MFP sure helps on sodium intake

maryseb63

I remember counting calories over 30 years ago. But it was a job then, had to take lists and find individual foods and add up. This time I heard about MFP as both my hubby and I have HBP and he has heart issues and have to cut down on our sodium intake. I was checking labels but since I started using this app for all my foods I realized we were still too high.
I'm trying to keep sodium at a minimum but hard to get the flavors sometimes. Been using Mrs. Dash but missing my soya sauce, oyster sauce.
Any ideas on low sodium replacements would be greatly appreciated.

kellymac518

have you tried using spices to replace your salt? i like boneless chicken breast with black pepper, thyme, garlic powder, and onion powder cooked on it in a pan with a little olive oil... its so tasty that way.

Wiseandcurious

I know some people substitute potassium salt when cooking and there must be low-sodium options on sauces out there, but I'm not informed about those really. I can however give you the below as general examples of how my family eats low-sodium, although we love savory/piquant/spicy tasting food; not sure if they fit with your health and taste requirements so just by way of example.

Don't know what you're cooking, but for most things, paprika packs a punch of flavor and can make a dish more savory without the use of sauces. Also any spice in seed form tends to have a strong flavor, i.e. caraway seeds etc. I also use good quality balsamic vinegar with a bit of honey and Dijon mustard for dressing meats. Mushrooms tend to up the general flavor too.

You could try using a little of more flavorful meats in your dishes with regular meats, i.e. dunk in there a bit of sausage or deli meat or anything smoked (lower the salt you add and watch overall salt content of the dish) - even though they're higher sodium a very little goes a very long way to make a stew/roast/grill richer and impart flavor. Or mix two kinds of meat, i.e. chicken and pork, veal and pork etc for a richer dish with the same amount of meat/protein/sodium as when using one meat. Generally, the more ingredients you cook together at the same time, the richer the taste of the dish.

Hope that helps some. You're already doing the most important thing - tracking it, I'm sure you'll find a way to a healthier cooking style that suits you both!