If you want to start eating healthier, you could banish sugar from your diet and trade your roast beef for a tofu turkey. Or you could make some changes you will actually stick with, ones that do not require a radical change in lifestyle.
Whether you are trying to improve your fitness level, shed a few pounds or just feel better about yourself and your body, cooking healthier food is always a good place to start. The good news is you do not have to change a lot to feel a lot better, not when there are such easy hacks available by kindseeds. You probably have the makings of these easy cooking hacks in your own pantry or cupboard, and here are some ideas to get you started.
Substitute Plain Yogurt for Sour Cream
Whether you are baking a cake or topping a baked potato, sour cream has a rich and indulgent flavor – and plenty of fat and calories. Substituting plain yogurt for sour cream in your recipes will enhance the nutrition of your dishes while slashing the number of calories and amount of fat.
Plain yogurt has the same consistency as sour cream, making it a perfect substitute for that less healthy ingredient. As you try it out, you will probably find all kinds of substitutions, so you can make your favorite meals even better.
Use Rolled Oats in Place of Breadcrumbs
If your favorite recipe calls for breading, you can put away the bread crumbs and make a healthier substitution. Commercial bread crumbs are full of unhealthy ingredients and harmful preservatives, so making your own bread just makes healthy sense.
Chef Will Made it shares that rolled oats are the perfect substitute for bread crumbs, and a more affordable one at that. If you do not have any rolled oats on hand, you can use your food processor to crush bran cereal instead. The extra fiber will do your body good, and your guests will never know the difference.
Swap Applesauce for Butter and Shortening
If you want your baked goods to be healthier, try swapping applesauce for the butter, margarine or shortening. You cannot make a full substitution here, but cutting the margarine, butter or shortening measurement in half and swapping in applesauce will give you the same rich taste for far fewer calories and fat.
You can play around with this substation and try it out in all your favorite recipes. Over time, you will get a feel for which recipes are most conducive to the swap, so you can indulge your sweet tooth without the guilt.
Pile on the Poultry
If you love a thick juicy burger but not the fat, just pile on the poultry. Ground turkey and chicken are wonderful substitutes for fattier ground beef, and you can make the substitution in nearly all of your favorite recipes.
You can even shape those packs of ground turkey and chicken into patties and grill them up at the next backyard barbecue. If you prefer, you can add a bit of ground beef for a bit more flavor, but no matter how you do it you will be eating a lot healthier.
You do not have to make a huge change to enjoy a healthier lifestyle. With a few simple cooking hacks, you can upgrade all your recipes, giving your family the flavorful meals they crave while enhancing the nutrition and cutting the calories and fat.
About Chef Will Made It
Chef Will Made It is a friendly, enthusiastic Chef with 15 years of specialization in high volume fine dining and a lifetime of experience making delicious home cooked meals. He loves how cooking enables him to express himself and has become a well recognized figure in the culinary world with over 20,000,000 views on Youtube and 3 highly-anticipated cookbooks in production.
Chef Will Made It provides his private chef services to a-list celebrity families, famous athletes, and movie stars in Southern California and around the world. He loves taking pleasure in the smiles and happiness of people enjoying the meals he has created. As a natural leader, Chef Will Made It is a reliable team player and has a proven track record of making great food that entices his diners and leaves them wanting more.
For more information, follow Chef Will Made It on social media via the links below or join his growing fan club family for sneak peaks of his favorite seasonal and holiday recipes and for more updates.