Healthy Cooking Techniques and Diabetes

Healthy Cooking Techniques and Diabetes

From: The Joslin Diabetes Center at Joslin Diabetes Center

You can enjoy tasty, healthy meals at home when you have diabetes by making a few changes to the way you choose and prepare food. There are things you can do in the kitchen to lower fat and cholesterol in the foods you serve, without losing flavor. Judy Giusti, MS, RD, LDN, CDE, at Joslin Diabetes Center, gives some advice on healthy cooking techniques for people with diabetes that the entire family can enjoy.

Choose Wisely
* Choose leaner cuts of meats. Buy select cuts instead of prime.
* Eat seafood twice a week. Good choices are salmon, sardines, and mackerel.
* Limit processed food like hot dogs, ham, and deli meat.
* Limit red meat. Have no more than 4 ounces, three times a week.
* Buy extra lean ground beef or use ground turkey or chicken.
* Eat a large amount of vegetables. Half your plate should be veggies at every meal.

Cook Wisely
* Use cooking spray or small amounts of olive or canola oil instead of butter.
* Grill, broil, bake, and stir fry instead of frying.
* Steam vegetables in water or low sodium broth.
* Remove the skin before cooking chicken and turkey.
* Trim any visible fat off of meat before cooking.
* Use herbs and spices to season rather than salt.
* Refrigerate soups, stews and gravy. Skim the fat off the surface before serving.
* Rinse canned vegetables before cooking.
* Be careful of cross contamination. Don’t use the same plate or container for raw and cooked food. Throw out anything left out for two hours or more.

A Word about Dairy
* Try low fat cheeses, skim or low-fat milk, and low-fat and non-fat yogurt.
* Use evaporated skim milk when making cream sauces.
* Cook with an egg substitute.
* Try fat-free half and half in coffee.
* Use small amounts of trans fat-free margarine.