Having a hearty appetite has long been perceived at Latino tables as the equivalent to “good health”. Seeing how large quantities of food disappear at family reunions has made countless generations of Latina matriarchs happy.
Food plays a key role in preserving Hispanic heritage and every family has special traditional recipes passed from one generation to the next. While many ingredients in traditional Latin food cooking are healthy, cooking methods that involve deep-frying or even refrying, are not. To make matters worse, acculturation results in lower consumption of the healthier ingredients in Latino diets: fruits, vegetables and legumes.
With weight-related health problems becoming more prominent among Hispanics, it is time to learn healthy cooking methods and to rediscover the benefits of traditional diets.
Adult Hispanics have higher obesity rates than non-Hispanic whites, but disparities are even greater at a younger age: 27 percent of Mexican American boys are obese compared to less than 17 percent of non-Hispanic white boys. These astounding figures are linked to the rise in chronic disease seen among Latinos in the United States. Obesity-related conditions include: heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and some types of cancer.
Latin food – the healthy way
-Switch to good fats
It is not only the amount, but also the type of fat that affects your health. Good unsaturated fat lowers the risk of heart disease and is found in vegetables, nuts, seeds and fish. Saturated and trans fat, which increase the risk of heart disease, are found in red meat, cheese, butter and processed foods made with partially hydrogenated oil.
Use soft margarine or, better yet, olive oil, a good source of unsaturated fat. For baking, a light olive oil or other vegetable oil such as canola or sunflower will do just fine.
Replace deep-frying in a skillet with “oven frying”: spray or brush oil lightly over the food, spread it out on a cooking sheet and bake in the oven.
-Select your carbohydrates
Vegetables, beans, grains and fruit, all of which are good carbohydrates, are packed with vitamins, minerals and other nutrients, and a good source of fiber. Fiber is known to protect us from heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Refined carbohydrates, such as white flour, rice and pasta are digested faster and cause blood sugar to spike. This is linked to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and weight gain.
– Increase the vegetable content in your recipes to make the dish instantly healthier.
– Choose fresh or frozen vegetables over canned, whenever possible.
– Rice, a staple in Latin food dishes, should be replaced with brown rice.
– Quinoa and amaranth are other whole grains packed with health benefits.
– Balance your carbs – in many Latin food traditions, we eat rice, potatoes and bread or pasta, for example, all in the same serving. Pick one, if any, refined carbohydrate and replace the other ones with a serving of veggies
-Choose poultry and lean meats
Red meat—beef, pork and lamb—used to be reserved for special occasions and should not be the primary source of protein. Bacon and other processed meats.
– Use less meat in your recipes, as a general rule, and select leaner cuts of beef to limit the content of saturated fat.
– Replace red meat with chicken or turkey; choose ground turkey over ground beef.
– Drain excess fat when cooking meat to lower cholesterol.
-Eat more fish and seafood
To reap the health benefits derived from cutting back on saturated fat, it must be replaced with good fat and not by eating more refined carbohydrates (white rice, mashed potatoes, pasta.). Fish and seafood are a healthy source of omega-3 fats.
– Fish and seafood recipes are great sources of animal protein and a healthy alternative for the main course.
– Experiment with different types of fish when you can’t find the one you need for a specific recipe.
-Cook it yourself
Only cooking from scratch gives you total control over the ingredients in your meal.
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