is grilled over a fire, instead of fried. Tamales stuffed with vegetables are preferable to the ones with meat. The better Fajitas are the ones with lean cuts of chicken, beef or prawns. If you order grilled chicken, be sure to have the skin removed. Corn tortillas have less fat than those made with flour.

Most Mexican entrées are served with beans, rice and tortillas. Corn tortillas have less fat than those made with flour. Beans are a great source of fiber. Boiled pinto or black beans are better than refried ones, which are cooked in lard. Spanish rice is high in carbohydrates and somewhat oily. So, go easy on the side dishes as well.

Fruit ice is a classic dessert, but it has lots of sugar. If you crave something creamier, Flan is a good choice. Deep-fried ice cream and Buñuelos contain cream, batter and oil, plus sugar and honey.

For Mexican food, the healthiest choices are clearly the ones with the freshest ingredients and the least amount of fat. Often, the authentic, traditional dishes have the highest nutritional value.

Chinese
Chinese restaurants typically name their dishes after the regional cooking styles of China (e.g., “Szechwan”). Most feature similar staples, such as soybeans, vegetables, rice and noodles.

Appetizers include crispy fried noodles with fried cuts of meats as well as toppings like wonton strips, cashews, peanuts and eggs. All of these can be high in fat and calories.

Paper wrapped chicken is a very popular dish. Health wise, it is a good choice. Although it is deep-fried, the paper seals out most of the oil and lets the chicken steam in its natural juices. However, some of the accompaniments besides the chicken are inherently high in fat and sodium, except for the cabbage and the steamed dumplings, which are alright.

Most soups make good starters. If made with fresh broth, they are typically low in sodium. Less recommended is sizzling rice soup, because the rice is deep-fried, which boosts more fat.

Many Chinese entrées are fried and coated with a sauce, also high in sodium and fat. Wok-cooked items are preferable. Moo-Shu is good, because no oil is used and the vegetables provide enough moisture for cooking. You should ask the chef to omit oil, salt or soy sauce whenever possible.

Choose steamed over fried rice and mix with the juices from your entrée dishes. When ordering combination dishes, help yourself to larger portions of vegetables than meats.

The customary fortune cookies are tempting endings. Almond cookies are high in fat and therefore not desirable. Deep-fried ice cream…? Better pass.

Chinese food can be very tasty and it is relatively cheap. There are many delicious flavors and you can easily overindulge. It is not a light fare and the sauces and dips add plenty of calories too. Watch out for sodium. Wok-cooked and steamed vegetables are usually the healthiest choices, especially when they are prepared without oils and spicy sauces.

The American diner
They are no longer a staple of the American landscape, but there was a time when road-side diners could be found across the nation. They are part of the country’s culinary history, like the ice-cream and apple pie they served.

Well, the milk shakes and malts are still here, reminding us of the days when we did not know (nor care) about fat and calories.

Soups made from scratch beat anything that comes out of a can. If they make it in the back kitchen, go for it. A hearty vegetable soup is your best bet. French onion soup is tasty and warming. Go easy on the cheese topping, though. If you feel a little more reckless, chili made with lean ground beef, cooked in a rich broth and topped with cheese is your best pick.

If you choose a Cobb salad, let them hold the bacon. Add a side order of chicken instead. Keep your dressing separate or skip it altogether.

Hamburgers, hot dogs, chili dogs and hoagie sandwiches are traditional diner favorites. From a nutritional point of view, they are not especially beneficial (but hey!). BLTs are better. Try to curb your enthusiasm and throw out the bacon, hold the mayonnaise, but load up on lettuce and tomato. (Not much left, is there?)

Diner entreés are notoriously rich and oversized, especially when served with fatty and salty side orders. Fried chicken and fish ’n chips are hard to modify to make them low fat. Chicken pot pie typically comes with a heavy filling. Grilled New York steak and BBQ beef short ribs are alright (sort of) when grilled over an open grill (allowing excess fat to drip into the fire). Baked potatoes make better side dishes, as long as you pass on the toppings made of butter, sour cream or cheese. Mashed potatoes, potato salads and coleslaw are all pretty high in fat. So try really, really hard to resists any of them.

If you must have dessert, split one with your table and only have two or three bites. Or have a low fat yogurt instead. (Who am I kidding?)

In order to become a more health-conscious eater, you should not automatically assume that most foods, including restaurant foods, are off limits. The trick is to be smart about your choices. Healthy food does not have to be bland and tasteless. In fact, it shouldn’t. If you feel deprived of the tastes you love, you will not stick to your diet resolutions for long. So, go out and enjoy yourself thoroughly but stay in control.

You can read about more menus at my “Restaurant Guide For Healthy Eating.” Continue to Week Eight »

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