mexican food

Jacole18
Jacole18 Posts: 716 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
one of the reasons I am so overweight is my love for mexican food. I'm talkin' full on love affair.....twice a day at minimum.....so I'm wondering how I can incorporate mexican food into my new lifestyle? Any suggestions?

Replies

  • TrishJimenez
    TrishJimenez Posts: 561 Member
    cook with cilantro a lot, make up your own home made pico de gallo and add it to a lot of your foods as toppings. Just make your own home made Mexican food and adjust it to be more healthy? My fiance is full blood Mexican and believe me I have been eating a lot of Mexican food myself and I also love it. But it really inst all that bad for you as long as you limit the cheese and sour creme
  • wanderingwest
    wanderingwest Posts: 42
    Salsa! It is low fat, good for you and low in calories. I love it over squash, baby potatoes, brown rice.... etc.
  • smkey
    smkey Posts: 121 Member
    I have essentially lived on the burrito-a-day diet...
    I make my own meat mixture - many different versions of beef or chicken or even port - add quinoa, a veggie mix, beans, &/or rice with some low fat cheese in a wheat tortilla. I add organic salsa and 505 Green Chili. Good to go. Delicious and usually around 400 calories!
  • LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo
    LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo Posts: 3,634 Member
    I love Mexican foods also being a half-Mexican myself & I don't think that I can survive without having an occassional burrito, taco, quesadilla, chili etc. But since those foods are so high in calories so I suggest having it once a week or as trisharrell said, make your own version so in that way you can adjust the ingredients. I make my own tacos at home & my mom would cook Chilis. Also chicken fajitas are more healthy & lesser in calories. Also use tomato-based salsa instead of sour cream or cheese in dipping your nachos.
  • kschhr
    kschhr Posts: 103 Member
    Best way is to make burrito bowls! Some brown rice (seasoned with cilantro and lime juice), lots of lettuce, black beans, as many veggies as you'd like (I usually like making veggie fajitas with different colors of bell pepper, onion, pasilla peppers, anaheim chiles.. whatever I have, at the moment!), and use salsa as dressing. I always make homemade salsa too, so I know exactly what's in it. And it's super easy to make! Even cheap, if you don't use entirely fresh ingredients. Think a can of whole unseasoned tomatoes (low sodium is best), some distilled white vinegar (to taste), a jalapeno, and some cilantro. Blend it all up and you've got yourself some mighty fine salsa. And of course you can add some avocado to your bowl too! It's really a taco salad, if not a burrito bowl. :)
  • darlilama
    darlilama Posts: 794 Member
    Agree… you can lose the tortillas/shells and use lots of cilantro, pico de gallo, or salsa to kick up the flavor. Obviously, at home, you can use lean meat (maybe even ground turkey or chicken) and "baked" nacho chips for some crunch. I hate to say it, cuz I love it, but it's best to ditch the sour cream and cheese… although small amounts of low-fat sour cream and 2% milk cheese might satisfy the "need". :D For a quick have-to-have spicy lunch, I love Taco Bell's Crunchy Tacos FRESCO STYLE. I actually like them better than their regular tacos!
  • unsuspectingfish
    unsuspectingfish Posts: 1,176 Member
    I've been called an honorary Mexican (I grew up in a town with a large Mexican community). I basically live off rice and beans, these days. I think the key is just keeping the portions small, cutting down on or cutting out the meat, limiting the cheese and such, and stuff like that.
  • inlander
    inlander Posts: 339 Member
    make your own at home. keep away from the lard, soak/boil your own pinto beans, cook your own rice, and google some healthy versions of your favorite entrees. to me, the only way to eat what i love is to make it myself so i have complete control over how many calories are in each portion.
  • taurie
    taurie Posts: 225 Member
    I love Mexican food!!! There a lots of healthy Mexican dishes...

    baja shrimp tacos (recipe from goop.com - 200 - 500 calories depending on how many side dishes)

    Nacho Grande Salad (I use Vital Ingredient's recipe with light ranch dressing - 500 calories) - AMAZING SALAD!!! Let me know if you want me to email you the recipe for this one.

    Pinto beans and rice with a little feta cheese (1/2 cup rice & 1/2 cup beans, 1 tbs crumbled cheese, salsa & cilantro about 250 calories)

    Chicken fajitas (250 - 500 calories depending on how many sides)


    I use non-fat greek yogurt instead of sour cream, a light guacamole recipe, a little full fat cheese about 15 grams, limes, cilantro, fresh salsa and home-made corn tortillas (hard to find corn tortillas in London)... all these things make it possible to keep the calories low and the dishes healthy without sacrificing flavour.

    When I go out to Mexican restaurants (not many good ones in London unlike California) I stick to ceviche tosadas and salads. I avoid cheese and sour cream in restaurant dishes and limit guacamole to 2 tbs. But I will splurge on a Classic Margarita on the rocks keeping my meal to 500 calories.

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