Which African foods are low in calories?!
Which African foods are low in calories?
I’ll appreciate any information regarding West African (particularly Nigerian) foods and recipes that are low in calories and highly nutritious).
Answers:
I eat and prepare West African dishes frequently. My husband is from The Gambia and I grew up around many Nigerian and Ghanaian families. My favorite dishes are quite nutritious but as typically prepared, none of them are particularly low in calories, but here are some tips you can use to adapt West African recipes for a healthier diet.
1) Many of the dishes call for palm oil. Palm oil has a wonderful flavor, but it is loaded with saturated fat. If you use Palm Oil, add a small amount at the end of cooking for flavor rather than using it to cook with. A good substitute is olive oil mixed with tomato paste.
2) Don't fry meats before you add other ingredients. Many dishes like egusi soup (Nigeria), Yassa (Senegal), Groundnut stew aka Mafe (served all over West Africa), call for browning meats in large quantities of oil before adding other ingredients. You can reduce the fat by browning meat in the oven on a lightly oiled cookie sheet or by using far less oil than the recipes require.
3) Focus on the dishes that feature fish (e.g., Ceebu Jen) as the fish will have less cholesterol and saturated fat than the red meats. Also, if you are preparing a dish that combines multiple meats, increase the amount of fish and chicken relative to the red meat.
4) Increase the amount of greens called for in a recipe
5) Adopt the African style of serving fresh fruit for dessert.
I hope this all helps.