When you plan to go on a diet or want to start eating healthier, salads seem like the perfect lunch to shed some unwanted pounds. The problem with salads is they can easily deceive the most well meaning dieter.
They say they are salads -- in a way they are -- but not in the eating healthy sense that we associate with it. Just because it has salad in the name on the menu does not mean it is healthy.
Some of you might be saying that you know this already. Believe me when I tell you that some people don't know this or are in some way in denial about the whole salad situation. A taco salad may contain greens and some tomatoes but it also can have ground meat, lots of cheeses, tortilla chips and sour cream.
Salad dressings are another problem, they can sometimes be the same amount of calories as a fast-food meal. Instead of reaching for the ranch dressing which can contain 110 calories and 12 grams of fat per tablespoon, try and make your own salad dressing so you know exactly what your putting in your salad. You can do this when dining out, restaurants usually offer vinegar and oil as a dressing choice.
A few good ideas for a healthier salad:
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Stay away from salads that have meats or cheeses
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Spice up your salad with different greens like arugula or watercress, you won't miss those creamy dressings with all that flavor
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Make your own dressing using a small amount of extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar and some fresh ground pepper.
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If you buy a salad-to-go in a convenience store, compare the calorie content between the light salad dressing to the creamy dressings. I have seen differences of 200 calories or more
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Skip the croutons and put in some crunching veggies instead
If you want that taco salad then go at it but if you are trying to lose weight or eat healthier then thinking about what is going into your salad can make a huge difference.
1. Kudos to your expose on the wrong kinds of salads and dressings. But I take exception to your "ideal" dressings. Example, you tout red wine vinegar which contains yeast - a much better alternative is apple cider vinegar - hands down better! Extra virgin olive oil might be O.K. but a much better dressing is flaxseed oil ( full of lignans & omega 3's ) - and scientifically proven to shed pounds. You suggest black pepper? Please!! It contributes to inflammation & ultimate heart disease. There are so many other better spices: cumin, coriander, ginger, turmeric, mustard seed (not the jarred mustard), cayenne, rosemary, dill, garlic, cilantro, etc.
The "ultimate" healthy & weight loss dressings: squeezed fresh lemon ( fresh only), flaxseed oil, apple cider vinegar (organic preferred), plus any combo of the spices mentioned above.
Posted at 2:02PM on Mar 23rd 2007 by Sid Kurdis