Low-Calorie, Low-Fat Chinese Restaurant Dining
How to Choose Healthy Items from a Chinese Food Menu
Authentic Chinese cooking is done with very little or no oil, is laden with vegetables, and is light on fried meats. It changes for American tastes. To learn more about differences between Chinese food in China and in America, read Chinese Food, American Kitchen: Does Chinese Food in America Taste Like Chinese Food Cooked in China.
Knowing How to Order Is Everything
Appetizers: Skip the egg rolls and spareribs. Instead, choose the broth-based soups that will help you keep your appetite in control in a low-calorie fashion. Choose from egg drop or wonton soups.
Good choices in entrees:
- Shrimp chow mein
- Moo goo gai pan
- Chicken with broccoli and chop suey
- Steamed spring rolls
- Teriyaki chicken skewer
- Dishes made with steamed or boiled chicken or shrimp, teamed vegetables, and bok choy.
Ordering Tips:
- Order a dish that comes with plenty of vegetables and one that is not deep fried.
- Choose entrees that are steamed, roasted or broiled. Also, good choices are stir-fried and steamed dishes. Stir-fries are cooked in only a very small amount of oil and are usually loaded with vegetables. Steamed dishes are prepared with water, not fat.
- Beware of the large portions of refined carbs in the forms of noodles and white rice. Watch your portions or share with a dining companion.
- Fried rice is a no-no. It is not only made of refined carbs, but due to its preparation methods, it is high in calories, fat and cholesterol (if made with eggs). Be sure to ask if the restaurant offers brown rice as a substitution for fried rice.
- Avoid dishes prepared with heavy sauces, battered or floured and deep fried.
- Watch out for dishes described as "crispy" or "battered" as well as the presence of chow mein noodles and marinades which use up sugar and calorie intake.
- More good choices:
More bad choices: Kung Pao chicken, crispy duck, dishes laden with rich sauces like Hoisin, dumplings, and lo mein.
Low-Carb Dieting Selections
Chinese food is a challenge for low-carb diners, but that doesn't mean it can't be attempted with a bit of knowledge and planning. Besides the noodles and rice, the majority of the dishes seem to have at least some sugar and starch. Proceed with caution.
Foods to avoid on a low-carb diet:
- Rice, not only fried, but steamed as well.
- Noodles, including lo mein, chow fun and chow mein.
- Wontons, including the deep-fried type sometimes on tables.
- Breaded meats such as in General Tso's Chicken.
- Egg rolls.
Sweet sauces
The following are most likely to have sugar in them and will affect the carb level:
- Sweet and sour sauce
- Duck sauce
- Plum sauce
- Oyster sauce
- Hoisin sauce
Proceed With Caution:
Thick soups and sauces thickened with cornstarch. One tablespoon of cornstarch has about 7 grams of carb. In a platter of food with a thickened sauce, there will be about 1 to 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. A cup of hot and sour soup may have about a teaspoon of cornstarch (2 grams of carb).
Cornstarch is used to coat meats prior to stir frying. The meat may not look breaded because it is a very thin coat of cornstarch.
Water chestnuts are starchy, but a few slices won't hurt you. Four water chestnuts have about 3 grams of carb. One-half cup of slices has about 7 grams.
And Finally
So there are still plenty of healthy choices available at Chinese restaurants if you are prepared and have planned. Why not make a photocopy of this article and bring it with you as a cheat sheet?
Low Calorie Chinese Food
|
What do you think about this article?
Comments
More in Food & Drink
Latest Articles