Grill meat on a rack so that the fat drips away.
Brown meat and mince without adding fat or oil
Choose lean meat and mince, trim the visible fat off the meat and the skin off poultry before cooking
Use reduced-fat and low-fat dairy products (such as skimmed milk, semi-skimmed milk or reduced-fat cheese) whenever possible
Use a small amount of strong cheese for flavouring and grate it rather than slice it (it looks like you have a lot more)
Choose a low-fat spread rather than butter (for a healthy heart, choose a spread based on olive oil or rapeseed oil) but still use these sparingly.
Replace cream in recipes with low fat natural yogurt, low fat fromage frais or reduced fat crème fraiche
Salad dressings, mayonnaise, cream and rich sauces are all high in fat so choose low fat versions (whatever spread you use, use it sparingly)
Use stock cubes, stock and corn flour or a little gravy powder to make gravy rather than fatty juices from the meat
In casseroles and stews use less meat and add more beans, pulses or vegetables
Choose tomato or vegetable based pasta sauces rather than cheesy or creamy ones
Spices, herbs, lemon juice and vinegar are a low fat, tasty way of flavouring foods. Also try using soya sauce, Worcestershire sauce, fresh chillies, fresh ginger or garlic to add flavour
Use less spreading fat (including butter and margarine)
Use a low fat spread instead of a full fat one or butter, but still use it sparingly
If you're using a moist sandwich filling, don't use spreading fats
Use a minimum of fat or oil in cooking
Drain off excess fat or oil after cooking
Eat baked potatoes without any butter or margarine
Eat cooked vegetables without added butter or margarine
Try not to add fat to chapattis either before or after cooking
Choose healthier snacks (see below)
Include servings from this group at every meal
Eat more bread with less spread (or none). Chapattis and Pitta bread are also good choices
Cut thicker slices of bread
Cover more of your plate with baked, boiled or mashed potatoes
Use sweet potatoes, cassava, green bananas, and plantains as well as potatoes
Add pasta or rice to salads to make them more interesting
Use granary bread or multigrain bread instead of white bread
Have a glass of milk to drink
Have a pot of low fat yogurt as a dessert or snack
Use natural yogurt or fromage frais as a dip for vegetable sticks
Add small amounts of low fat cheeses to salads, sandwiches or pizzas
Snacks such as chocolate bars, crisps and biscuits are very high in fat and calories. If you are trying to lose weight you should try to reduce the amount that you eat of these foods. It will be difficult to cut them out completely, so initially try to reduce the amount that you are eating, for example if you eat 2 bags of crisps per day, start by cutting down to 1 bag per day.
You should not deny yourself the foods that you enjoy, this will just make you want to eat them even more. You should learn that no food is forbidden, just be careful about the amount you eat. The best way is to enjoy a small amount of something that you like, rather than completely avoiding it and bingeing on a large amount later.
You should also think about healthier snacks that are lower in calories and are more likely to satisfy your hunger.
A mars bar, a packet of crisps and a can of coke provides you with almost half your daily calorie requirement (if you are a woman), and that is before you have even eaten any meals or had any other drinks.
Nutrient content per item | Mars Bar (regular size) | Small packet of raisins |
---|---|---|
Calories (kcal) | 305 | 42.5 |
Fat (g) | 11.8 | 0 |
Sugar (g) | 46.9 | 10 |
Nutrient content per item | Packet of salt and vinegar crisps | 1 medium size banana |
---|---|---|
Calories (kcal) | 181 | 95 |
Fat (g) | 11.4 | 0.3 |
Sugar (g) | 0.2 | 0.5 |
Nutrient content per item | Jam Doughnut | Plain Currant bun |
---|---|---|
Calories (kcal) | 252 | 178 |
Fat (g) | 11.2 | 4.5 |
Sugar (g) | 14.1 | 9.0 |
We all lead very hectic lives and may often rely on a ready meal for those evenings when we don't feel like cooking. Ready meals are generally high in salt and fat (Link) however many food manufacturers have altered the ingredients to lower the fat and calories. Choose the supermarkets healthy eating range of ready meals, but remember they may still be high in fat and calories.
When buying a ready meal look for less than 10g fat and 350 calories (kcals) per portion.
The majority of ranges produced by the supermarkets fall within these levels. So you will have a wide variety of healthier ready meals to choose from.
Serve extra vegetables or a side salad with the ready meal (to make it more filling).
Try to avoid ready meals with cheesy or creamy sauces.
Nutritional values per pack | Standard Supermarket Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni (pack size 450g) |
Healthy eating option Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni (pack size 300g) |
---|---|---|
Calories (kcal) | 662 | 296 |
Fat (g) | 34.7 | 5.1 |
Protein (g) | 29.7 | 14.7 |
Carbohydrate (g) | 80.1 | 47 |
Salt (g) | 4.5 | 2.4 |
Sodium (g) | 1.8 | 0.9 |
What differences can you spot from the comparison above?