Cut out the fat and you're on your way to a healthier cholesterol profile and a slimmer waistline. No rocket science there.
But instead of cutting out fat completely, we should all try to aim for lower-fat eating.
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"Overall fat intake should be limited, but not eliminated," says registered dietician Gina Stear.
Fat is an essential component of all our cell membranes and is absolutely necessary for the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids, which the body cannot produce on its own, Stear says.
But, although we shouldn't cut out all fats, experts agree that we should try to limit our intake of unhealthy fats. This list includes fats obtained from animal products (i.e. saturated fats) and trans fatty acids, which can be found in hard margarines, coffee creamers and coconut oil.
Instead, we should try to eat only healthy fats in the form of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats from plant oils. These good fats can be found in canola oil, olive oil, avocado pear and peanut butter.
Lower your overall fat intake
Unfortunately, most of us still generally include too much fat in our diets. Stear offers a few helpful hints for lowering your overall fat intake:
Choose low-fat or fat-free milk and dairy products, e.g. yoghurt, cottage cheese and evaporated milk. These options could replace cream in recipes.
Choose soft rather than hard margarines.
Wait until toast has cooled down before spreading margarine or butter on it, and try to spread it thinly.
If you use fat, choose low-fat options for mayonnaise, salad dressings and margarine, and use it sparingly.
Never put two "fats" on a slice of bread, i.e. margarine, low-fat mayonnaise, peanut butter or avocado pear. Spread these toppings thinly and use them on their own.
Remove all visible fat from meat before preparation. Avoid the skin of the chicken and ideally remove it prior to cooking.
Aim to eat less red meat (2-3 times a week). Use lean meat options, e.g. lean mince, lean beef or lamb, ostrich, venison or soy mince. The fattiest meat is lamb, followed by beef, pork, chicken, ostrich and venison.
Eat fish (fresh or canned) 1-2 times a week.
Avoid processed meats such as sausages, polony and salami.
Limit the addition of any form of extra fat during food preparation (e.g. margarine, butter, cream, mayonnaise, oil and cheese).
Use low-fat cooking methods: boil, steam, grill, braai over coals, bake in the oven, poach, stir-fry. Do not fry food.
If you do need to fry food, use very little oil (canola or olive oil) or try to prepare food using no oil at all (see tips below).
Limit the amount of gravies and sauces you consume.
Read food labels to assess fat content. A product is low in fat if it contains less than 3g fat/100g and fat free if it has less than 0,5g fat/100g. Choose foods with a fat content of between 3% and 10% fat and try to stick to about 10-13g fat per meal. This can be achieved by adding only one fat to a meal and following the above-mentioned cooking methods.
Tips on fat-free frying
A lot of the fats we include in our diets come from the cooking methods we use. While it's best not to fry foods at all, this isn't always possible.
Luckily, there is a way in which you can fry foods without using any oil. Try this simple method, provided by Stear:
Fill half a tea cup with boiling water and add a teaspoon of stock powder. Stir until dissolved and then fill the cup to the top with red or white wine. If you don’t drink alcohol, vegetable juice or apple juice can be used instead.
Place chopped onions in a non-stick frying pan over high heat. Toss the onion with a wooden spoon as it begins to cook. When it starts to brown and stick to the pan, add a few teaspoons of the stock mixture to the pan (enough to cause a cloud of steam without making the onion simmer).
Continue tossing until the onion begins to stick again and then pour in the rest of the stock mixture, stirring until the brownish residue has lifted off the bottom of the pan.
Cover with a lid and leave for 5-10 minutes until the fluid has been reduced. The onions will be soft, brown and slightly caramelised.
Add beef goulash cubes, vegetables or chicken strips as well as any other ingredients.
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