Ideas for extremely low sodium diet?!


Question:

Ideas for extremely low sodium diet?

Hi, have a bit of a medical problem and must eliminate salt/sodium almost entirely from my diet. I LOVE salty foods, what can I replace it with that will be satisfying? Even bread and cheese and some vegetables have tons of sodium!

I also need to be careful about cholesterol...


Answers: Think about a lot of creative salads. Try a salad with romaine lettuce, diced and seeded tomatoes, diced/peeled/seeded english cucumber, yellow corn, black beans, and some grilled chicken marinaded in honey and lime juice. Top with a lime-cilantro dressing. (Make yourself to make sure there is no sodium.)

A lot of the things that are high in sodium are only high because of preservatives. Try roasting your own turkey for a turkey sandwich or making your own sauces/dressings for things rather than using bottled ones. Also, if you get FRESH ingredients from a gourmet market, they are more likely to have lower sodium than packaged ingredients. As for bread, get fresh baked bread rather than packaged bread. As for cheese, get whole blocks of cheese that is vacuum sealed. Those cheeses have much less preservatives than sliced/shredded/cubed cheeses. Avoid mediterranean cheeses as they use a lot of salt in the cooking process.

If you NEED to use salt in a dish that you are cooking, try using a coarse sea salt or kosher salt. You can use a lot less of it and still get a salty flavor. MEATLOAF

2 1/2 to 3 lb. lean ground turkey
4 oz. (1 carton) thawed Eggbeaters (regular, with cheese or omelette)
1 (8 oz.) pkg. Quaker instant oatmeal, maple flavored or 1 c. (8 oz.) Maypo instant cereal
1 (1.5 oz.) meatloaf seasoning mix (omit if on salt restricted diet)
1 c. seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 to 1 c. Lactaid milk
1/3 c. vegetable flakes
1/4 c. low cal, no sodium, lite syrup or 1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. shredded lowfat cheese
1/4 c. freeze-dried mushrooms, crushed into bits
1/2 tbsp. garlic powder
1/2 tbsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. paprika
1 tbsp. Mrs. Dash "Table Blend"
Pam

May substitute up to 1 to 1 1/2 pounds ground chuck or sirloin.
Crumble meat into large mixing bowl. Add dry ingredients, egg, cheese, milk and syrup or honey. Mix thoroughly. Mixture should be very moist, but not soupy. Pour into loaf pan which has been sprayed with Pam or non-stick, no cholesterol cooking spray.

Bake at 375 degrees for 45-55 minutes until golden brown and sides have pulled away from pan. Use toothpick to test for doneness. Drain any excess fat. Let cool 5-10 minutes before slicing. Serve with Mandarin Orange/Spinach Salad, Creamy Cheesy Macaroni and Lemon Buttered Carrots.

or

HEALTHY CHICKEN

4 chicken breasts, skinned, boned and halved
1/2 c. onions, sliced
1/2 to 1 c. sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 c. diet 7-Up
3/4 c. plain non-fat yogurt
2 tsp. grated lemon peel

Brown chicken breasts in a pan sprayed with Pam. Add and saute onions and mushrooms. Mix together broth, 7-Up, yogurt and lemon peel and pour over chicken. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

or

STUFFED FISH FILLETS WITH NUTMEG SAUCE

2 tbsp. diet butter
1 green onion, chopped
1/3 c. coarsely grated carrots
1/2 c. cooked brown rice
1 tsp. grated lemon rind
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon juice
4 sm. flounder, sole or white fish fillets
4 tsp. flour
3/4 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1/8 tsp. white or black pepper
1/4 c. dry white wine
1 tbsp. minced parsley
Lemon wedges (opt.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a heavy skillet melt half of the butter. Add green onion and carrots. Cook until tender. Stir in the rice and half of the lemon rind, lemon juice, nutmeg and black pepper. Add the salt. Sprinkle the fillets with remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Place 1/4 of the rice mix on half of each fillet and gently pack to compress. Fold other half of fillet over filling and pin ends together with wooden toothpicks. Bake fish in lightly greased 8 x 8 x 2 inch baking pan for 25 to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare sauce. Melt remaining butter in small heavy saucepan. Blend in flour and cook 3 to 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and the remaining lemon rind, lemon juice, nutmeg and white pepper. Cook, stirring constantly until thickened and smooth. Stir in wine and parsley. Transfer fish to platter. Serve with the sauce. Serves 4. Avoid every thing that contains salt. Make habit of adding salt on the top. Angel's Hair Pasta with Lemon and Pine Nuts
Prep: 5 min, Marinate: 10 min, Cook: 5 min.

* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. garlic cloves, minced
* 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 1 Tbs. lemon zest
* 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley
* 1/2 lb. fresh angel's hair pasta

Heat oil in a heavy nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Sauté garlic 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly until softened. Transfer to a bowl. Add pine nuts to bowl, crushing them lightly with the back of a fork. Add next 3 ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. Cook pasta in a large pan of boiling water 2-3 minutes, or until tender. Drain and reserve 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Toss pasta and cooking liquid with nut mixture and serve.

Per serving: calories 342, fat 19.2g, 49% calories from fat, cholesterol 41mg, protein 9.0g, carbohydrates 35.2g, fiber 3.1g, sugar 2.5g, sodium 20mg, diet points 8.3.


Quick Rice with Greens and Tomatoes
Prep: 10 min, Cook: 15 min.

* 1 cup quick cooking rice
* 2 tsp. olive oil
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 4 cups kale or curly endive, finely chopped
* 1-3/4 lbs. plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
* 1/4 tsp. salt (optional), or to taste

Prepare rice according to package directions. Heat oil in a heavy nonstick skillet over medium heat. Sauté garlic 3 minutes or until golden. Stir in kale and tomatoes. Sauté another 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until kale is tender. Transfer to a bowl. Fluff rice with a fork and combine with tomato-kale mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Per serving: calories 187, fat 3.4g, 16% calories from fat, cholesterol 0mg, protein 5.3g, carbohydrates 35.8g, fiber 3.2g, sugar 7.3g, sodium 39mg, diet points 3.9.



Lemon Herb Beef Patties
Prep: 5 min, Cook: 10 min.

* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 3 Tbs. lemon or lime juice
* 2 Tbs. parsley, minced
* 1 lb. ground round, formed into 1 patty per serving

Prepare grill or turn on broiler. Combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Season beef patties with salt and pepper to taste. Grill or broil on broiler pan 4-5 minutes. Turn and drizzle with lemon mixture. Grill or broil another 4-5 minutes for medium done meat. Drizzle with any remaining lemon mixture.

Per serving: calories 270, fat 19.4g, 66% calories from fat, cholesterol 78mg, protein 21.4g, carbohydrates 1.4g, fiber 0.1g, sugar 0.4g, sodium 76mg, diet points 7.5.


Veggie Bean Sushi
Prep: 10 min, Cook: 15 min.

* 1 cup sushi rice, or medium grain rice
* 2 Tbs. rice vinegar or white vinegar
* 1 Tbs. sake or dry sherry
* 2 tsp. sugar
* 1 Tbs. grated lemon rind
* 3 Tbs. pine nuts or slivered almonds
* 2 tsp. dark sesame oil
* 1/2 cup snow peas, 1/4 inch diagonal slices
* 2 Tbs. fresh ginger root, minced
* 1 Tbs. water
* 1 lb. canned red beans, or light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
* 1/2 cup chopped seeded cucumber
* 2 green onions, with tops, thinly sliced
* 12 large Boston lettuce leaves, or leaf lettuce

Cook rice according to package directions. Heat vinegar, sake, sugar, and lemon rind in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar is melted, about 1 minute. Drizzle vinegar mixture over rice and toss.

While rice is cooking, cook pine nuts in sesame oil in small skillet over medium heat until toasted, about 2 minutes; remove from skillet. Add snow peas, ginger root and water to skillet; cook, covered, over medium heat until snow peas are crisp-tender, 2-3 minutes.

Stir pine nuts, snow peas, ginger root, beans, cucumber, and green onions into rice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm, or refrigerate and serve chilled. Spoon about 1/3 cup packed rice mixture onto each leaf and roll up.

Optional: If desired, add 3/4 lb. cooked finely chopped chicken or shrimp to the rice mixture.

Courtesy American Dry Bean Board.

Per serving: calories 381, fat 6.4g, 15% calories from fat, cholesterol 0mg, protein 12.4g, carbohydrates 68.0g, fiber 7.7g, sugar 10.1g, sodium 104mg, diet points 7.1.

Cool Salad with Sea Veggies
Prep: 15 min, plus chilling time.

* 2 avocados
* 1 tomato, seeded and chopped
* 1 lemon, juiced
* 1 lime, juiced
* 4 cloves garlic, pressed
* 2 cups red leaf lettuce, shredded
* 2 cups Romaine lettuce, shredded
* 1/2 cup hijiki
* 1 cup canned beets, grated
* 1 cup red cabbage, shredded
* 1 cup carrots, grated
* 1/2 cup radishes, sliced
* 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped, as garnish

Combine avocado pulp, tomato, citrus juices and garlic in a food processor. Purée. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste and chill. Mix lettuces together and place on plates as beds for the salad. Combine remaining vegetables and herbs. Place on top of lettuce and drizzle with dressing.

Per serving: calories 289, fat 21.5g, 60% calories from fat, cholesterol 0mg, protein 5.5g, carbohydrates 27.1g, fiber 12.0g, sugar 8.6g, sodium 117mg, diet points 5.7.

hope some of those help! use salt sense instead of salt.it is a substitute.
my mother in law has high blood pressure so i know.



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