Low Fat Cooking - Easy Low Fat Food Recipes

Human beings are complex and diverse, and each person’s body is different. While some do well on low carb foods, others thrive on low fat foods. However, when you think "low fat," the thought that usually comes to mind is: "Yuck – bland and boring!" But it needn’t be so. With a little creativity and imagination, you can whip up low fat meals that are delicious and fun.

Before delving deeper into this, you need to keep in mind that not all fats are the same. It is recommended that when you are on a low fat diet, the fats that you need to eschew are the saturated ones. Also, saturated fats are not always gotten from animal sources, such as fatty red meat, lard, and butter, but can also come from vegetable sources like coconut oil or palm oil. Another type of fat that you need to beware of is hydrogenated trans-fats, which are found in foods like doughnuts and French fries. The oils that are considered ideal are polyunsaturated and mono-unsaturated fats, extracted from nuts and seeds, and vegetable oils like safflower, olive, soy, and corn. Some of the other healthy and important fats are Omega 3 fatty acids from seafood, cod liver oil, and flax seed oil.

Tips For Low Fat Cooking

When cooking vegetables, steam them in a steamer, or use a microwave. When you buy meat, choose lean cuts, and if there is any visible fat, trim it off. Don’t fry any food. Instead broil, boil, or bake them. Drain the fat off on a rack. Use broth mixed with flour or milk to thicken gravies. Instead of using oil, cook your food in stock. Instead of using oil try cooking sprays. Use homemade broth to stir fry your vegetables.

Instead of accompanying meat dishes with creamy sauces, make pureed vegetable sauces. It’s not a good idea to use too much dried or canned soups because they have preservatives and are high in salt. Instead of buying salad dressing, make homemade ones. Use spices and herbs to add subtle and interesting flavors.

In recipes for sauces and soups, substitute cream with evaporated skim milk. Whenever a recipe requires cream, use low fat yogurt or low fat cottage cheese instead. Instead of dinner rolls and white bread, opt for whole wheat, rye and sourdough breads.

At fast food restaurants, avoid the cheese and the sauce. Choose sandwiches that are made of whole grain bread, and add lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, onions, and alfalfa sprouts to make it healthier. Instead of sodas, go in for fruit juice or a low fat milk drink.

Easy Low Fat Recipes

Chicken With Bell Pepper

A few slices of Chicken Breast
A few slices of Bell Pepper
1 Onion, diced
1 tbsp. Soy Sauce
1 tbsp. Olive oil

Heat the olive oil and put in the diced onion and cook until it becomes translucent. Then, add the slices of chicken in it and cook for a few minutes. Next, add the bell pepper and soy sauce and cover and cook until tender. This goes very well with pasta or brown rice.

Low Fat Pork Chops

6 pieces Pork Chops (remove the visible fat)
1 Egg
2 cups Bread Crumbs
2 tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/3 cup White Wine
½ cup low fat Milk
1 can Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
Canola cooking spray

To begin with, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. The season the pork chops with the garlic powder, adding salt according to taste. Beat the egg in a bowl and after rubbing the pork chops in some flour, dip them in the beaten egg and then roll them in the breadcrumbs. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and fry the pork chops for about 5 minutes on each side, until they are brown. Next, spray some canola cooking spray in a baking dish and place the pork chops in it and cover with a foil. Let this bake for about an hour. While it is baking, make a mix the mushroom soup with the white wine and low fat milk in a bowl. Then, put this soup mixture on the chops, putting back the foil, and bake again for 30 minutes.

Quick Crab Salad

11/4 cup Crab Meat
1 cup Celery, sliced thinly
1/3 cup Fat-free Salad Dressing
Green Onions, minced
Salt
Black Pepper

Take a mixing bowl and mix the celery and crab together in it. Add the onion, salad dressing, salt and pepper, and refrigerate for a couple of hours. You can serve this on salad greens or with rolls.

Eggplant Bake

Cut a medium sized eggplant into ½ inch size slices and keep aside. Mix parmesan cheese into breadcrumbs. Put fat-free Italian dressing in a shallow bowl and dip the slices of eggplant in it, then coat each with the breadcrumb-cheese mixture. Then, coat baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray and arrange the eggplant slices in a single layer on them. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown, in an oven heated to 450 degrees. Serve these delicious baked eggplant slices hot.

Yogurt And Fruit Sherbet

Take one cup of vanilla flavored yogurt and add cup of crushed pineapple juice, either canned or fresh. Then add a cup of chopped cherries, strawberries, peaches, and any other fruit you like. Next, put all the ingredients in a food processor and blend them until it is smooth. Transfer the blended mixture in a non-metallic pan and freeze until it gets firm. Then take it out of the pan and whip it until it becomes creamy, and serve it immediately.