Nasty Surprise Involving Soy Sauce

2

Replies

  • txlissa62
    txlissa62 Posts: 128
    I hate plain rice, so I like to sauté a lot of garlic and then throw some plain cooked rice in with it. It makes it taste so much better and I find myself not missing soy sauce.

    I like to mix some pico de gallo with rice - very tasty, and you don't miss the salt at all.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    Just an FYI, many (if not all) the spray butters our there have a salty taste with zero salt or fat. Sometimes I just pour it on my rice.
    That really helped me. I don't like it plain either.

    Uhh.. I'm not sure if you were joking but spray butters are all fat. The label says 0 calories because in the US, anything with 4 calories or less per serving can be reported as 0 calories. I think an entire bottle is usually 900 calories?

    Yup. There is some moron out there now who is suing because the was unable to properly comprehend how food is labeled and was dumping spray butter all over her food.

    I count spray butter as 1 calorie per squirt.
  • shelbyfrootcake
    shelbyfrootcake Posts: 965 Member
    Breakfast cereal threw me. 30g is a serving. I was routinely eating 90g servings. I still do, but I only eat cereal occasionally now and treat is as a treat, so to speak.
  • txlissa62
    txlissa62 Posts: 128
    Oh yes, I can relate! Only this morning I was munching one whole ball of mozzarella cheese, enjoying it in blissful ignorance. Then I added it to MFP and actually looked at the calories. HOLY GUACAMOLE!!!!! It added a whole 309 calories to my breakfast! You can be sure now that a) I won't be eating a whole ball again, and b) I'll look at the calories first if I don't know them yet, before I eat something. *rolls eyes*

    This is why I log my meals before I eat. No nasty surprises afterwards.
  • cobracars
    cobracars Posts: 949 Member
    Such a disappointment to learn of an interesting new food you would like to try because it sounds healthy and delicious, but then you plug in the nutritional info and find its basically a dish of salt with some veggies sprinkled on top.

    Example: Taco Bell Cantina Bowl is only 550 - 560 calories, which for me would be a good sized lunch as I am on 1610 calories for the whole day. But I'm also trying to limit my sodium to 1800 or less and the Cantina Bowl is 1560 - 1600!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :noway: :devil: :huh: :mad:
  • cobracars
    cobracars Posts: 949 Member
    Also, for cooking I use salt substitute which is potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride. Same salty taste without the sodium.
  • bubmaster
    bubmaster Posts: 90
    tined soup!
  • Glasgow_Vegan
    Glasgow_Vegan Posts: 209 Member
    Hey folks,

    So after reading another random thread about a lady's food diary asking for opinions, someone mentioned her sodium was way too high and explained how to add sodium to the diary to it's viewable.

    I turned mine on and I knew Soy Sauce was high in salt but HOLY COW!!! My eyes are open now and I will be cutting back ALOT!

    Anyone else have a wake up call like this involving a food you didn't think was "that bad" if so what was it?

    Try using turmeric in the rice while you boil it, instead of soy sauce. You'll never turn back! It's cheap and studies have linked it to alzheimer's prevention.
  • Glasgow_Vegan
    Glasgow_Vegan Posts: 209 Member
    Over 900 calories in one tube of Aldi's own brand Pringles. Crazy. A serving size is a few crisps (chips).
  • lkcuts
    lkcuts Posts: 224
    Yes it is wise to plan ..log, then eat what you logged.. no suprises.. Iknow like steak sauce, whorsershire (spelling) and th like are high in salt so Mrs Dash, comes to my rescue with its wonderful flavors. Great on rice and I add celery and sometimes onion, tomatoes etc while its cooking that adds flavor..if i use soy, its very little. Ifound a dab of sesame seed oil in the mix adds a nutty flavor I love and so good for you!
  • trulycrazed
    trulycrazed Posts: 79 Member
    Just wanted to add that not getting enough sodium can be just as dangerous as getting too much.
    It can lead to heart problems (heart attack) and stroke, oddly enough...
    I simply wanted to add this as I personally hate salt. This resulted in heart palpitations and a fluttering heart beat that couldn't be explained. I did my own research and realized that it was because I was eating as low as 800mgs of sodium per day while working out (sweating)... Now I have to track my intake to make sure I intake at least 1200mgs, preferably 1600mgs.
    So keep this in mind and don't run off to the extreme thinking it's the healthy way!
  • shelbyfrootcake
    shelbyfrootcake Posts: 965 Member
    Oh yes, I can relate! Only this morning I was munching one whole ball of mozzarella cheese, enjoying it in blissful ignorance. Then I added it to MFP and actually looked at the calories. HOLY GUACAMOLE!!!!! It added a whole 309 calories to my breakfast! You can be sure now that a) I won't be eating a whole ball again, and b) I'll look at the calories first if I don't know them yet, before I eat something. *rolls eyes*

    I switched to the low fat mozzarella for that very reason. It's too easy to chuck the entire ball on a homemade pizza to use anyway but the low fat version.
  • 126siany
    126siany Posts: 1,386 Member
    I'm going to experiment with low sodium seasons for my rice and see what I can come up with. I think I may even quit soy sauce altogether.

    Have you ever tried cooking the rice in a low-sodium broth? Adds a lot of flavor with very little sodium.
  • You_Can_Be
    You_Can_Be Posts: 26 Member
    Oatcakes, Mackerel fillets and rice cakes were a wake up for me. I had no idea they were so calorific.
    :noway:
  • dovek11
    dovek11 Posts: 94 Member
    I was using the database to log avocados in the diary. "1 medium". When I got a food scale and began weighing them, I was easily eating TWICE the amount daily!

    I always use the scale now when I can. Not measuring by 1/2 cup, or medium size... but the actual weight.

    I also am the opposite of the OP. I set the sodium so I could see it, and since I eat no processed foods, I found I wasn't getting enough sodium. No wonder I wasn't feeling 'right' this hot summer. I now measure my salt intake every day to insure I am getting enough.
  • SurfinBird1981
    SurfinBird1981 Posts: 517 Member
    I live in Taiwan right now, it is in everything!
  • amy1612
    amy1612 Posts: 1,356 Member
    Oatcakes, Mackerel fillets and rice cakes were a wake up for me. I had no idea they were so calorific.
    :noway:

    I give no care to the calories in mackeral or avocados, theyre delicious and full of good fats. Yum.
  • Hakarn
    Hakarn Posts: 62 Member
    I was shocked when it came to serving sizes for 3 things in particalar: nuts and nut butter, coffee creamer, and cereal. When I stopped "eyeballing" and pulled out my measuring cups and spoons, I was shocked!
    ^
    One lady I worked would eyeball a serving of peanut butter. I told her she was using at least twice the size she was supposed to. When you actually measure it, a serving of PB is barely enough to cover a piece of bread :)

    I had the cereal thing also. It turns out it is not so bad once you start measuring it. But definitely eyeballing cereal does not work.
  • whyutellmelies
    whyutellmelies Posts: 4 Member
    The amount of calories in booze always surprises me. ;(
  • Bentley2718
    Bentley2718 Posts: 1,689 Member
    No, I read food labels, so I don't need my MFP diary to tell me something is "that bad."
  • kitigonkukoo
    kitigonkukoo Posts: 218 Member
    a note for sodium:

    take 2 weeks, and elimate all or as much sodium from your diet as possible. Just two weeks! Then add it back in slowly... you'll be SHOCKED at how much you can taste it in things you never could before...
  • PuggleLover
    PuggleLover Posts: 261 Member
    I love soy sauce... I hate when I am reminded of its high sodium.
  • danapattison
    danapattison Posts: 1
    Me too!!! I love cottage cheese and was so sad to see the sodium level. Also canned black beans. Here I thought I was being so healthy!
  • heddy90
    heddy90 Posts: 144 Member
    I was using the database to log avocados in the diary. "1 medium". When I got a food scale and began weighing them, I was easily eating TWICE the amount daily!

    I always use the scale now when I can. Not measuring by 1/2 cup, or medium size... but the actual weight.
    I hope you didn't count the weight of the nut and the peel ;)
  • ritsq83
    ritsq83 Posts: 2
    I just wanted to point out that in most Asian cuisine (Japanese, Korean, and Chinese) - soy sauce is used as salt.

    They add soy sauce instead of salt to get the right level of seasoning necessary for the dish, and it adds flavor(umami) as well. It's not uncommon to see little bottles of soy sauce on dining tables the same way most Americans have a salt and pepper shaker on their table.

    The main reason that East Asian "dishes" are on the saltier side is because they are designed to be eaten with rice. Rice by itself is almost flavorless and hard to eat, so people will eat a small portion of a dish in order to get a large bowl of rice down. In more destitute times (such as Japan post-WW2, Korea post-Korean war, China up to the 80s etc.) families would often cut out the middleman and just eat rice with a bit of soy sauce.

    So, don't treat soy sauce as a "sauce", and eat smaller portions with a larger portion of (preferably brown) rice.
  • Rilke
    Rilke Posts: 1,201 Member
    Just an FYI, many (if not all) the spray butters our there have a salty taste with zero salt or fat. Sometimes I just pour it on my rice.
    That really helped me. I don't like it plain either.

    I don't know whether to laugh or cry at this comment.

    http://www.feedmeimcranky.com/2011/01/15/lies-damned-lies-butter-sprays/
  • ktull68
    ktull68 Posts: 19
    Just an FYI, many (if not all) the spray butters our there have a salty taste with zero salt or fat. Sometimes I just pour it on my rice.
    That really helped me. I don't like it plain either. I don't pour the whole bottle but enough to get the buttery taste.
  • Rilke
    Rilke Posts: 1,201 Member
    I don't pour the whole bottle but enough to get the buttery taste.

    If you're pouring it at all, you're getting many more calories than the nutrition facts label suggests.
  • ktull68
    ktull68 Posts: 19
    I'm sorry this affected you so deeply. Thanks for bringing this to my attention!
  • 126siany
    126siany Posts: 1,386 Member
    Me too!!! I love cottage cheese and was so sad to see the sodium level. Also canned black beans. Here I thought I was being so healthy!

    Many, but not all, supermarkets will carry "no salt added" cottage cheese. That's what I buy. I just like the taste better. The regular stuff is so salty that I find it offensive.

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