These 50 tips will help you to eat only healthy meals and keep you feeling your best.
1. Use a spray bottle for oil.
To put exactly the amount of oil that you need in a frying pan, use a cooking spray. You can easily buy these in any supermarket. If you don’t have such a utensil, use a wide pastry brush.
2. Fry with broth, not oil.
Frying with broth is one more way to make your meals healthier. Two tablespoons of any broth will be enough. Although there is also some fat in broth, it’s much healthier than oil.
3. Use natural yogurt instead of store-bought sauces.
Forget about the sauces you buy in supermarkets, because there are enormous amounts of additives and preservatives in them. You can easily make a homemade sauce from yogurt.
4. Add sesame seeds to your diet.
Sesame is rich in calcium. Garnish your salads and other dishes with sesame seeds to make them healthy and visually appealing.
5. Cook in the oven.
Forget about frying if you have decided to lead a healthy lifestyle. Baking is one of the healthiest ways to cook.
6. Use homemade mince.
The mince you buy in packages or by weight is made of extremely fatty meat. What’s more, it’s not fresh. That’s why it is better to spend some time to make mince at home and enjoy a really delicious and healthy meal.
7. Do not use wheat bread for cutlets.
Cutlets usually contain some amount of wheat bread to bind the mince. But there are lots of low-calorie variants such as whipped egg whites or finely grated marrow squash. They will make your cutlets soft and juicy.
8. Try different kinds of coating.
We are used to flour and breadcrumbs, but they are not the only ones. Try to coat your foods in sesame seeds, ground nuts, chickpeas, lentil flour, or rolled oats. Your dishes will become healthier and have a little bit of a different flavor.
9. Eat less salt.
Try to reduce the amount of salt you receive from food. Salt has negative effects on our health. For example, it retains water and causes many other health problems.
10. Add salt to your plate.
Nutritionists say that salt that hasn’t been heat-treated is healthier. Therefore, it’s better to cook without salt at all. You can add salt to your plate when the dish is already cooked.
11. Use sea salt instead of table salt.
In addition to sodium chloride, sea salt also contains potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, ferric, iodine, and many other essential micronutrients.
12. Cook vegetables in boiling water.
When you want to cook vegetables, it’s better to place them into boiling water rather than cold to preserve more nutrients and vitamins.
13. Steam vegetables.
Steaming is the healthiest and easiest way to cook vegetables. If you don’t have a strong need to boil your vegetables (for a soup, for example), it’s better to steam them. Nowadays you can easily find cooking devices that will help you steam food.
14. Freeze broth.
Use ice molds to freeze broth. Then you can drop a couple of cubes in any dish to add rich flavor to your food. What’s more, you can use it for frying as we’ve already said.
15. Do not forget to add spices.
Spices and herbs not only flavor any dish, they are also very good for your health. Add your favorite spices to all the dishes to boost your immune system.
16. Eat more nuts.
Do not hesitate about adding ground nuts to any vegetable and meat dishes — this is a perfect combination. Nuts are a source of omega-3 fatty acids which are exactly what we need.
17. Low-fat salads are delicious and healthy.
To make a vegetable salad more nourishing, add any low-fat cheese such as feta.
18. Eat salad greens.
Salad greens are full of benefits and antioxidants. Add chopped greens to your dishes to make them spicy and beneficial.
19. Combine different kinds of flour.
Even pastries can become healthier if you use oat, buckwheat or other kinds of flour instead of wheat flour. It will also improve the flavor of your pastries.
20. Use whole wheat flour.
Whole wheat flour is much better for your health than wheat flour. Master some recipes including this ingredient. Maybe you won’t do it in a day, but it is worth trying.
21. When baking, use fruit puree instead of butter.
If you often delight your family with delicious cakes, use fruit puree instead of the butter. It will make your desserts less fatty and unhealthy. The best variants are apple or pumpkin purees.
22. Eat less sugar.
Sugar is the most dangerous enemy of our health and beauty. Try to eat it as little as possible. You can use a pinch of stevia or dried fruit when baking.
23. Replace butter with oil.
Try to use such delicate and flavored oils as almond or coconut oils. They go perfectly with pastries and other desserts.
24. Buy a multicooker or convection oven.
Modern kitchen devices give us the opportunity to cook with a minimal amount of oil. What’s more, you can adjust the temperature to avoid carcinogens occurring.
25. Eat dark chocolate.
Eat chocolate containing 70% of cocoa or more. It boosts your brain and improves the immune and cardiovascular systems.
26. Cook in cast iron cookware.
Cast iron pans and skillets are the best for cooking. Cast iron gives off no dangerous elements unlike some other cookware materials.
27. Drink lemon green tea.
Green tea is rich in antioxidants, and lemon helps our bodies digest them better. So do not forget to drop a lemon slice in your cup of tea.
28. Life hack aromas.
If it’s too late in the evening but you crave a piece of dessert so much, remember about the great power of aromas. For example, vanilla will stop you from eating sweets.
29. Buy small plates and bowls.
They won’t let you eat more than you need. The usual portion of an average adult is a handful.
30. Eat bananas and milk.
Bananas and milk are a very delicious and healthy combination that will help you strengthen your bones. Blend the ingredients to make a smoothie. You can also add some rolled oats to make it more nourishing.
31. Marinate meat in honey.
Forget about your usual pickles and sauces and try making honey meat. It’s sweet, delicate, and crunchy. Of course, this dish is quite high in calories.
32. Check fish is fresh before cooking.
To do this, drop the fish into a deep bowl of water. If it sinks, you can cook it with no doubt. But if it comes to the surface, you’d better throw it away.
33. Follow the split meal approach.
Doctors and nutritionists agree on the point that we should have small split meals 5 or 6 times a day. A balanced menu consists of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and two healthy snacks between them.
34. Eat slowly.
When you eat slowly and chew the food thoroughly, your stomach has time to send the signal to your brain that it is full.
35. Eat fish with red wine.
Dry red wine goes with redfish very well. It helps the fish reveal its flavor and boosts its beneficial impact on your cardiovascular system.
36. Preserve your coffee beans from losing their aroma.
Sometimes we need a cup of flavorful and refreshing coffee in the morning. If your coffee beans have lost their aroma, try leaving them in cold water for 1.5 or 2 hours.
37. Keep your vegetables fresh for a longer period.
To keep your vegetables fresh and healthy, place them on paper towels in the fridge. They will soak up extra water and preserve the vegetables from decaying.
38. Avoid unnecessary calories.
Try not to eat simple carbohydrates contained in pastries, sweets, fast food, and other unhealthy products. They only give you extra calories and imagined fullness. Eat complex carbs instead such as grain, whole wheat pasta, and other products.
39. Do not combine tomatoes and cucumbers.
It’s one of the most popular salad combinations, but it’s not healthy at all. Cucumbers contain a ferment that destructs ascorbic acid (vitamin C) contained in tomatoes.
40. Eat spicy food sometimes.
Season your dishes with such spices as red pepper, garlic, paprika, or chili. They will boost your metabolism and digestion.
41. Eat raw fruit and vegetables.
They are much better for your health than heat-treated ones. They also contain a lot of cellulose that improves our digestion system and absorbs toxic elements.
42. Drink more water.
An adult should drink 1.5 — 2 liters of water every day. Drink enough to boost your metabolism, clean the organisms, and keep looking your best. Avoid dehydration of your organisms!
43. Eat seasonal vegetables and fruit.
Buy vegetables and fruits when they are in season. During this period they contain the largest amount of vitamins and micronutrients.
44. Have a meal 3 or 4 hours before going to bed.
Your body should rest at night, therefore try not to overload your stomach with food that is hard to digest. 3 or 4 hours will be enough for your stomach to digest dinner and be ready for sleep.
45. Cook grain with green tea.
Did you know that grain can be cooked not only with water or milk? Try making different grain with green tea. Drop a teabag into a pan of boiling water or use a 1:1 ratio of water and green tea. You will be very amused!
46. Eat red meat with avocado.
This vitamin-packed product will add a new flavor to your usual meat dish. With it, your meal will become much lighter and healthier.
47. Season broccoli with mustard.
Broccoli is greatly packed with vitamin B, and mustard will help you digest it much better.
48. Make smoothies.
Smoothies are the simplest way to get a daily portion of vitamins and supplements. Use your imagination to create yummy and healthy smoothies. You can use milk or natural yogurt as the base and add any vegetables and fruit you like.
49. Freeze vegetables.
Frozen vegetables retain a great part of the vitamins and minerals fresh vegetables contain. You can keep them in the freezer for quite a long period.
50. Look for healthy sugar substitutes.
You should use healthy sweeteners instead of sugar, for example honey. But try not to heat it up, because honey loses all its benefits under high temperatures. So do not add it to your cup of hot tea.