3 Healthy (And Delicious) Alternatives to Carb-Heavy Side Dishes

Cutting out carbs is one of the biggest hurdles when you’re trying to eat better. They often make up a lot of calories in a meal, especially if you’re eating things like rice and pasta. If you remove those carb-heavy foods, you often end up hungry after a meal which leads to snacking and makes it harder to lose weight. The key is finding some great alternatives to those not as healthy foods so you can still make the meals that you love without a huge pile of carbohydrates on your plate every night. These are some great alternatives to popular carb-heavy foods.

Pasta

Pasta is a dangerous food because it’s often perceived to be very healthy. It’s not too bad for you but it is all carbohydrates and if you’re eating it a lot, you’re going to struggle with losing weight. Whole grain pasta is a must if you are going to eat healthy. It releases energy slower so you’ll stay fuller for longer, but ideally, you want to substitute it for something else. It’s pretty hard because a lot of pasta based meals don’t work without it. You can’t really have a plate of Bolognese on its own without pasta. But you can switch out normal spaghetti for courgette spaghetti. You could buy a spiralizer to make it or you can just slice it into very thin strips. You can fry it or boil it for a few minutes but you could even eat it raw if you like. It makes a great alternative to pasta and adds an extra portion of vegetables to a meal.

Rice

Rice is another one of those side dishes that are hard to replace. There are plenty of healthy curry recipes out there but usually, you’re pairing it with a pile of rice or some bread. Too much of either isn’t great for you. Again whole brown rice is better than white rice, but you could take it one step further and use germinated brown rice instead. You can learn more about germinated brown rice here. White rice is completely dead, while brown rice is what we call ‘asleep.’ Germinated brown rice is still completely alive. White rice is just empty carbs while germinated brown rice has fewer carbs and has a lot more nutritional value. It’s also a lot tastier than white rice or normal brown rice.

Fries

Fries are one of those foods that everybody avoids when they’re trying to eat well but they’re also one of the things that people miss most. Deep fried potatoes are terrible for you but they’re so delicious. The good news is, you can get the same experience with roasted vegetables cut into the shape of fries. Roasted carrots and green beans make a great substitute for a big plate of fries and you’re getting more of your 5 a day! You could also try roasting some sweet potatoes instead of normal ones. They’re still quite starchy but they’re packed full of nutrients and unlike normal potatoes, they count as one of your 5 a day.

Bottom line, if you swap out your carb-heavy sides for these healthier and tastier alternatives, you’ll find it a lot easier to lose weight and get your 5 a day. And you’ll feel better for it!

 

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