Indian food tonight. Help.

ouiouilezizi
ouiouilezizi Posts: 36
in Health and Weight Loss
We are getting Indian food tonight, but it is ALWAYS a struggle because who knows what the hell is in all that creamy curry goodness. Well, I do know: creamy goodness.

I've already decided on some personal "nos": no mango lassi, no samosas, no puris.

My boyfriend and our friends will certainly order the paneer masala (or shahi paneer), rice, garlic naan and one- two more vegetable curry dishes.

What do you guys do when you get north Indian food? Am I insane for remotely considering bringing measuring cups into the restaurant to help me grasp how much I'm eating? Do you just limit yourself to one plate (so hard when everything is family style and you have vats of deliciousness in front of you)? What vegetable curries are probably the best for less calories? I am not vegetarian, but my boyfriend is "kind of" vegetarian (working on that one though......)

Advice?

Replies

  • letitshine
    letitshine Posts: 7 Member
    Try tandoori style chicken and salad. I think that's the best bet, since it's not in a sauce. Second best option, enjoy the different dishes (family style) but in smaller quantities than usual. Drink lots of water (at least a full glass before dinner) so you aren't as hungry. Enjoy it (Indian food is my favorite!) .
  • amarjeetvirk
    amarjeetvirk Posts: 4
    If you are going to order vegetarian food and are concerned about the calories and nutrition, I would suggest go for lentils (Daal) - may be masoor. Though Indians consume it as a dish in the main course with roti and boiled rice, I guess you could order as a soup. Garlic Naans with butter are my favorite in breadl but for a health conscious person a plain roti made of whole wheat should be a good form of bread. If you are not much concerned about the grease and spice, 'Karahi Paneer' might suit your palate.

    I hope the place you are dining in has the reputation of good hygiene and polite service.

    I am a vegetarian and don't know much of the non-veg dishes.

    Enjoy your evening.

    Amarjeet (AJ)
  • jjjbeans111
    jjjbeans111 Posts: 15
    Oh, I feel your pain... loooove indian food. But you can do it! Lots of water, small bites, savor the taste, and just enjoy!
  • JRSchumaker
    JRSchumaker Posts: 93 Member
    Oh, I feel your pain... loooove indian food. But you can do it! Lots of water, small bites, savor the taste, and just enjoy!

    THIS!!

    Enjoy your food. Take small portions, eat slowly, and really savor the experience.
  • sunshinestater
    sunshinestater Posts: 596 Member
    I'm probably no help because I love Punjab style Indian and go for the really decadent goodness. My favorite is mushroom methi malai, which is hard to find but oh so wonderful. You're doing good by skipping the mango lassi. I love naan, so I started eating my food without the basmati rice and with just the naan. Our local Indian restaurant makes the best naan ever so it's hard to limit myself, but I can usually do it. Good luck and enjoy the meal! I think Indian is one of the most underrated ethnic cuisines here in the U.S. (the Brits know its goodness).
  • generallyme2
    generallyme2 Posts: 403 Member
    We had Chinese takeaway tonight and I did measure it out. The usual 'portion'- a single sized container of rice and entree for a one person meal was actually more than double what it should have been when I measured it out.

    One thing you might do next time (since you're probably already there lol) is learn to visualize portion sizes (half a tennis ball for carbs for example). It's not a perfect measurement, but it's better than just saying 'screw it' and going to town because you don't want to bring measuring cups into a restaurant (which I wouldn't either!).
  • victoriavoodoo
    victoriavoodoo Posts: 343 Member
    I just ate my weight at an Indian buffet and it was glorious. I limited myself to one plate(buffets always make me want to "eat my money's worth" and I have to remind myself not to think that way) and one piece of garlic naan, so not really my weight but felt very decadent compared to my usual.

    I think if it's only once in a while, and you're good the rest of the time, enjoy it and don't worry. =] one meal isn't going to ruin anything if it remains only that one meal.
  • harleenarang
    harleenarang Posts: 174 Member
    WOW !! Love to see so many people appreciate Indian Food and love it so much. I am a North Indian - to be specific a Punjabi (from the state of Punjab) so all those food items with a prefix "Butter" are my land's food :tongue:

    Imagine my plight !! I cook that food everyday and eat it but you will be shocked that cooking Indian food at home can be so much healthier than eating it outside.

    I use the "Recipe" feature in MFP to calculate exactly how much my food is. I cook for me and my husband and I usually cook a meal of 4 servings to eat dinner one day and take the same for lunch the next day coz we both work and I prefer eating home cooked food for lunch rather than Mc D or anything else.

    Coming to the point of - when eating outside specially in an Indian buffet - Go by this
    1) Anything that says Tandoori - means grilled - so comparatively lesser calories.

    2) Anything that says Shahi/Kadai/Masala/Makhani - means cooked with extra butter, heavy cream, clarified butter or even fried before putting in the sauce - So eat less of that or just a tad to taste it coz of course it tastes so so so so good.

    3) If you want to spend your calories more on tasting nice stuff than eat more entrees or main course items than the naan breads or rice or briyani coz that is purely carbs. Limit the naan bread to less than 1 (if its huge coz that is atleast 400 cals a naan)

    4) Staying away from mango lassi is a good idea though you can ask them not to add sugar and just add some zero calorie sweetener. I make these at home for less than 120 cals for a big glass.

    5) There is not much salad choice at Indian buffets as much we see in American food so yes that is a big drawback but you can chose the non veg appetizers and fill up on protein rather than oily carbs. The appetizers or so called starters are usually grilled or pan seared or sauteed. Very rare you have fried or curried items in that.

    I hope this helps. And you can message me if you want to cook Indian food at home for less calories. I can share some recipes. :smile: Enjoy !!
  • ouiouilezizi
    ouiouilezizi Posts: 36
    Thank you guys so much! All of this will come in handy when I do go out next week. I actually skipped tonight though because I didn't have enough calories/ WW points left and tomorrow is my weigh-in. Would rather not torture myself and feel crappy tomorrow when I weigh-in after a week of hard work. So I sent the boyfriend and friends out to enjoying it for me. :)

    Tandoori is a great idea BUT no one else eats meat except me. I'm really interested in what vegetarian dishes are the best. Daal is a fantastic idea! Love daal and make it often at home, so I rarely think to order it out because it's so common for us. BUT, that's a good option.

    Good to know about the words "masala" and "shahi" especially since everything I like seems to include those words, LOL!

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