What are some low sodium or sodium free vegan foods?!
Answers: Due to an inner ear disorder I have to limit my intake of sodium, what are some low sodium or sodium free vegan foods?
Sorry to hear about your health =(. I hear inner ear disorders are completely horrible.
Try not to exceed over 1500mg of sodium each day, since sodium is practically on everything I would suggest to not use salt at all and try to focus on lower sodium and homemade foods. Canned vegetables and beans are triple in sodium than un-canned ones. The same goes for fruits.
steamed vegetables?
Sodium is on everything -- good luck living in a hermetically sealed bag.
shop at wholefoods or traderjoes. You might have to do some cooking yourself cause a lot of off the shelf stuff already contains a lot of salt. Buy some: dried beans, lentils, potatoes, organic veggies: carrots, celery, white onion (the coulinary trinity), fresh or split peas, green beans, wholegrain bread, fresh soybeans, almonds, avocado oil, EVOO, various rices, carefull when buying anything in a package cause it might not be vegan especially if it says no sodium, cause that means the salt was chemically extracted. Avoid corn, seafood, pickled foods...if you have to eat salt try using seasalt.
My suggestion to you would be to cook your own vegan foods. That way you can control the amount of sodium (salt) you use in your food. You can also try using a salt substitute (sold in the same area of the market as regular salt).
A tasty idea would be to make a grilled Portabello mushroom sandwich on whole grain bread. I say whole grain bread because it's packed with fiber which is good (and necessary) for your digestive system. You should be eating 25-35 grams of fiber per day. Anyway, grill the mushroom with some olive oil (adds flavor and is heart healthy), pepper, and any seasonings you'd like. Then maybe you can add some bell peppers and anything else that sounds good to you.
If you want a good and healthy topping/dip, you could try making your own salsa in a food processor- chopped tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro, onion, lime juice, and pepper. Those ingredients are packed with flavor and nutrients without having to add a lot of salt for flavor.
For breakfast, you could do a fresh fruit smoothie with fresh fruit and soymilk.
Maybe make some vegetable stock and store it in your freezer for later use as stock has lots of uses- soups, sauces, etc.
If you like pasta, maybe you can do a pesto sauce over pasta- olive oil, fresh chopped basil, pinenuts, salt, pepper, etc. Or when I was in culinary arts class, I was a server at a catering event and for the vegans, we served a pasta with sundried tomatos.
There's lots of possibilities when you cook your own food- you don't have to cook fancy meals either. There's simple and quick foods you can cook that are full of flavor without extra sodium. You just have to be creative.
Oh, i'd also like to add that you don't necessarily have to buy expensive ingredients from specialty stores like Whole Foods or Trader Joes to get a good meal. Organic doesn't necessarily mean it's better. In my Nutrition issues and meal planning class last semester, one of the groups did research and a class presentation on Organic foods and they concluded that organic foods aren't necessarily any healthier/better for you. Our professor (who is a Registered Dietitian) also agreed. I remember them mentioning that organic fruits and vegetables are still treated with pesticides...yes the pesticides are natural (as opposed to synthetic pesticides) but even if you were to try to wash them off in your sink, you still can't wash it all off. Foods that are labeled "Organic" are more for marketing purposes to get consumers to spend more. Do some research if you'd like to find out more.
Also, salt is salt no matter what type it is, whether it be rock salt, sea salt, kosher salt, table salt, etc (chemically structured that is). The only difference is that sometimes iodine is added as a supplement to prevent goiters. So, choosing one kind of salt over another doesn't make a difference. Your digestive system will process it the same using the same enzymes.
grass or steamed dirt
It will not be easy to find sodium free. I think fruit is one