Favorite low-cal “carrier” foods?
moonangel12
Posts: 971 Member
Carrier foods - as in chips, crackers, bread, etc. Things that aren’t the focal point of the meal/snack, just used as support of whatever food you are truly wanting to eat but isn’t as appetizing on it’s own.
ETA: more clarification - foods that sometimes quite literally “carry” the food to your mouth. I like port wine cheese, but not by itself. So the cracker I use to eat it would be the carrier.
ETA: more clarification - foods that sometimes quite literally “carry” the food to your mouth. I like port wine cheese, but not by itself. So the cracker I use to eat it would be the carrier.
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I am gluten free (have been for 8.5 years) so I have learned to do without bread in most scenarios, but my go to morning breakfast has been a bagel, slice of cheese, and a fried egg on top. To cut back on calories but still have the same flavor/texture profile I slice my GF bagels into quarters instead of halves. Most days my breakfast is around 250-300 calories.
Rice cakes with PB and jelly.
I still like corn chips, but I definitely scoop now rather than dip.0 -
I'm not sure exactly what you mean. But, I like to get a bunch of kale each week. It's only $1 and lasts me at least 3 lunches. I chop it really small and then cook it with some dehydrated vegetable mix and then whatever other veg or seasonings I want plus a protein. I pick kale because it is cheap, highly nutritious, and you can get a lot of bulk for low calories. Two of my favorites are curry seasoning with a little light coconut milk and chicken or salmon, the other is soy or Bragg's aminos with sesame oil and egg.
I also like chicharrones with avocado/guacamole, cucumber slices with green olives, carrots and celery with hummus, apple or banana with nuts or nut butter.2 -
For dipping hummus, I replaced grain based crunchy carriers with crunchy raw vegetable carriers.6
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I’ve started asking for a bowl of bell pepper slices in leiu of chips for salsa at mexican restaurants7
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moonangel12 wrote: »Carrier foods - as in chips, crackers, bread, etc. Things that aren’t the focal point of the meal/snack, just used as support of whatever food you are truly wanting to eat but isn’t as appetizing on it’s own.
ETA: more clarification - foods that sometimes quite literally “carry” the food to your mouth. I like port wine cheese, but not by itself. So the cracker I use to eat it would be the carrier.
My mother calls lobster a "butter delivery device."23 -
I bake tortilla chips in the oven which saves some calories from the store bought fried variety. (Can't wait to get an air fryer). Also baked some pita chips yesterday which were so good with my hummus0
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Hereabouts, I can get a thing called "Coco Lite Pop Cakes." They're about the size of a small tortilla, but crispy. 20 calories. Good with cheese or even peanut butter, but will get soggy with anything really liquid-y, or if microwaved with borderline fluid things like cream cheese. Come in multiple flavors, link below is to whole wheat version.
https://cocofoods.com/product/coco-lite-whole-wheat/
Lots of veggies work as a carrier, especially large crispy ones that hold shape sliced thin. Think jicama, celeriac, etc. You know about dipper-carriers like celery. Consider leafy things with some body, like Romaine lettuce or Belgian endive.4 -
Flavoured rice cakes. Salt and vinegar or sweet chilli are my favourites. Great dipped in humous or salsa.1
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Raw veg.1
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Red cabbage. I am diabetic and chips don’t play well with my blood glucose. Cabbage also works as a great wrap. When roasted and salted it’s more similar to chips, but it’s too raw as well.
I also like slices of radish or cucumber.0 -
Yum - jicama... I haven’t had any of that in years! I went looking for it a while back but no luck. Celeriac is actually one thing I have never really tried before (that I know of), and i tend to be a bit more adventurous with food (although not as much as my parents because I don’t have the time or food budget for what they make/eat).0
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moonangel12 wrote: »Yum - jicama... I haven’t had any of that in years! I went looking for it a while back but no luck. Celeriac is actually one thing I have never really tried before (that I know of), and i tend to be a bit more adventurous with food (although not as much as my parents because I don’t have the time or food budget for what they make/eat).
Tastes a little like celery, only milder, maybe a bit sweeter/nuttier. Texture is very different: Similar to other root veg. Good cooked or raw.1 -
@moonangel12 - baby carrots, bell peppers and celery!0
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Broccoli, sliced cucumber and radishes, cauliflower, peppers, carrots, sliced beets,celery are great for hummus.0
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Cauliflower, carrots, Trader Joe’s multigrain crackers (about 10 cal/cracker)0
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I haven't bought crackers in six months or so. Would always start out intending to eat five or ten at the most but end up eating a whole sleeve. I cut one large slice of whole-wheat toast into nine pieces and pile high onto those instead. It's enough to "carry" most of the tuna salad made from a 5-ounce can.0
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Wasa whole grain crisp bread— it’s like a slice of hearty cracker and very filling.1
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I like corn thins which are basically rice cakes but half the height.
Usually I spread some whipped cream cheese on it topped with lower sodium turkey slices.0 -
cosmichvoyager wrote: »Wasa whole grain crisp bread— it’s like a slice of hearty cracker and very filling.
Thanks for mentioning! I haven’t had Wasa in a while because my local grocery doesn’t carry it, but I need to find some. It’s good with fancier spreads and cheeses.0 -
Rice crackers: 16 of them for only 120 calories. I recently re-discovered them and they presently my go-to "carriers" for everything lol0
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moonangel12 wrote: »Yum - jicama... I haven’t had any of that in years! I went looking for it a while back but no luck. Celeriac is actually one thing I have never really tried before (that I know of), and i tend to be a bit more adventurous with food (although not as much as my parents because I don’t have the time or food budget for what they make/eat).
I use Jicama tortillas for tacos, fajitas, etc. I'm lucky that my local grocery stores sells them pre-sliced, but you can make your own with a large mandolin slicer.2 -
mom23mangos wrote: »I use Jicama tortillas for tacos, fajitas, etc. I'm lucky that my local grocery stores sells them pre-sliced, but you can make your own with a large mandolin slicer.
So talk to me @mom23mangos because the other day I was staring at this HUGE (and somewhat ugly looking) vegetable in my <national brand chain> store's produce aisle. Do you just slice and oven bake? Slice and deep fry <which might be more Calories than I am willing to spend>? Boil, mash+process, and then bake into chips? Eat raw? Dehydrate? What's the procedure here?!?!?!
Is it worth experimenting with Jicama during my next mad scientist session... or should I just continue my quest for a relatively low calories for what you get chocolate based healthy meal replacement desert like concoction based on sweet potatoes, or probably on mango or pumpkin next time I play based on my current stock of cans in pantry!?!?!?! 
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Baked Cheetos
Toasted cheezits
Apples 🍎 sliced
Granola y nuts
Toast plain or jelly wheat 🌾
A few others but minds gone blank lol-1 -
mom23mangos wrote: »I use Jicama tortillas for tacos, fajitas, etc. I'm lucky that my local grocery stores sells them pre-sliced, but you can make your own with a large mandolin slicer.
So talk to me @mom23mangos because the other day I was staring at this HUGE (and somewhat ugly looking) vegetable in my <national brand chain> store's produce aisle. Do you just slice and oven bake? Slice and deep fry <which might be more Calories than I am willing to spend>? Boil, mash+process, and then bake into chips? Eat raw? Dehydrate? What's the procedure here?!?!?! Is it worth experimenting with Jicama during my next mad scientist session... or should I just continue my quest for a relatively low calories for what you get chocolate based healthy meal replacement desert like concoction based on sweet potatoes, or probably on mango or pumpkin next time I play based on my current stock of cans in pantry!?!?!?!
Raw, dude. Raw.
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mom23mangos wrote: »I use Jicama tortillas for tacos, fajitas, etc. I'm lucky that my local grocery stores sells them pre-sliced, but you can make your own with a large mandolin slicer.
So talk to me @mom23mangos because the other day I was staring at this HUGE (and somewhat ugly looking) vegetable in my <national brand chain> store's produce aisle. Do you just slice and oven bake? Slice and deep fry <which might be more Calories than I am willing to spend>? Boil, mash+process, and then bake into chips? Eat raw? Dehydrate? What's the procedure here?!?!?! Is it worth experimenting with Jicama during my next mad scientist session... or should I just continue my quest for a relatively low calories for what you get chocolate based healthy meal replacement desert like concoction based on sweet potatoes, or probably on mango or pumpkin next time I play based on my current stock of cans in pantry!?!?!?!
Raw, dude. Raw.
Exactly. Simple and easy.
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My budget (and fingers) may end up not liking you two if I either end up wasting a Jicama, or pull a mandolin accident!!!!
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My budget (and fingers) may end up not liking you two if I either end up wasting a Jicama, or pull a mandolin accident!!!!
Get some cut proof gloves, for serious. If I hadn’t been wearing mine today while slicing daikon on the mandolin I would have taken the base of my palm clean off!
Also: daikon makes a great carrier.2 -
mom23mangos wrote: »I use Jicama tortillas for tacos, fajitas, etc. I'm lucky that my local grocery stores sells them pre-sliced, but you can make your own with a large mandolin slicer.
So talk to me @mom23mangos because the other day I was staring at this HUGE (and somewhat ugly looking) vegetable in my <national brand chain> store's produce aisle. Do you just slice and oven bake? Slice and deep fry <which might be more Calories than I am willing to spend>? Boil, mash+process, and then bake into chips? Eat raw? Dehydrate? What's the procedure here?!?!?! Is it worth experimenting with Jicama during my next mad scientist session... or should I just continue my quest for a relatively low calories for what you get chocolate based healthy meal replacement desert like concoction based on sweet potatoes, or probably on mango or pumpkin next time I play based on my current stock of cans in pantry!?!?!?!
Off topic but I’m really interested in pumpkin chocolate dessert-like concoctions!1 -
Haven't tried a pumpkin choco or mango choco (hence the *new* experimental aspect!) Couple of years back was trying various "start from brownie" and substitute apple sauce and add <various>
The goal being: can hand carry, bite in it, tastes good, is filling, doesn't kill calorie budget
Sweet potato came out quite good and had I managed to progress past hand mashing to totally lump free would have worked quite well for feeding others!
Now to find the approximate ratios based and the recipe somewhere in my MFP recipes or meals!!!!
Will seriously have to look into the cut resistant gloves. I stopped using mandolins due to my propensity to need bandaids or waste half the item!0
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