what to order at Mexican Restaurants

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clh5p
clh5p Posts: 1
in Food and Nutrition
Someone help me! My friends and family meet after church every Sunday and Wednesday night at a local mexican restaurant. I want to continue going but everything there is so bad for you! Is there a certain way I can ask for things to be cooked? Help!

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  • dmpizza
    dmpizza Posts: 3,321 Member
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    It depends on the restaurant.
    If you think they can do steak or chicken fajitas as just grilled meat then maybe that's a choice.
    I think you just might need too use portion control in most restaurants.
  • daydream58
    daydream58 Posts: 572 Member
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    I don't eat out much, never did - prefer controlling my food too much I suppose... but a quick google search yielded a ton of results... should be a good idea or two in all of those links!

    http://www.google.ca/#sclient=psy-ab&hl=en&source=hp&q=how+to+order+mexican+food+healthy&pbx=1&oq=how+to+order+mexican+food+healthy&aq=f&aqi=g-j1&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=1250l7978l0l8151l49l20l4l15l16l2l230l3303l1.14.5l33l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.,cf.osb&fp=96000accdc07d369&biw=1280&bih=820
  • tiedye
    tiedye Posts: 331 Member
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    Do they have any salads on the menu? I love a good tex mex salad! Otherwise, if you have them hold the cheese and sour cream, go for whole beans vs refried beans or any beans that include chunks of pork, eat light colored meat vs red meat, and squeeze in as many veggies as you can!

    Also, try to get an extra workout in on those days, eat light the rest of the day, and drink plenty of water :)
  • annabellj
    annabellj Posts: 1,337 Member
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    grilled veggies and fajitas. dont eat the darn chips! if you cant handle that, ask them to eat somewhere else. i usually cant go to mexican. or if you wan t the chips, eat that only with some guac and count that as your lunch. soemtimes i do that at home and it is satisfyin.
  • eeeekie
    eeeekie Posts: 1,011 Member
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    I usually do fajitas or grilled fish tacos.

    Corn tortillas are always the better option of the two (flour or corn). I believe they have roughly 35-50 calories per tortilla compared to flour which is usually over 200 calories per tortilla (depending on size).

    Mexican is my weakness!!!
  • NancyAnne1960
    NancyAnne1960 Posts: 500 Member
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    My thoughts, and what I try to do... Corn tortilla, not flour..... beans, not rice ..... salsa, not sour cream.... chicken over beef or pork..... lots of water (sodium will get you)..... and nothing deep fried .... watch proportions as well, eat slowly, and when you are full, put the fork down. I absolutely love mexican food, and it's taken time to trade out some of these things, but now that I do, I definately feel a lot better. Good luck to you, and most important, enjoy the company you are with!! :bigsmile:
  • RedHotRunner
    RedHotRunner Posts: 850 Member
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    I'll usually order some fish tacos a la carte and if they come wrapped in double tortillas, take one off.

    We also have a couple of restaurants here that will have chicken or fish bowls. Just black beans and rice topped with either chicken or fish. That's not too bad of a choice either (the Wahoo's kids fish bowl has less then 300 calories)
  • Mom2M_and_O
    Mom2M_and_O Posts: 214
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    I've had good luck with fajita skillets/salads with no tortillas or chips. Also, if you go to a restaurant that serves milanesa, that's a very calorie-efficient meal, particularly if you order chicken.
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
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    Fajitas are usually always good. Steak Ranchero if they have it. Tacos al gobernador is another fav.
  • cherbapp
    cherbapp Posts: 322
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    Do you have a friend who is also watching what they eat? This has been my lifesaver when we do girls night...she and I split a meal. Not only does it cut the calories in half, but the bill is less too! It's a win-win! :)
  • MsRoxyPepper
    MsRoxyPepper Posts: 109 Member
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    grilled veggie or chicken fajitas, no sourcream. or try a salad with grilled chicken, use salsa for dressing. lots of water (with lemon) try to focus on the company not the food.

    portion control, if you must put half away right up front. i used to be embarrased by this but it makes it soo much easier to eat less and you get the satisfaction of a clean plate. good luck =)
  • Rachaelluvszipped
    Rachaelluvszipped Posts: 768 Member
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    Grilled steak, Grilled chicken, Grilled Shrimp, etc on a salad,
    whole beans vs refried beans
    corn tortillas

    Love some fresh salsa and guacamole!!:love:

    Or just plan accordingly, and tear it up at the gym to be able to eat those exercise calories back and eat what you like :wink:

    And plan for a spike day on the other day...no worries...:flowerforyou:
  • liftingbro
    liftingbro Posts: 2,029 Member
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    Fajitas are usually always good. Steak Ranchero if they have it. Tacos al gobernador is another fav.

    That's what I do. The only issue then would be portion control as most Mexican places I've been to give you a huge plate full of stuff and then chips and salsa before that.

    I typically endup eating half of the fajita and skipping the chips and I take the rest home for another meal.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    Tacos on corn tortillas, chicken, fish, or shrimp. Black beans.
    Fajitas.

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