Restaurants and Low Salt Foods

If you are on a low salt, low fat, or low cholesterol diet, it is difficult eating in a restaurant because one never really knows how the food is prepared. The menu may state that food is low salt, low fat, or low cholesterol but too many factors come into play in the manufacturing process as well as the cooking process.

Even if the instructions on a package or a recipe call for a certain ingredient such as sugar or butter, cooks in many restaurants will use what is on hand. This can ultimately change the amounts of the items a dieter is trying to limit in the finished product.

Sometimes it is as simple as adding whole milk instead of low fat milk in the cooking process that adds the salt or even extra fat. The type of oil or fat used in the cooking or baking process will alter the finish product as well.

The only way to be sure what ingredients are used in a product is to cook it yourself or watch the cooking process. In a restaurant, it is far better to eat the simple foods that require little in the preparation process.

These items include green salads and baked potatoes, which have very little sodium, fat or cholesterol naturally. A baked potato, with real butter, sour cream and chives has little sodium, fat or cholesterol. However, once any type of cheese or bacon bits are added to the food, the amount of the salt, cholesterol and fat you are trying to limit goes higher quickly.

A piece of meat may have a lot of fat in. Depending on the cooking process, it may have a higher level of cholesterol and sodium. The best option here is to choose a cut of meat, which is smaller and has less fat. Baked meat is typically healthier but again it depends on any seasonings, marmalades, and other ingredients used in the process.

If you are craving T-Bone or a pork chop, it is still possible to enjoy these items depending on how they are cooked, even when you are on a special diet. Ask if the restaurant grills the steaks or chops without adding any type of seasonings.

If they typically include seasonings, ask that the cook withhold the seasonings on your meat. Most restaurants will accommodate special requests for diners if it is something simple.