Taco's - Ye or Ne?

shan11180
shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So Taco's are a major staple in my house. The kids love them, they're gluten free (curse you celiacs!) and super easy and quick. But holy moly they are full of sodium. I made some homemade taco seasoning, thinking it would be a better alternative, but according to the MFP recipe importer, the sodium in the homemade is through the roof!

I've always considered taco's a 'healthier' dinner because I can pile veggies on, use ground turkey, and all that jazz, but now I'm questioning if that's true. Any thoughts?
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Replies

  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    I don't track sodium - and I love tacos. I guess it's all about what you put on them, but for me they'r great. Fit my goals, delicious, etc... Do they fit your goals? Do you like them? Do you have a medical issue that requires limiting sodium? These are the questions to ask yourself.
  • AdamImadA
    AdamImadA Posts: 74 Member
    Half the salt?
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    When the question is "Taco?", my answer is always "Yes."

  • gaelicstorm26
    gaelicstorm26 Posts: 589 Member
    If sodium is concern, what about leaving your meat out of the seasoning and putting a very small amount of seasoning in your sour cream or something so that you can limit that variable? Or maybe skipping the meat and going for veggie tacos instead? I think you could really manipulate some variables here unless seasoning is an absolute must for you.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    I eat homemade tacos every week!! Make it fit in your calories allotment for the day! If you were told to eat less sodium this can be done by seasoning the meat yourself. To me tacos are essential for happiness.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Sodium isn't an issue unless you have high blood pressure or other specific health issues.
  • mrron2u
    mrron2u Posts: 919 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    When the question is "Taco?", my answer is always "Yes."

    Yes - this!!! And I guess as I don't monitor sodium I never really considered taco's being high in that. I add lots of veggies to my taco's so I think the sodium ratio gets evened out by the sodium free lettuce, etc.
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    Ready2Rock206 wrote: »
    I don't track sodium - and I love tacos. I guess it's all about what you put on them, but for me they'r great. Fit my goals, delicious, etc... Do they fit your goals? Do you like them? Do you have a medical issue that requires limiting sodium? These are the questions to ask yourself.

    I LOVE THEM. I don't have a medical issue that requires me to limit sodium, but I seem to get the crap beat out of me by sodium at least 2x per week. Meaning: I go over my sodium intake on MFP. :)
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    When the question is "Taco?", my answer is always "Yes."

    THIS. Totally agree.
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,979 Member
    Francl27 wrote: »
    Sodium isn't an issue unless you have high blood pressure or other specific health issues.

    ^ This. If you do need to watch your sodium, just manipulate your recipe or experiment with others. It's easy to do when you're making your own.
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    gaelicstorm26 wrote: »
    If sodium is concern, what about leaving your meat out of the seasoning and putting a very small amount of seasoning in your sour cream or something so that you can limit that variable? Or maybe skipping the meat and going for veggie tacos instead? I think you could really manipulate some variables here unless seasoning is an absolute must for you.

    I actually really like this idea! I've never thought about seasoning just my portion. Thanks!!
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    I eat homemade tacos every week!! Make it fit in your calories allotment for the day! If you were told to eat less sodium this can be done by seasoning the meat yourself. To me tacos are essential for happiness.

    Agreed. Completely. Tacos = happiness. :smiley:
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    Francl27 wrote: »
    Sodium isn't an issue unless you have high blood pressure or other specific health issues.

    Really? I thought it caused water retention?
  • jaqcan
    jaqcan Posts: 498 Member
    I like the suggestion of leaving the seasoning out of the meat and putting it in the sour cream. Not that I have any problem with taco shells, but taco salads are my favorite! Having them tonight!!!!
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    edited October 2015
    shan11180 wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    Sodium isn't an issue unless you have high blood pressure or other specific health issues.

    Really? I thought it caused water retention?

    It does, but that's not harmful...just your body's natural response, and it's temporary.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
    Here's my go to Turkey Taco recipe. I haven't put it in recipe builder but I don't see any significant sources of sodium. Adjust the about of chipotles and adobe to taste.

    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/make-your-own-tacos-bar-recipe.html

    But like others said, sodium isn't generally a concern unless you are told it is by your physician (likely because of high blood pressure).
  • ariana_eatsandlifts
    ariana_eatsandlifts Posts: 197 Member
    If tacos are wrong, I don't want to be right.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    I love Tacos.
    How could they possibly be "unhealthy"?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    shan11180 wrote: »
    So Taco's are a major staple in my house. The kids love them, they're gluten free (curse you celiacs!) and super easy and quick. But holy moly they are full of sodium. I made some homemade taco seasoning, thinking it would be a better alternative, but according to the MFP recipe importer, the sodium in the homemade is through the roof!

    I've always considered taco's a 'healthier' dinner because I can pile veggies on, use ground turkey, and all that jazz, but now I'm questioning if that's true. Any thoughts?

    whatever "homemade" you're looking at in the database is just some random entry from a user.

    the only way your homemade seasoning would be through the roof with sodium is if you made it that way...like you put an *kitten* load of salt in it...but you can't just select some rando, generic entry from the database for something you're making homemade.
  • bumpbreakcar
    bumpbreakcar Posts: 191 Member
    Now i want tacos
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    As far as logging- since that's an issue- I would log the ingredients separately as you use them- it's safer and will be more accurate for you.
  • extra_medium
    extra_medium Posts: 1,525 Member
    Life without tacos is not worth living.
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    Loving all the responses!! Great info! And a reminder as to why I love MFP. Such a wealth of knowledge here. :)
  • debrakgoogins
    debrakgoogins Posts: 2,033 Member
    Yes all day long to tacos! I make all my own seasonings, using sea salt. Like others have said, sodium only becomes an issue if a doctor advises it is. If I have a meal with more salt, I just up my water intake. Enjoy what you like!
  • CasperNaegle
    CasperNaegle Posts: 936 Member
    We do tacos all the time, very lean beef, shrimp, even turkey. Love the flavor and can get them into our meal planning. I don't use taco seasoning as I always just use my own raw spices. I don't honestly pay much attention to sodium.
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    extra_medium wrote: »
    Life without tacos is not worth living.

    HA! Completely agree.
  • shan11180
    shan11180 Posts: 110 Member
    CasperNaegle wrote: »
    We do tacos all the time, very lean beef, shrimp, even turkey. Love the flavor and can get them into our meal planning. I don't use taco seasoning as I always just use my own raw spices. I don't honestly pay much attention to sodium.

    May I ask what seasonings you use?
  • Queenmunchy
    Queenmunchy Posts: 3,380 Member
    I use Homemade Taco Seasoning and cut down the salt to a few cranks per how my family likes it.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    extra_medium wrote: »
    Life without tacos is not worth living.

    I guess this begs the bigger question- can you ACTUALLY live- TRULY live without them?

    My supposition is that - no- you cannot.
  • CasperNaegle
    CasperNaegle Posts: 936 Member
    On ground beef or ground turkey I use mostly chili powder and then I do add Garlic salt. You could use straight garlic powder if sodium was a big concern. I've played with some cumin and cayenne(too spice it up some). I have also cooked the meet with onions and jalapenos before to add some more. Usually though just chili powder and garlic salt.

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