Fries!
Carebear199125
Posts: 27 Member
So I have been craving French fries like crazy but they have a lot of calories and just not healthy. I'm not a fan of sweet potato fries. Any suggestions?
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Replies
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Fit the fries into your daily calories. They are not that high in calories and healthy is subjective.11
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green beans in the oven with salt on them...cook until crisp and dip in ketchup! YUP!! Turnips can also be done the same way, but they can have a strong taste so i let them sit in water for a few days to rid of the turnip smell/taste
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Either fit some into your day or try making your own? Or try baked/ roasted fries?8
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »Fit the fries into your daily calories. They are not that high in calories and healthy is subjective.
This. I'm having an order of curly fries at Arbys tonight and they're around 400 calories for the whole order. I'll probably split it though with my husband and that will knock it down to around 200 calories-very doable!
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I love both kinds, but if your goal is weight loss sweet potato fries are no better than regular fries, and some brands are higher in calories (not by a large enough amount to make them worse for weight loss though).
How many calories are you eating a day? Can you make room for fries? I would personally buy some frozen fries and have them as part of a meal if I were craving them.2 -
Don't know if it's in your budget but I bought an air fryer and can now indulge within reason. The reduced fat makes them more calorie friendly and the air fryer gives them the crispness I crave. You still have to be careful to eat a reasonable portion though.4
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janicelo1971 wrote: »green beans in the oven with salt on them
Mmm, I suspect I'd really like that! I love roasted veggies but never used green beans that way.
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I got this really cool "air fryer" that uses no oil to cook frozen or fresh fries. They still have a fiery high calorie count but it cuts the calories significantly. Alternatively try baking the fries at home in your oven. Cutting the oil keeps them easier to keep in your calorie count.
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »Fit the fries into your daily calories. They are not that high in calories and healthy is subjective.
This. There is nothing inherently wrong with eating french fries occasionally.4 -
cheryldumais wrote: »Don't know if it's in your budget but I bought an air fryer and can now indulge within reason. The reduced fat makes them more calorie friendly and the air fryer gives them the crispness I crave. You still have to be careful to eat a reasonable portion though.
My in-laws just got one of those and it's so cool!0 -
I budget for the fries and usually split an order with my 10 year old. I didn't eliminate anything I love to lose my weight.3
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I fit fries on say a Saturday, not every Saturday but one. I can have some also on days I eat more carbs ( I am cycling those)
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »They are not that high in calories
It's the calories in relation to the daily allowance that's the thing.
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »Chef_Barbell wrote: »They are not that high in calories
It's the calories in relation to the daily allowance that's the thing.
*shrug* Even in a low one you can fit some fries in.0 -
Sounds like OP doesn't want to "fit some fries in" and has asked for alternatives. I get that MFP is hardline "eat everything if it fits" but sometimes people want to make different choices some days.
OP I don't even think sweet potato fries would be that much less calorific. Are oven fries better maybe? I bet supermarket freezer ones still have added fats but could you bake up your own potato fries? The hot from the oven and the salt might do the trick.2 -
MelanieCN77 wrote: »Sounds like OP doesn't want to "fit some fries in" and has asked for alternatives. I get that MFP is hardline "eat everything if it fits" but sometimes people want to make different choices some days.
OP I don't even think sweet potato fries would be that much less calorific. Are oven fries better maybe? I bet supermarket freezer ones still have added fats but could you bake up your own potato fries? The hot from the oven and the salt might do the trick.
My personal experience with this is that if I am craving something and try an alternative, it usually doesn't work. I continue to crave the original thing. So, I try something else, and that doesn't work. Maybe I try a third thing, and that doesn't kill the craving either. So I finally give in and eat the craved food. By now I've seriously exceeded my calorie limit, and if I'd just fit the craved thing in my day originally, I wouldn't have had that problem.
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »Sounds like OP doesn't want to "fit some fries in" and has asked for alternatives. I get that MFP is hardline "eat everything if it fits" but sometimes people want to make different choices some days.
OP I don't even think sweet potato fries would be that much less calorific. Are oven fries better maybe? I bet supermarket freezer ones still have added fats but could you bake up your own potato fries? The hot from the oven and the salt might do the trick.
The OP mentioned "craving some French fries" and has chosen not to have some on the incorrect assumption that they are not healthy. The posters here are just trying to help the OP realize that it is okay to have some French fries if he/she wants some and are offering advice on how to do it. Many people begin a diet cutting out things that they think are "bad" even though they like the foods, only to give in to cravings and give up because they "failed" by having some of that "bad" food.
If OP does not want fries, OP does not have to eat fries. But he/she can if they want to.
@Carebear199125 I like to cut up my own potato wedges and bake them in the oven until they are crispy. I toss them in a bit of olive oil and salt/pepper and bake them at around 425F for ~30 minutes or so (or until I see them get a brown around the edges). Someone else mentioned frozen fries, which are good, too, because you can portion yourself out some and eat only what you made to fit into your day.4 -
Fries aren't something I eat on the regular...if I want them, I have them 'cuz in the big picture having some fries now and then really isn't a big deal.
Also, when looking at "healthy"...try to look at your diet as a whole, not some individual food item.
Yesterday I got in around 6 servings of veg...one serving of fruit...my usual eggs and egg whites, my oats, some low fat dairy...a nice vegetable and lentil soup and some grilled salmon and sauteed broccoli for dinner...I had a Reece's for desert...when you look at that as a whole, how relevant are the Reece's cups.5 -
People sometimes want to learn and explore for themselves and not jump right to someone else's solution.1
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My husband will sometimes cube a potato, parboil it, coat it in a bit of olive oil, and then finish it in the toaster oven with whatever spices strike his fancy.
They aren't fries, but they're very good.
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »Sounds like OP doesn't want to "fit some fries in" and has asked for alternatives. I get that MFP is hardline "eat everything if it fits" but sometimes people want to make different choices some days.
OP I don't even think sweet potato fries would be that much less calorific. Are oven fries better maybe? I bet supermarket freezer ones still have added fats but could you bake up your own potato fries? The hot from the oven and the salt might do the trick.
OP didn't ask for alternatives directly nor is your assumption of them not wanting to fit some in, correct. But keep on inferring.1 -
If they are baked, then you can lessen the calories. But they aren't "unhealthy".Carebear199125 wrote: »So I have been craving French fries like crazy but they have a lot of calories and just not healthy. I'm not a fan of sweet potato fries. Any suggestions?
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »People sometimes want to learn and explore for themselves and not jump right to someone else's solution.
Then they wouldn't post asking for suggestions... This makes no sense.5 -
You're right we should just have a bot that answers "eat it if it fits in your calories" and save everyone a lot of time.1
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »You're right we should just have a bot that answers "eat it if it fits in your calories" and save everyone a lot of time.
Yup.4 -
Actually the OP's thought is that they are "unhealthy" which isn't true and why they are possibly looking for an alternative.MelanieCN77 wrote: »Sounds like OP doesn't want to "fit some fries in" and has asked for alternatives. I get that MFP is hardline "eat everything if it fits" but sometimes people want to make different choices some days.
OP I don't even think sweet potato fries would be that much less calorific. Are oven fries better maybe? I bet supermarket freezer ones still have added fats but could you bake up your own potato fries? The hot from the oven and the salt might do the trick.
There are ways to make fries less calorie dense, but I don't think people need to cut out food they like. They just need to figure out how they can sensibly add them in to their current diet regimen.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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MelanieCN77 wrote: »You're right we should just have a bot that answers "eat it if it fits in your calories" and save everyone a lot of time.
I was trying to stay out of this, but here's my 2 cents from hard learned dieting experience.
There is a lot of dieting information out there, and I wish I could go back in time and put my 25 year old self where I am now and have access to the kind of information people share on these forums so I wouldn't waste my time believing things about dieting that ultimately wasted my time and thwarted my efforts to form a healthy relationship with food.
Knowledge is power, and the more someone embarking on the path to managing their weight for life finds out how all of this really works? The better. That includes getting input from people who offer suggestions like "eat a smaller portion", "here's what I eat instead", "and here's a handy gadget I use to save calories".
I'm also reminded of the fact that for every OP, there are countless lurkers reading along. They're helped by what they read.
OP, what I do probably wouldn't work for you, because I'm sort of forced to do it due to special circumstances. I only eat fries on vacation because they're the only place I can get good fries that are reliably gluten free. If the fries aren't going to be really good, I don't want to bother wasting calories on them.
During the year, I just eat roasted or baked potatoes when the craving for potatoes hits me. For roasted potatoes, I slice up my potatoes and toss them with a very small amount of olive oil and cook them in a hot oven until they're crispy. They're not fries, but they're tasty.7 -
Check online menus for the calorie content of an order of fries (maybe pick the place with the lowest number), and eat them if they work into your allotted calories. Maybe do a longer workout to make them fit into allotment and have them as a reward. Starchy stuff like that - I tend to crave more when I eat it and lack self control, so buying more than 1 serving (say at a grocery store) wouldn't be an option for me, but might for you.
If you are possibly just craving something salty/crispy, the green bean suggestion above might work.1 -
Thank you for the advice everyone. I love French fries and when I do want them bad I tend to over eat. I have tried fitting them in and I end up feeling guilty. I'm sorry for any issues I caused but the comment about green beans I'll try. I guess I'm just looking for a healthier version of something crunchy and salty.3
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