Low and lower carb ways of eating

[NulloModo]

This is meant to be a companion thread to the quite popular 'Weight Watchers' thread that we have going on in this same forum.

I realize that there are a good number of us who are currently eating, or who have at one point, or who may be considering, going onto a low-carb weight management plan. This thread is to share some ideas for tasty things to cook, talk about the various challenges of low-carb cooking and how to surmount them, and to just generally keep a running dialogue open about it so that we can all learn together.

This thread is not meant as a discussion of the pros and cons of low-carb eating, and I would prefer it if it did not turn into such.

So, what are we all cooking/eating lately?

I'll start:

Last night I decided to try Black Soybeans for the first time. I have had a serious hankering for chili, and I really enjoy my chili better with beans, so I picked up a can at the grocery store. At only 1 net carb per serving, I figured I could easily add them in, and hopefully the flavor would be good.

As with most of my one pot cooking, there was no defined recipe, but it involved cubed chuck, whole cumin seeds (instead of ground, gave it a more subtle flavor I think), chipotle powder, green chiles, a couple tomatos, onion, and garlic, as well as the can of black soybeans. Not really authentic by any stretch of the imagination, but it hit the spot, and I have to say I was impressed by the soybeans. They don't have quite the texture of pintos, but the flavor is very good, at least for such busy dishes. Perhaps I will try to refry a can of them at some point and see how they stand solo.

So, let's open the floodgates and start to share :).

[Gifted Gourmet]

thread with even more great diet ideas while cooking!

[FL Heat]

The boyfriend & I have been using the South Beach plan for several months (he's lost 27 pounds, I've lost 12). I feel a little out of place, as I don't really find it "low-carb"; but rather low-processed-foods. . . .but the advantage of having fairly free reign with olive oil keeps my recipes pretty firmly out of the Weight Watchers camp.

I'm glad to hear black soybeans taste okay in chili--a low-fat version of chili is a once-a-week-for-dinner-and-leftovers-with-lunches staple in our house. I vary between ground white meat chicken, ground veal, ground sirloin, and ground turkey (depends on what's on sale at the meat market), and pick whatever beans happen to be in the cabinet.

Side dishes have so far been the downfall. Lots of green beans (thank goodness for the ways to cook green beans thread), lots of snow peas, lots of salads.

Diana

[NulloModo]

Interesting. I am on Atkins myself, so I don't know all of the details about South Beach, but I would be interested in learning more.

I didn't specifically set out to make my chili low-fat, but the only fat that went in was the fat on the beef, so it is probably not that high. I originally wanted to do a white chicken chili, but the grocery store had chicken thighs all the way up at $4 a lb, and breasts at $6 a lb, so, there was no way I was going to pay that for chicken, and some of the manager's special stew beef thus became the star ingredient and the chili turned red.

I actually just finished having a bit of the leftovers for my lunch, and I think it was better after sitting overnight, the flavors melded a bit. The beans were a little firmer than I would prefer, but I could've just perhaps not cooked them long enough, I am new with working with Soybeans.

[FL Heat]

South Beach has a two-week "induction" period, but it's called Phase 1. Basically, the theory is that a lot of weight gain & cravings are caused by the spikes in blood sugar brought on by certain foods. . .so for two weeks, NONE of these foods (which, in my one raging problem with the diet, means no fruit). The first two weeks are primarily vegetables of the higher-fiber and lower-calorie sort, low-fat dairy, lean meats. No sugar, no corn syrup, no flour.

After those two weeks, things open up a bit. There are still a few fruits he says to stay away from (pineapple, watermelon), and the recommendations stay in place for low-fat dairy and protein sources. Brown rice & whole-wheat pasta are okay once in a while, and whole grain bread-type stuff appears as an option (pitas, wraps, crispy crackers).

Overall, it's been relatively easy, as I'm not a big fan of processed foods and like to cook based on what's at the market. It's been fun making the main dish all kinds of different ways, as well as having friends be pleasantly surprised when they visit and eat per our diet without really noticing.

Splenda's not my friend, though. So much belly disturbance. Some friends of ours have tried it, and I always give this caveat: if you won't cook, you won't be able to stick to the diet. Sure 'nuff, the ones who don't/won't cook find it incredibly boring and difficult.

Are there any staples that have helped you stay with the Atkins plan?

Diana

[RSincere]

I did Atkins for 9 months, was in ketosis the whole time, kept under 23 carbs daily, and lost a total of two pounds. However, believe it or not, that's awesome for me, because I am on several heavy-duty meds that cause weight gain. So just stopping the gain is a huge benefit to me.

Anyway, on those days I just couldn't cook, I loved the frozen boxed TGIF buffalo wings. They are supposedly appetizers, but you can eat the whole box for a meal and it's 300 calories and 3 grams carbs. Add some greens and dressing and it's a great light meal. Definitely one of my staples!

[NulloModo]

The Atkins induction sounds similar to the South Beach phase 1, but Atkins does not have the requirement of sticking with unsaturated fats or lean meats, anything there is fair game, but the principles are the same, control blood sugar, control cravings, control appetite, etc.

As far as staples? I don't find myself eating any particular foods to the point where I would say my diet is entirely made up of them. Almost all non-starchy vegetables are allowed on Atkins, and once you get into the later stages of the second phase (I know that sounds confusing, but the second phase of Atkins, called OWL, has 8 stages, each allows you certain new foods and more carb intake, which you add in gradually as you get closer to your ideal weight that you will level off on) almost all fruits, berries, nuts, and etc are allowed in moderation as well, as well as certain starchy veggies as special treats.

I find myself eating lots of mushrooms, dark leafy greens, chile peppers, onions and non starchy root veggies, and just whatever looks interesting. I at currently on the very last bit of the second phase, and really am about to transition to the third stage (pre-maintenance) to ease through my last 7-8 lbs before I settle into my goal weight. I don't really care for fruit or berries most of the time, so I don't eat a whole lot of them, but I love vegetables, so I try all manner of preparations. I have found that many Indian and Asian recipes work great even with vegetable substitutions. I am also at the point where I should be adding more grains and legumes into my diet, and will most likely be doing that in the coming week, find out what works for me, what doesn't, what I like, etc.

[ronnie_suburban]

Great thread Nullo!

FYI, here is a link to a related thread, which may be of some use. I started it earlier this year...

My secret ingredient for low-carb cooking

=R=

[NulloModo]

Yes, GG linked that up earlier, those cabbage rolls look great, I will have to keep that in mind next time I try them. I actually used the inside of the cabbage (the leaves that were too small to become rolls themselves) all chopped up and spiced as the bulk filler last time I tried.

I'm hoping we can keep this as perpetual as the WW thread, and I'm looking forward to getting lots of great dinner ideas as well ;).

[FL Heat]

Well, I didn't make it (because the meat market's is SO good), but our dinner tonight is chicken stuffed with crab meat. I dunno what they do to the crab, but good golly, it's DELICIOUS. The chicken is wrapped around it and seasoned on the outside, and then it bakes in the oven. Their directions recommend using a thin sheet of wine or butter on the bottom of the pan, but I've found using vegetable broth gives a flavor I like better. It'll be with a salad with little tiny shrimp and a lemony vinaigrette.

I'd love some other ideas, too. (I have made the poulet au vinegar from the EGullet recipes, and it's awfully, awfully good)

Diana

[BobW]

I, too, have been swept into the low carb craze. However, I still have occasional cravings for sweet stuff.

I've found a very good chocolate bar (sort of). It's Ross Dark Chocolate.

The good news:

It tastes EXCELLENT.

The bad news:

It gives me severe gas and diarrhea.

I believe that the problem is in the ingredient Maltitol.

Anyone else had similar results (no need to go into the details, though).

Bob

[ronnie_suburban]

I believe that the problem is in the ingredient Maltitol.

My lc friends and I refer to this condition as malitosis.

=R=

[FL Heat]

Malitol. Yes indeedy. It's not fun to find out the first time just what it does to your innards.

Diana

[Allura]

I, too, have been swept into the low carb craze. However, I still have occasional cravings for sweet stuff.

For chocolate, I go for a chunk of Valhrona 70% dark. For ice cream, Dove makes mini chocolate covered ice cream bars (dk with chocolate, dk with cherry, or milk with vanilla). They're 6 or 8g of carb each. I eat 1 or 2. I'd prefer a small amount of something "real" to a larger amount of "low carb product". YMMV, esp since I'm not following a specific diet.

[NulloModo]

I love the russel stovers low-carb toffee squares, but I was never a chocolate snob, dark hersheys always did it for me before. Honestly the Malitol effects can be somewhat welcome to counteract the other low-carb effects sometimes ;).

So there is no breading in the crab mixture? That is big prob I have with most places that do crab stuffed things, it is almost always a crab mixture with bread crumbs and sugar added...

[FL Heat]

No breading, I've asked. Actually, the place (scroll down to "Grade A Poultry") has about 20 different stuffed chicken breast thingies, these are just the ones I like the best. There's a light breading on the outside, but it's easy to dust off once they're thawed.

I'll see if I can figure out what all's in it tonight and report back, Captain CarbNot! *sharp salute*

(they also sell the chicken breast already pounded out thin, which is what they use for the "stuffed" chicken things, so I cheat a lot when people come over, because if you buy it already all thin, it's really easy to set up a stuff & roll assembly line)

I like the Russell Stover sugar-free peanut butter cups, but gosh darn it, so do all the diabetics around here, I swear! I saw an elderly woman shopping the other day who took all 6 packages off the hanger-thing. The Reese's sugar-free peanut butter cups are okay, but something about the Russell Stover ones taste better.

And there's so few in a bag that the malitosis doesn't show up.

Diana

EDIT for the stuffing contents:

Copious amounts of green bell peppers, red bell peppers, onions. Fair amount of crab meat. Dill, oregano. Nutty cheese, parmesan or romano.

Edited September 2, 2004 by FL Heat (log)

[purplewiz]

We've been on a "roll your own" reduced carb diet (as opposed to "low carb") for going on a year. I'm also an inveterate chocoholic - I've told my doctor if it's give up chocolate or die early, well, it's been a nice life. My current favorite is Lindt 85% cocoa solids - 4 large squares are only 8 grams, and one square is usually enough. I have yet to find a "sugar free" chocolate I like - they all taste fake or waxy to me. I think I just don't like maltitol. Like the previous poster, I'd rather have a little real chocolate than lots of the other.

I've also been using a lot of radishes - in salads, freshly pickled, smashed radishes, sauteed. When I was growing up, radishes were only eaten on sliced on a tossed green salad, and it's been a great deal of fun exploring other possibilities.

This has been one of the unexpected benefits of changing how we eat - basically being forced to look beyond the obvious and experiment. We've found all kinds of new preparations and new foods we really like that we simply wouldn't have thought of otherwise.

Marcia.

[NulloModo]

Hmm, I have heard a couple references to radishes used in a 'home-fry' style preparation, supposedly they can taste a lot like potatoes. Have you ever done this? I might be interesting in trying ot myself, but I have never experimented much with radishes. I would be very interested in if they change texture much, i.e., soften up a bit like a potato would when cooked.

[purplewiz]

I would be very interested in if they change texture much, i.e., soften up a bit like a potato would when cooked.

The radishes did indeed soften and become much less peppery in the sautee last night (snow peas, radishes cut in about sixths, tossed with some butter/evoo, then dressed with a dash of sesame oil and soy). In fact, in retrospect, they didn't taste like you'd expect radishes to at all - they worked nicely, though. I'm thinking a home fry preparation could be really interesting.

Marcia.

[scott123]

For the low carbing chocoholic, there are an ever increasing number of options.

Firstly, there are some half decent bars that have arrived on the scene. The huge selling point of these, besides their excellent flavor/texture, is that they're sweetened with erythritol. Maltitol, besides being an unknown in terms laxation impact, is a huge question mark in other areas as well. For some people it causes a blood sugar spike, along with the ensuing cravings. For others it takes them out of ketosis and stalls them. And yet for some it's all of the above. With the exception of erythritol, sugar alcohols are a crapshoot. Erythritol, on the other hand, is digested in a completely different way. It is absorbed very quickly into the bloodstream (read: no journey through the intestines equals no laxation) where the body has no receptors to metabolize it. The vast majority of it ends up being urinated out. This translates into a miniscule carb and caloric impact.

Hershey's has recently come out with erythritol sweetened chocolate (Hershey's 1 Carb) and other than a small amount of polyglycitol syrup (bad), it has great ingredients and tastes good. ZCarb is equally as good and that doesn't have the polyglycitol.

The second path one can take is of the DIY variety. Thanks to the pioneering low carbers before us, there is a tremendous amount of chocolate confection making knowledge at our fingertips. Our ancestors had to learn the hard way that splenda by itself in chocolate doesn't work that well. That unsweetened chocolate needs cocoa butter (and milk powder) to become milk chocolate. That combining sweeteners generates a synergistic boost, resulting in less overall sweeteners being used. Less sweeteners equals less aftertaste. Two years ago, none of this was known.

Whether your doing your own thing or following an established program, you really won't get the benefits of low carbing by consuming an occasional small amount of sugar and knocking yourself out of ketosis. Find a halfway decent commercial product or make something yourself. If you're going to do it, do it right.

[purplewiz]

Whether your doing your own thing or following an established program, you really won't get the benefits of low carbing by consuming an occasional small amount of sugar and knocking yourself out of ketosis. Find a halfway decent commercial product or make something yourself. If you're going to do it, do it right.

I guess I need to ask the question: is this thread only for the very low carb diets that result in ketosis, or for any diet that is markedly reduced in carbohydrates from the standard American diet?

If it's the former, I'll bow out quietly, because I've never been in ketosis and I won't be in the future - this is on doctor's orders, the same doctor who recommended drastically reducing my carbohydrate intake. This is in no way meant to cast any aspersions on those who are following a diet which includes ketosis -my being medically forbidden to do so is due to other personal physiological reasons.

However, I have a number of friends who are on Atkins, South Beach, etc., and I've found we do share a lot of the same challenges - and a lot of recipes. But I really don't want to cause any problems.

Marcia.

[scott123]

Marcia, I have to admit that I have a hard time visualizing the benefits one would receive from a reduced carb diet without ketosis.

Ending binging/mood swings, permanent weight loss, improved triglycerides, improved cholesteral, suppressed appetite, increased metabolism, conserved lean body mass...

These are all benefits I associate with ketosis. However, just because I can't see the benefits from a non ketogenic reduced carb diet, doesn't meant they don't exist. It may just mean I have to look a little harder.

Low carb is a big umbrella. And, in your own way, you are under it. Please don't let my zealotry prevent you from sharing your reduced carb cooking experiences with us. I have no doubt that you have something valuable to contribute to this discussion.

Edited September 2, 2004 by scott123 (log)

[helenjp]

OK, so I'll come out of the opposite corner then...

I couldn't imagine (for me) a longterm diet that *did* involve ketosis!

A friend suggested Sugarbusters to me about 18 months ago, because I was ill and depressed after a period of intense physical and mental stress. The emphasis on moderate but not ultra-low carbohydrates, choice of lower processed foods, and emphasis on no added sugar, but no restriction on naturally occurring lactic or fruit sugars (except limiting the very sweetest fruits) made this a diet that I could follow easily in Japan.

On the other hand, the emphasis on no added sugar and unrefined foods makes this diet a hard one for people who don't like to cook.

I had kidney stones for no obvious reason in my 20s, and my mother and grandmother had gallstones, so a very high protein/high fat diet really scares me. I can see that Atkins works fine for lots of people, but a more moderate approach is also successful - I've kept off almost all the weight I lost initially, and still plan to lose a bit more.

What are my staple foods? Brown rice is also fairly high on the GI (glycemic index), my starchy foods are usually sweet potatoes (a great choice in Japan), weirdo grains like barnyard grass (hie in Japanese) and Job's tears (hato-mugi, ultra-low GI but needs thorough soaking and cooking), sometimes amaranth, often oats (especially whole-grain rolled oats - yum!). Many Japanese low-carbers eat spaghetti al dente in small helpings, but I more often have beanthread vermicelli, or 100% buckwheat soba noodles.

I make my own whole wheat bread, and when I had a sourdough going, it kept moist even better than regular yeast-baked bread. Although whole wheat wraps can't be found in Japan, I count regular wraps as a good alternative, especially as they are much chewier than sandwich bread or buns.

I eat homemade yogurt and yogurt cheese more than milk. Fish. especially oily sea fish like sardines or mackerel, is very successful on this diet. I try not to eat meat more than once a day, but I'm also a bit allergic to most beans, especially soybeans. Fermented beans like natto or tempeh are a great option for me, and tempeh is very quick to fix for a packed lunch. Nuts and seeds are a handy alternative to beans or meat too.

Condiments...Japan's sweet/salty cooking had me puzzled, until I substituted sweet rice wine (mirin, reputed to have a much lower GI than sake or sugar) and even vinegar for the sugar. Vinegar cooks away to a very faint sweetness.

Chocolate - not a problem. Red wine, on the other hand...

[NulloModo]

Helen -

So sugarbusters forbids red wine? I didn't realize there was much of a low-carb movement in Japan, I would've figured it would be relatively hard for it to catch on in Asia. Could you tell us more about these Job's Tears? Are they known as something different, or even availible, in the US?

Regarding Ketosis:

It is my understanding that South Beach does not keep one in ketosis, and neither does Montignac, and both seem to be plans some people lose weight on. I think you can realize some of the benefits of a low-carb plan witout the ketogenic state being induced, such as more controlled blood sugar, less cravings, and at least really thinking about what you are eating, cutting out snacking on junk food, etc. There have been a lot of studies about the effects of ketosis though, and while so far the view is that there is no harm for your body to be in it, even for very long periods of time, that it can cause issues for some people who already have known kidney/gall-bladder issues. For those who have healthy internal organs though, no dangers or risks have been shown, everything continues to work the way it should with no undue stress.

[FL Heat]

South Beach does not keep you in ketosis, you're correct, Nullo.

The control of cravings and putting thought behind what you put in your mouth have been the two best aspects of this plan for me. For my boyfriend, it's definitely been cutting back on processed (vending machine) foods that's spurred his weight loss. Well, and it helps that I pack his lunch for him and cook dinner every day, as well as answer the phone when he calls in a panic, "We're at Hooters! What can I eat?"

Soba/buckwheat noodles have become a once-a-week treat for us--I love them under a stir fry or really any otherwise plain dish.

What about breakfast? I'm not a fan of the way eggs smell in the morning (I know it's weird, I can't help it), and find myself at a bit of a loss to find much else to eat other than hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh-fiber cereals (Kashi Good Friends, I'm looking at you). And my smoothie--frozen cherries, vanilla soy milk, and sugar-free cherry vanilla yogurt.

I've tried tomatoes with cheese, warmed under the broiler. Any other thoughts for warm breakfasts that don't include eggs?

Diana