Sauce, Butter, Margarine and Cream: Should I Buy Light?
published by stevebond on Nov 6, 2011
Fat, they are in the form of butter, margarine, or cream sauce, are the first foods to limit when making a plan or we just want to control weight. The temptation is strong to solve the problem by buying their light or lite version. Is it a true or false good idea?
Real butter or light butter?
Do not buy butter at 25% fat (MG). This version of ‘ultra light’ is more of the specialty as dairy butter. It has little taste and is very soft, it is tempting to abuse.
If you can not really control your amount of butter, use butter 40% fat. Know that this light version is made possible by adding water.
Ideally, you should learn to cook without fat (steam, grill, work …). Then, for fun, he is allowed to add a knob of butter (light or not) on his vegetables just before serving.
It is advisable to forget the butter for making sauces. Have recourse to funds sauce, mustard, vinegars and other condiments.
How to choose margarine?
Attention to the names and other claims. For example, a margarine that says ‘lowers cholesterol’, is not necessarily reduced. To you therefore to check the actual content of fat.
Choose a margarine 50% fat rather than 60% fat. But do not go below 50% fat, as it will no longer cook and tend to discharge water.
Prefer margarines with omega-3 (either rapeseed oil), beneficial in preventing cardiovascular disease. However, check the balance between omega-3 and omega-6, it must be less than 5.
Also check that it does little or no saturated fat.
Finally, remember that margarine is just as much calories as butter. Quantities, even if it is a lighter margarine, are to closely monitor.
Sour cream: to do, not to
The light version to 15% fat is recommended: one teaspoon provides 17 calories.
However, avoid cream ‘extra light’ to 4 or 5% fat, which has neither the taste nor the texture of the cream.
Avoid frankly cream, light or not, to make whipped cream for the final amount used is impressive.
Know that even whole cream is fewer calories than butter (320 kcal against 740 kcal / 100g).
The salad dressings: what about the lighter?
The tiny versions are only slightly less calories than conventional, which contain less water and also fewer additives (sugars, thickeners). It is not always essential to choose a lighter sauce. It is better to focus on the quantities.
Otherwise, make your own low-fat dressing: emulsify a teaspoon of mustard with a teaspoon of vinegar. Add 3 teaspoons oil and 2 tablespoons water.
