My Fit Zone

Low Calorie Ways To Enhance The Flavor Of Your Foods

If you’ve just adopted a lower calorie diet plan, one of the most important things that you need to be doing at this point is looking at how you can cut out all the little ‘extras’ – that is, where calories tend to sneak in without you realizing it.

Many people are often adding additional ingredients to the meals that they’re consuming that end up contributing far too many calories or grams of sugars or fats in the process. If you aren’t careful, it can really add up and move you away from your fat loss goals.

But, does this mean you have to succumb to some bland and boring diet plan? Not at all - if you choose your methods wisely, you can definitely still eat great tasting foods that won’t cause havoc on your diet plan.

Let’s take a look at a few of the main methods that you should consider to get you started on the path to lower calorie dieting success.

Chicken Broth

The first method to add more flavor to foods you eat while keeping your calorie count down is to turn to chicken broth. Chicken broth is a great method to use when creating stir-fries, mashed sweet potatoes, soups, or for just using to marinate your meats in.

Be sure to pick up a lower sodium variety of chicken broth however as that is the one downfall you’ll get with this option.

These do tend to be higher in sodium so if you aren’t careful, you could experience some water retention because of that. These are also available in beef or vegetable flavor as well.

Flavored Stevia

Moving along, a second great way to add flavor to your foods if sweetness is what you’re after is by using flavored stevia. This s a great option or oatmeal, teas, coffee, or anything else that you like to make that you’ll want to be sweet.

Obviously you want to be avoiding sugar as much as you possibly can, so stevia will make it far easier to do so. Stevia is much sweeter than sugar as well, so be aware that you’re only going to need to use a very little bit here to see big results from it.

Vinegars

Another great option for how to flavor your foods without adding too many calories to the mix is to use vinegars. Balsamic and red wine vinegar tend to be the superior options here and work great as sauces, marinades, and salad dressings.

Get creative and mix them with a bit of olive oil and herbs and spices to see what you come up with. They’ll liven up any main protein source or a salad in seconds.

Some people also believe that apple cider vinegar can help with blood glucose stabilization as well, so that could be an added benefit that you get form adding this ingredient into your meals.

Herbs And Spices

The next way to add more flavor to your meals without adding any fat or calories at all is to use some herbs and spices. Some of these will not only enhance the taste but also offer some clear health benefits as well.

For instance, cinnamon is a great way to reduce the need to use sugar in some of your dishes and will also help to reduce the blood sugar response that you get from consuming carbohydrates.

Cayenne pepper is another great spice to use and will cause you to burn off a few extra calories as heat in the hours after consumption, so will actually serve as a good way to boost your metabolic rate ever so slightly.

Ginger is a great spice that will help to ease any digestive stress and can also boost your immune system. It’s definitely a wise idea to use these as often as you possibly can, especially considering the fact that they are entirely fat and calorie free.

Just watch with some spices that the sodium content doesn’t get too high because that’s the biggest issue that you may run into with these.

Marinades

Marinades are the next method to use to add more flavor to your foods so that you can stick to your fat loss diet with ease. Marinades are great for preparing your meat with and will also help to ensure that they retain their moisture throughout the cooking process.

While you will generally be best off preparing your own marinade, there are a number of store varieties that you can consider using instead. Just be sure that you do read the ingredient label before using it so that you can be sure that it’s going to contain ingredients that will serve you well.

Stay away from marinades that are high in sugar, calories, or very high in dietary fat. These aren’t going to do you any favors as far as sticking with your diet is concerned.

Low-Sodium Soy Sauce

Finally, the last way to boost the flavor of your foods is to make use of low sodium soy sauce. Make sure that you do choose the lower sodium variety here because on its own, this is a very high-sodium product.

Soy sauce is great as used as a base for stir-fry sauces or can simply be added to cooked brown rice, quinoa, or even barley if that’s your grain of choice.

Keep in mind that a little goes a long way, so avoid overdoing it or you will get water retention even if it is a lower sodium variety. So don’t let yourself get bored on your diet any longer. It really is possible to eat healthy and still consume meals that tantalize your taste buds and don’t leave you wanting to fall off that diet in record time.

As long as you are willing to experiment a bit with the meals that you’re creating, you can easily stick with your diet and see long-term success.