Help needed for thoughts on low calorie vegetables???

sappyoldlady
sappyoldlady Posts: 49 Member
edited November 9 in Food and Nutrition
Can someone give me some ideas of the lowest calorie vegetables available. I always thought squash, cabbage, and greens almost had no calories but when every I pull them up on here, it looks like I thought wrong....so need some ideas of very low calorie content veggies...thanks!:smile:

Replies

  • Bok Choy
    Might just be the lowest-calorie vegetable on the planet – one cup of the shredded vegetable has exactly 9 calories. You probably know it as an ingredient in wonton soupe, but despite that decidedly mundane use, it’s actually a real health food. It’s loaded with calcium, potassium, beta-carotene, and vitamin A. It’s a member of the brassica family, which means it contains indoles, compounds that have been shown to significantly lower the risk of cancer.

    Peppers
    Low in calories and a well-kept secret as a snack food. They blend with everything. You can eat them raw like an apple, or slice them up and add to salads and stir-fries. The riper the pepper, the better its nutrition and the better its flavor.

    Pumpkin
    We tend to think of pumpkins only at Thanksgiving and Halloween, but this is a really great, overlooked vegetable that is ridiculously low in calories while very high in potassium and vitamin A, not to mention the beta-carotene that is typically found in all orange foods. It’s actually a potassium heavyweight – for a measly 49 calories per cup of mashed pumpkin, it has a whopping 564 mg of potassium (about 33% more than a medium banana).

    Spinach
    Calorie for calorie, green leafy vegetables like spinach provide more nutrients than almost any other food on the planet. It’s loaded with vitamins and is one of the best sources of vitamin K, an essential nutrient critically important for building strong bones. Spinach is also a fine source of calcium and is a great alternative to dairy for people who don’t want to drink milk. It’s also got vitamin A, manganese, folic acid, magnesium, iron, vitamin C, and a powerful anti-inflammatory compound called quercetin.
  • issyfit
    issyfit Posts: 1,077 Member
    In the stir-fry I had last night-these came out the lowest: mushrooms, celery, broccoli, snow peas, onions. Cucumber, spinach and lettuce are also very low.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,422 Member
    All veggies have calories.

    They are still high-value nutritionally, and low in fat. Any veggies are better than none.


    .
  • pethead30
    pethead30 Posts: 15 Member
    Broccoli has about 30 calories for a cup - pretty filling too with all that fiber! Lettuce is extremely low in calories, so if you make a big salad, you can expect about 20 or so calories for the actual lettuce portion (not including oil, etc).
  • sappyoldlady
    sappyoldlady Posts: 49 Member
    thanks everyone!
  • Courgette!
  • HauteP1nk
    HauteP1nk Posts: 2,139 Member
    Lettuce, Spinach, Asparagus, Bok Choy, and Peppers.
  • celery actually takes more calories to digest than it gives you when you eat it. Therefore, it has negative calories!

    Or so I've been told.
  • rbear713
    rbear713 Posts: 220 Member
    Broccoli, snap peas, bell peppers...did anyone say lettuce yet? I'm betting there's more low cal than high cal veggies...but here's a thought: All veggies are very very good for you. Also, too much of any one thing is probably bad for you. So mix and match, and don't worry about extra cals in your veggies - theyre the extra cals to have....
  • CakeFit21
    CakeFit21 Posts: 2,521 Member
    celery actually takes more calories to digest than it gives you when you eat it. Therefore, it has negative calories!

    Or so I've been told.

    Ridiculous.
  • curvygirl512
    curvygirl512 Posts: 423 Member
    Any vegetables with the exception of starchy vegetables like peas and corn will also be low calorie. Also, watch what you put on them--sauces and salt tend to ruin the health benefits of vegetables. If you are looking for something different, try diet soup. It's tomato based with cabbage and other vegetables. I'm sure you can google it and come up with a recipe. Mine has about 15 calories per cup.
  • CakeFit21
    CakeFit21 Posts: 2,521 Member
    Why is it so important that your veggies be SO low cal?
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,247 Member
    If you eat them raw or boil or steam them the vast majority of veg are low calorie, however there is not one food that is "negative calorie" food, not even celery.
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