Potatoes
I enjoy mashed potatoes as much as the next person, but watch what you add to them. If you’re serious about eating low fat, butter and cream are out. Try low-fat sour cream, low-fat buttermilk, low-fat or non-fat milk, or for skinny potatoes with added flavor, some fat-free, low-sodium broth. Use freshly ground black pepper, and fresh or dried herbs of your choice, and you can enjoy flavorful mashed potatoes without all that fat.Baked potatoes can be a good choice. Pick small russets rather than huge ones for a side dish, and fill them with low-fat or fat-free ingredients such as salsa, a small amount of low-fat sour cream and freshly chopped chives rather than lots of butter and melted cheese. Consider using just half of a baked potato for a side dish. A whole one should really be the basis of a main course.
If it’s got to be French fries, oven fry them. Cut up russet potatoes, and scatter the pieces on a lightly oiled shallow-rimmed baking sheet. Roast them at 450 degrees for about 30 minutes. For convenience, there are some frozen low-fat oven fries that taste very good, such as Alexia-brand fries, which I always have in my freezer.
Sweet potatoes are a great alternative to russets or white potatoes. Sweet potatoes are full of vitamins and minerals. They’re delicious mashed, sautéed, baked and oven fried.
Vegetables
If you’re tired of frozen peas and carrots, explore new or unusual vegetables. Familiarize yourself with seasonal produce, so you can buy your asparagus when it’s just around a dollar per pound rather than four or five times that much. Vegetables are best when they’re in season, and although many are available year round, many hothouse varieties lack flavor. Tomatoes are a good example.Try vegetables you disliked as a child. Perhaps you hated cabbage, broccoli or Brussels sprouts. Your dislike of them could have been a result of how they were cooked. Few of us boil our cabbage to a mushy and gray state these days. Add ginger, garlic or other herbs and spices; try a hint of flavored oil in place of knobs of butter; drizzle some balsamic vinegar over a tray of cut root vegetables before roasting them. Or simply try a few grinds of freshly ground black pepper and some lemon juice to bring your cooked veggies to life.
Legumes
Add extra protein and fiber to your meal by making good use of beans. Mix some black beans or pinto beans in with rice. Make tasty, tangy salads with a combination of beans. I have all kinds in my pantry: garbanzo beans (chickpeas), cannellini (white kidney beans), pinto beans, navy beans, kidney beans and black beans. I confess I tend to use canned beans rather than dried beans for convenience. If you do the same, try and choose the cans of reduced-sodium beans, and always drain and rinse the beans before using them. Mix beans with rice or pasta; or combine them with veggies such as green beans or corn, and flavor them with spices, vinegars and a scant amount of oil.Don’t forget lentils, which are relatively quick to cook, and chock-full of fiber and minerals. Lentils can be used in side dishes with, say, chopped peppers, herbs and rice, or used in cold salads.
Try edamame, which are soybeans. These be enjoyed in succotash and any number of side dishes and salads. Bags of frozen edamame can be found in Trader Joe’s and other stores.
Low Fat, High Flavor
Now you have plenty of ways to add healthy and delicious side dishes to your low fat entrées. But to gain maximum nutritional punch from your low-fat side dishes, stick with whole grains where possible, choose a variety of vegetables from across the color spectrum to enhance the nutritive value of your meal--and to keep your food interesting. Add flavor to these side dishes with herbs and spices rather than with salt and saturated fat. Finally, keep portions in check. Eating low fat is not an excuse to bulk up on calories elsewhere.Low Fat Side Dish Recipes
- Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
- Acorn Squash Rings
- Roasted Butternut Squash
- Zucchini and Tomato Gratin
- Roasted New Potatoes
- Colcannon (cabbage and potatoes)
- Roasted Vegetables
- Creamy Polenta
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Sauteed Green Beans
- Orange-Glazed Carrots
- Cider-Glazed Brussels Sprouts
- Wild Rice with Cranberries and Apples
- Potato Salad with Asparagus
- Confetti Rice Salad
- Three Bean Salad
- Tomato and Asparagus Salad
- Quinoa Salad
- Curried Quinoa and Peas
- Mexican Rice and Beans
- Sauteed Green Beans and Leeks
- Macaroni Salad
- Potato Salad
- Chickpea and Tomato Salad
- Corn, Black Bean and Tomato Salad
- Tomato and Cucumber Salad
- Green Bean and Tomato Salad
