Inspiration? Low fat low fiber?

[quiet1]

Following my pre-Christmas illness, I am stuck on a low fat and low fiber diet for a few weeks while my stomach decides to stop being offended by the fact I got a virus. (I didn't even get food poisoning this time and it's made me extra paranoid in the kitchen, this whole experience is No Fun and I have it pretty mild.)

 

I am BORED. When I was feeling particularly bad I didn't care and just had chicken and rice or chicken and a skinless baked potato a lot, but now I am starting to feel better I'm also starting to feel like I will go nuts if I see one more bland plate of chicken and rice or noodles. But I can't think of anything else that I'd be allowed to eat on the diet. (I'm going to start having dreams about pizza soon, though.)

 

So, anyone have ideas/suggestions/good recipes that meet requirements that might get my brain going? The rules are low fat (lean meats, tiny amount of oil, etc. healthy fats like avocado are ok in moderation), low fiber (no whole grains, vegetables and fruits must be cooked to death and not full of indigestible stuff like seeds and skin), and no dairy. (Well, no lactose, so I cheat a little with like a small amount of Lactaid milk in pancakes and the like.) I'm sure there is plenty I can do that isn't chicken and rice, but I think there is sort of a 'don't think of a pink elephant' effect going on where all I can think of is all the tasty things I can't have.

[gfweb]

Don't see why you can't use garlic and salt and pepper at the very least.

[jayt90]

You haven't mentioned fish, which should be low in fiber, and oil, and easy to digest. 

There are lots of soy products as dairy or protein substitutes.  The only ones I use are tofu and Kirkland soy beverage, which tastes like slightly sweetened skim milk. I avoid almond milk because a huge amount of water is used in production.. 

Are eggs OK? Certainly egg whites, angel food cake, lemon merangue or banana based pie?  How about white bread with mayo and tuna? Sticky rice?  Pearl barley? Tomato soup...  squid...  mussels...

Edited February 6, 2017 by jayt90 (log)

[Smithy]

I echo the fish question.  Can you have smoked salmon, or even unsmoked salmon?  That's something I'd cheerfully live on for a time.  What about shellfish? Grilled or poached shrimp, for instance?

[chromedome]

Just FYI barley, even pearled, is quite high in fibre. 

[quiet1]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

I echo the fish question.  Can you have smoked salmon, or even unsmoked salmon?  That's something I'd cheerfully live on for a time.  What about shellfish? Grilled or poached shrimp, for instance?

 

I tend to leave off fish because I am quite fish inexperienced - I don't like salmon (it always has a weird aftertaste for me) and I'm allergic to shellfish, which means we don't go to fish restaurants much so I don't have a lot of opportunity to try other fish preparations. (With new stuff I often like to taste it first somewhere to get an idea of what it should be like so when I'm working at home I can adjust timing and so on as necessary, or have an idea of if a recipe would work or be awful.) Around here most places that have good fresh fish are seafood places and I know in theory they could watch for cross contamination, but in practice it seems like asking a bit much of the kitchen given how much shellfish is on the menu, so I just don't go to seafood places. One day they will have a magic pill for shellfish allergy and I will do a seafood tour.

 

With that said, I am open to suggestions for easy 'foolproof' fish recipes to try. I used to have one for tuna that involved marinating it in an olive oil based marinade then searing, but I lost it in a move. But I recall it came out nicely and was a little resilient to cooking times because of the marinade. (It wasn't greasy, just didn't get all dry if you blinked at the wrong moment and it got a little overdone.)

 

Garlic is okay in very moderate amounts, salt is fine, pepper again in moderate amounts (no cracked pepper crusted stuff), hot spices (chilies, etc.) are the same - a touch is okay it seems like, but anything actually spicy is out. Anything strongly acidic is mostly a no - basically I have to be super gentle to my stomach.

 

I did think tomatoes were out but I've found sources saying cooked tomatoes might be okay if they aren't too acidic, so I could try maybe a pasta sauce light on the garlic.

 

Eggs are okay-ish - if I do mostly egg white with like 1 yolk per omelette that is okay, but too many whole eggs is too much fat.

 

I'm also really missing texture since most stuff that gives you that nice fresh crunch is out. Maybe breadcrumbs? Though typically they have a fair bit of fat to get a good crunch, don't they?

[Smithy]

I think the crunch in breadcrumbs may come more from the browning of sugars and the dehydration under heat than from fats, but I may be mistaken.  Are nuts out? Otherwise, you might consider a light sprinkle of crushed nuts atop a dish for some crunch.

 

I wonder about citrus juice as a marinade or a poaching/baking liquid.  Lately I've been using orange juice (in my case tweaked with some lemon) as the foundation for the braising sauce or marinade for various meats and vegetables. This favorite recipe gives an idea of what I'm talking about: Citrus-Marinated Roast Chicken, from Fine Cooking. You'd need to adapt it to reduce the fat (at least), but it may give you some ideas.  I can promise you that the resulting sauce is not tart, but quite flavorful.

 

What about drizzling pomegranate juice or maple syrup over poultry before cooking, for a touch of different flavor? Would using a different poultry - turkey is easiest to find - expand your options?

 

I don't have a specific fish recipe that's foolproof to your tastes, but you might consider poaching fish in broth or wine instead of marinating it then searing. Poaching is a bit easier for the timing.

 

You mentioned rice and noodles. What about pototoes cooked in broth instead of oil or dairy?

[quiet1]

Per dinner thread, tonight was pasta with a chicken patty and a tiny amount of pesto. Stomach didn't care for something but I am inclined to suspect the chicken, not the pasta, as Cream of Wheat is consistently fine.

 

Any ideas for making pasta tastier without a lot of fat or acid or dairy?

[chromedome]

Do you make your own? If so, you could always introduce a puree or liquid in the dough. 

[Lisa Shock]

How about pancakes or crepes? Just use a vegan 'milk' substitute, and skip the butter.

 

Turkey is pretty low fat, you could make lowfat gravy for it as well.

 

Many recipes could be converted to use tofu instead of a fattier meat. Check out some vegetarian websites.

 

How about Japanese ramen with lots of stuff on top? Chinese congee can be fun, too.

 

There's also the world of rice noodles which are popular across Asia. You could take the shrimp, pork and veggies out of Singapore noodles and still have a fun side dish. -Or use marinated/baked tofu for a main dish.

 

Veganaise is available in a low fat version, with half the calories. Maybe this could be used sparingly on tuna sandwiches. That said, people who hate mayo somehow manage to eat tuna sandwiches, so there must be some sort of tasty low-fat method for making them -even if it's just putting tuna and a little salt on toast.

 

 

[quiet1]

2 hours ago, chromedome said:

Do you make your own? If so, you could always introduce a puree or liquid in the dough. 

 

Not up to that at the moment.

 

I wonder if there are any vegetable purees other than tomato that might add something, though. I'm sure the color would be alarming, but a bit of blended avocado might give a nice creaminess?

[quiet1]

18 minutes ago, Lisa Shock said:

How about pancakes or crepes? Just use a vegan 'milk' substitute, and skip the butter.

 

Turkey is pretty low fat, you could make lowfat gravy for it as well.

 

Many recipes could be converted to use tofu instead of a fattier meat. Check out some vegetarian websites.

 

How about Japanese ramen with lots of stuff on top? Chinese congee can be fun, too.

 

There's also the world of rice noodles which are popular across Asia. You could take the shrimp, pork and veggies out of Singapore noodles and still have a fun side dish. -Or use marinated/baked tofu for a main dish.

 

Veganaise is available in a low fat version, with half the calories. Maybe this could be used sparingly on tuna sandwiches. That said, people who hate mayo somehow manage to eat tuna sandwiches, so there must be some sort of tasty low-fat method for making them -even if it's just putting tuna and a little salt on toast.

 

 

 

I made pancakes with Lactaid (which is cheating a bit but seems to be ok) and those are pretty successful as an edible meal, although I'm sure I will get bored of them eventually. I could try waffles too I suppose. I need some kind of flavoring to add other than maple syrup. I have some Small Hands Raspberry Gum Syrup for the home bar, would using that as pancake syrup be too ridiculous?

 

My mom suggested making 'carrot cake' pancakes by adding some carrot purée to the mix, I might try that too.

 

(Pancakes are extra handy because it is easier to limit myself in portion size as I'm also supposed to be eating smaller meals more often and I'm usually a one big meal and some snacking kind of person. The pancakes I make usually reheat well in the toaster so I just plate a couple of small ones and then refrigerate the rest for a quick meal later.)

 

Tomorrow's planned experiment for dinner was going to be ground chicken stir-fried with fresh ginger, scallions, and a tiny sprinkle of diced water chestnuts for crunch, probably with rice, but we may be going to a hockey game instead. (Heck knows what I will eat there. Maybe I should try to smuggle in some cold pancakes...) But I was thinking sort of along the lines of a dumpling filling type flavor profile.

 

ETA: I want to thank everyone who has chimed in so far. This is really helping to get me thinking of stuff I CAN eat and how to be creative about the restrictions, instead of eyeballing pizza commercials mournfully and being sad about bacon. (And we don't even normally HAVE that much pizza or bacon!) So thanks a bunch.

Edited February 7, 2017 by quiet1 (log)

[ChocoMom]

I remember as a kid, my Mom would make "Porcupine Meatballs", where cooked rice was mixed into the ground meat, then formed into meatballs. I'm sure there was some sort of other binder like breadcrumbs and egg, too.  And, some dried herbs- basil, oregano, etc. And finely chopped onion. Once all the meatballs were in the pan, a tangy tomato sauce was poured over, and they were baked. Can't remember but they were most likely served with rice. 

 

For a low fat option, you could try using ground turkey instead of beef.  And, if you make a whole bunch, you can freeze some and just heat up a few as needed.  HTH.-Andrea

[blue_dolphin]

On 2/6/2017 at 7:44 AM, quiet1 said:

vegetables and fruits must be cooked to death

If the texture of the very well-cooked veg is off-putting, you might consider turning them into soup, using Gordon Ramsay's broccoli soup that was shared here a few years ago as a template.  You just cook the veg in salted water and purée it in the blender with the amount of cooking liquid that you choose.  I've done the same thing with a number of different vegetables and it's easy enough to whiz up just a single serving.  If you are cooking veg for others, just scoop theirs out and let yours cook a bit longer, as you need.

I like to finish off my bowl with a bit of goat cheese or a dollop of yogurt that would be out of bounds for you but you might add a sprinkle of smoked paprika and of course,  have it with a crisp slice of toasted ciabatta or sourdough.

[paulraphael]

Looking back on the evolution of my cooking over the last few years, I've noticed a lot of my newer recipes and techniques are low-fat or fat-free. The evolution hasn't been about diet; it's been about flavor. I've been finding that lower fat preparations can often have better flavor release, meaning brighter, more intense and direct flavors. Particularly in sauces. All my brown sauces of the last few years are fat-free or close to it, and they've never been better (of course they usually accompany a fatty piece of meat ... ).

 

I've been making lower fat desserts as well, using gums and fluid gels and a siphon to make whipped creams out of all kinds of things (almond milk, booze, etc.). 

 

I'd suggest bringing the lean meat to life with vibrant, stock-based sauces that are dairy-free and thickened to whatever consistency you like with modern thickeners.

[quiet1]

I have a bag of chicken parts in the freezer waiting to be turned into stock. Last time I did it in the slow cooker I ended up with super tasty stock, and this time I have the Instant Pot which will make even tastier stock if it performs the way my pressure cooker did in England. I may have to bite the bullet (I've been putting it off because it is a lot of work to prep everything and then put away the stock after and my energy is not what it could be) and get that done so I have a better base to work with. For tonight's potato experiment, in order to get chicken broth that had a nice strong taste, I actually used the broth from a container of matzoh ball soup from the deli. I'd rather eat that as soup, though.

 

Can you give an example of a sauce you'd make low fat or fat free? You mean like a pan sauce, or something more complicated?

 

I went to the local grocery store today - nothing in the way of edible looking fish unless you want it pre-breaded from the freezer (and to be honest I don't know how edible that is, you just can't see the fish so you can't tell) but I picked up a couple of jars of baby food to try adding to things for flavor and variety. (A single jar of apple and apricot purée is much easier to experiment with than making the purée from scratch first, is my theory.) I'm thinking pancakes for now, but hopefully I will be inspired.

 

Annoyingly, everyone who makes prepared foods is on the 'fiber is good for you' and 'look, we use Real Ingredients' trains right when I would really like a fiber-free not-actually-cheese-at-all packet of macaroni and cheese or something similar. Foo. 

[paulraphael]

It could be a pan sauce or not. If a pan sauce, if you deglaze with stock and some wine, maybe some added aromatics, and reduce quite a bit, and then thicken at the end with something that gives both good texture and good flavor release. I use a mix of 1:10 xanthan gum and arrowroot starch. You can make a slurry with this and whisk it in. Roughly a half teaspoon per cup of sauce. The starch needs to be heated to hydrate, but it only take a minute. This gives a creamy mouthfeel that doesn't mute flavors the way cream or butter would. 

 

For more constructed sauces, I make a coulis (basically an intense, thickened stock ... similar to classical demiglace, but better tasting). This used to be a big deal to make; now that the pressure cooker has come along to save the day, I just make a pressure cooker stock with a high ratio of solids to water. I thicken it with 0.3% lambda carrageenan and 0.1% xanthan gum (plus all the natural gelatin). This mix is a little trickier to use, since it has to be blended in to disperse, which makes an annoyingly stable foam. And it needs to be added after you've defatted the stock. So I make and strain the stock on one day, chill it overnight to let the fat separate, skim it off, and then blend in the gums. 

 

Then I put it on the stove again to simmer it lightly (you can use this opportunity to put in some additional parsley and other herbs) to let the air com out. Then you can chill it and portion it for the freezer, etc..

 

This can be used as the base for any kind of quick sauce ... use it to deglaze a pan, add reduced mushrooms and mushroom liquid, or reduced wine or fortified wines, etc. etc..

Edited February 8, 2017 by paulraphael (log)