Low Carb idea - Hamburger Helper minus the pasta/rice

ShampooIsBetter

In order to cut my carb intake, I have been making various "Helper" meals without the pasta and rice in the box. It's working out really well. In order to fill up the pan, I add scrambled eggs and/or veggies. Last night, I had a box of Tuna Helper Tetrazzini. Here's how I made it:

1 - I use the exact ingredients listed for tuna (2 cans), margarine (3 tablespoons) and the box's powder mix.
2 - Because there will be no noodles, I dont add water and only use one cup of milk
3 - I cook the tuna, milk, margarine and powder down until it's thick enough to eat with a fork
4 - I scramble 4 eggs and mix it all together

The entire pan has about 900 calories. i divide it into three main dishes. Each 300 calorie serving has 13 grams of carbs, 14 grams of fat and 28 grams of protein, which almost perfectly matches my desired 1-1-2 ratio.

The dish had somewhat of a quiche texture. I have had the idea of repeating the first four steps and then covering with cheese and baking.

A healthier recipe would not use the margarine and substitute eggbeaters for real eggs. I already use skim milk.

TerraGirl17

bump

jamie1888

You may as well just take it a step futher and season your protein yourself instead of buying packaged stuff just for the flavor packet. I bet you could season it just as well yourself and use WAY less sodium than they do!

MsElphaba

an even better idea might be to google "make your tuna helper" and find out if you can replicate what is in the packet. You would save money and all the preservatives and sodium that are in the mix.

silentpost

loving the idea of doubling the recipe, covering with cheese and baking... that sounds awesome! might give this a try tomorrow.

Not sure how low you are trying to keep your carb intake to, but if you're a real stickler, watch things like skim milk--they tend to have more carbs per serving than the fattier equivalent.

jagh09

Great for a quick, easy and cheap week-night meal. You could also use white beans instead of eggs for added protein and fiber!

ShampooIsBetter

You may as well just take it a step futher and season your protein yourself instead of buying packaged stuff just for the flavor packet. I bet you could season it just as well yourself and use WAY less sodium than they do!

That sounds complicated. :-)

jagh09

loving the idea of doubling the recipe, covering with cheese and baking... that sounds awesome! might give this a try tomorrow.

Not sure how low you are trying to keep your carb intake to, but if you're a real stickler, watch things like skim milk--they tend to have more carbs per serving than the fattier equivalent.

A lot of those pre-made flavor mixes have carbs too, so beware. It's not just the pasta.

deborahmorris

Bump

MsElphaba

You may as well just take it a step futher and season your protein yourself instead of buying packaged stuff just for the flavor packet. I bet you could season it just as well yourself and use WAY less sodium than they do!

That sounds complicated. :-)

Took less than 10 seconds to find this:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/825753/making_your_own_hamburger_or_tuna_helper.html

lisakreymborg

If I made this I would use a tbs of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, or a small amount of real butter, the skim milk is great, tuna, and no egg beaters but one egg with yolk and the rest just whites (and add more eggs since the yolks are gone) and as far as seasoning, to reduce sodium and preservative/chemical content I would make a slurry out of flour and water or corn starch and water, and add it to the tuna mixture to thicken it, and then begin adding spices and seasonings to taste.

LikeNoOneElse84

Great idea!

healthyjen342

an even better idea might be to google "make your tuna helper" and find out if you can replicate what is in the packet. You would save money and all the preservatives and sodium that are in the mix.

I like this idea!