Salad dressing alternatives

[O'Dannyboy]

So stay away from "low fat" anything, because they're typically loaded with bad oils and artificial additives. (MSG is really bad, and it's in just about everything. It's a "flavor enhancer".)

Yes, I noticed alot of the "salad spices" had MSG in them. I was paying attention for "processed/unnatural" ingredients. I have been making a concerted effort to avoid anything and everything artificial including preservatives.

[GentleGiant]

No matter what you use for a salad dressing, here is a practice that my wife and I started doing when eating salad.

Instead of pouring the dressing over the salad, (and mixing it around), do this...

Pour a little of the dressing into a small container, then dip your fork into the dressing before spearing your salad. You will use less dressing that way, therefore eating less of it, and you still get plenty of the good taste of whatever dressing you are using.

[Khristeeanos]

Fat is not what makes people fat, it's carbs.

I strongly disagree.

Lack of exercise and an improper diet is what makes people fat, with heavy emphasis on the lack of exercise.

[angels4u]

Olive Oil and Balsamic vinegar. Tastes good with pretty much any herb you like in the mix, so experiment with spices. Olive oil contains the good kinds of fat (not the ones you want to be losing) so don't worry about that.

Thats how I make my salda dressing too, you can take 1Tbls oil and 2 Tbls balsamic vinegar and mix 1 tsp suger with it, its very tasty and good for you.

Good fats do not make you fat only if you eat too much of it. It keeps you healthy

[Khristeeanos]

Fat is not what makes people fat, it's carbs.

I strongly disagree.

Lack of exercise and an improper diet is what makes people fat, with heavy emphasis on the lack of exercise.

Please Click Here for a page of articles on what it is that makes people fat. And my point in what I said was that the low-fat diet has not only failed to reduce the rate of obesity in this country, it has greatly contributed to a major increase.

I see what you are saying. Thank you and forgive me please.

[irishcowboy]

I am trying to loose 40 lbs by spring/summer. Lately I have found myself eating less fattening foods. I have even resorted to eating salads pretty regularly. Protein bars for breakfast, popcorn for snacks and salads for dinner are beginning to pay off. Lately I have begun to notice how many calories (especially fat calories) are in our beloved salad dressings. If you look at all the different brands they average about 70 calories per 2 Tbsp, which I find ridiculous. I like salad dressing and perhaps I may put too much on mine, but just think about how much dressing you put on yours. I would be willing to bet its more than two tablespoons full. When you finally add up the calories for the dressing alone you may as well have had that Big Mac.

So, I find myself trying to find alternatives to the store bought dressings that I might find less fattening without sacrificing flavor. One thought I had was a can of chili, at 220 calories its not as bad as one might think. I have seen some web sites that recommended peanut butter, but that just didn't sound very tasty for dinner food. I also notice just today that SALSA, at only 5 calories per 2 Tbsp, might be a very good salad toping, perhaps to mix with some refried beans, who knows.

Anyhow, I would like to know what you think of my ideas and would appreciate and suggestions for other potential low calorie toppings.

My wife is on a No fat, No salt, No sugar program.

these are just a few things to be looking for when shopping. Look at the package of sausage you have in your freezer or fridge, i would venture to say that package of pork sausage has 400 mg of sodium or MORE.

Creamy Ranch dressing 14 g ( not mg, but full 14 grams) of fat, 260 mg of sodium per serving, and a serving is only two Table Spoons, not a quarter cup, a serving is only one ounce. most people use way more then that, i know I do, i probably use about 4 servings to make my salad the way i like it.

We like Dorothy Lynch salad dressing. my wife has been working on getting a good match with it, (my grandmother was given the recipe by Dorothy Lynch herself) changing things with the ingredients to make it with less sugars, with less sodium and with less fats.

the problem with most salad dressings are that they have ( as a base ingredient ) OIL.

we use Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and then add less of it to the mixture then what one would normally add. and adding other ingredients for flavor ( spices and herbs )

my wife lost 40 pounds in about 3 months on this program. it is not a diet, but a life style, which we are all switching to. we are not cooking three different meals to satisfy everyone, we are cooking a very large meal and then setting up dinner plates and placing them in the freezer. makes for a very nice dinner when in a hurry ( like wednesday nights, coming in from work and school and then rushing to get dinner before church )

this "program" sounds like a diabetics program, there are 6 meals every day.

example:

breakfast: 2 egg whites ( hard boiled ) yokes removed and given to Princess ( our dog )

1/2 cup oatmeal with a couple drops of maple flavor, and splenda.

1 cup gratefruit juice

am snack: 2 oz Turkey Breast sausage (homemade with no sodium, sugar or fat) using spices to get flavor

1/2 cup fresh berries ( or frozen with no sugar added )

lunch: 2 oz chicken breast ( striped of skin, fat and bone, boiled to remove more fat and salt (with spices in water) then baked or grilled )

1/2 cup rice or tator ( no butter, or salt,) or other carb.

1 cup vegies ( green beans, cucumber, brocolli....( not peas or corn ) or 1/2 cup carrots.

pm snack #1 like the am snack

dinner: simular to lunch

pm snack #2 1/2 oz protien and 1/2 cup fruit.

this is a tough program to do, for it also incorporates exercise to the program.... and cooking seems to be a big chore if done every day, so we do it one day a week and make up several meals.....

this evening will be setting up to make "5 Alarm Chili" that is salt, sugar and fat free, in a large roasting pan, will cook for about 12 hours. ( will be using about 7 pounds of ground turkey, and a couple pounds of beans and several tomatoes and other spices and such )

something to keep in mind, spices and herbs have medical properties, Garlic and Ginger for a couple are like blood thinners, others have other valuable uses too.

mike

by the way, staying with this program, she drinks at least 100 ounces of water a day ( over three quarts, most the time almost a gallon) in addition to any juice or coffee or other things she drinks..... soda is a killer as far as sodium and sugar..... Diet Right has sodium free sodas, and several flavors too....