Get wise when eating out
 | Get wise when eating out Cheryl, lead dietitian at EatatEase has sent me a blog about how we can help to tackle the ever growing problem of obesity in children, and how we can encourage them to be more active. |
I’ve put together some of my best tips below to help you make great food decisions when you’re looking at the menu.
What to ask for:
Always ask how dishes are prepared, knowing how they are prepared makes a lot of difference in your calorie and fat intake.
Ask the waiting staff the following (they’ll be more than happy to help).
Are they baked, grilled, prepared with butter or oil?
Don’t be afraid to ask what’s in the sauce, the soup or the dressing.
Always ask for butter, gravy, sauces and salad dressings on the side, this simply allows you to control how much fat you eat.
Order clear soups, broths or tomato-based soups instead of creamy soups
Avoid deep fat fried starters and high fat cheese starters
When ordering meat or fish, choose grilled rather than fried dishes
Choose fish and meats en papillote (in paper or foil packets). The natural flavours and juices of the ingredients are sealed inside the parchment paper packet.
Ask for salsa as a condiment to enhance grilled foods or sandwiches. Fruit salsas are a delicious and fat-free topping for grilled fish, poultry or meat.
When ordering vegetables, ask for steamed veg, which have the highest nutritional value and are lowest in calories. Always ask for the vegetables not to be smothered in butter.
Choose tomato-based sauces like tomato and basil instead of carbonara, or rogan josh instead of creamy curries such as kormas.
Sharing dishes is a great way of introducing variety into your meal, having a little taste of everything and controlling your portions. This works particularly well in Asian restaurants or Spanish Tapa’s.
Choose plain boiled rice over fried rice
Vegetarian’ does not necessarily mean low fat, a lot of vegetarian meals can be really high in butter or oil.
If it all seems a little daunting simply pick out a couple of tips that suit your food tastes, if you like chicken maybe you’d have grilled chicken in tomato sauce, rather than fried chicken with Mayonnaise.
Good luck.
Comments