Homemade Lean Cusines

vanb0052

I have been very successful making my own lean cuisine inspired dishes. I bought 5 divided glad containers and add 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice, 4 oz of chicken, and a cup of vegetables. To make them different so I'm not eating the same thing every day I change up the veggies and add a different sauce to the rice and chicken (2 tbsp franks hot sauce and 1 tbsp ranch, or 2 tbsp asian garlic sauce and a tbsp soy sauce).

I was wondering if anyone out there had ideas for other sauces that I could make in bulk to have on hand that would be lower in sodium than those I can buy premade in the the store?

Thank you for your help!!

katschi

Homemade salsa would be nice with rice and chicken.

Love your idea of making your own convenience meals. This way you have complete control of the ingredients and nutritional value.
Good going!

MyNameIsNotBob

Pre-portioning like that is a good idea.

Off the top of my head, I can think of a couple (but at 2 tbsp., they're gonna add about 50-100 cals. to your dish, so keep that in mind):

1 tbsp. plain nonfat greek yogurt, blended with some cucumber and some dill
1 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce, sesame seeds, & 1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. maple syrup, 1 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce, & ginger

Ummm... that's all I can think of for now.

vanb0052

My typical sauces are about 50-100 calories already. Considering the chicken breast and rice is around 200, it still makes a pretty low calorie meal. Plus, my daily calorie goal is over 2200 calories due to my current weight.

All three of those options sound really good!! I'll have to try one next week :happy:

Crystal817

Another good idea... if you are making low cal/fat dinners at home, save some and put them in your containers for lunch the next day. I even freeze some if I won't be using them for a few days. I still like the occasional lean cusine, but home made is usually much better (and lower in sodium)!