If you think that eating healthy at a Chinese restaurant is an impossible thing, just believe me it can be managed! Though, a tasty Chinese food can be prepared healthier at home, being in a restaurant shouldn’t make you thinking like you are in a “food coma.” All you need is just to order right things if you want to eat healthy. But when it doesn’t matter to you, you can easily have a 1,500 calorie meal without even knowing it. Check out a few ways to eat healthy at a Chinese restaurant!
1. Light on the oil
Each time when you hope you are ordering a healthy Chinese food, you get it so impregnated in vegetable oil that it’s no longer a healthy alternative. You just need to ask your waiter to request the chef to make it light on the oil, or tell you prefer your food be steamed instead of fried. In such way, you will avoid unnecessary fat and calories whilst still enjoying the marvelous taste of the ethnic meal! Such easy request will save you from more than 300 calories yet being delicious!
2. Steamed rice
You probably know that fried rice is the simplest thing to choose if you want to eat healthy at a Chinese restaurant. While white rice is considered to be unhealthy, steamed white rice is a better option. It doesn’t contain any harmful fats if to compare with fried rice and it will also fill you up and give some temporary pleasure. But the best way will be to ask your waiter if they can serve brown rice instead!
3. Drink tea
Drinking teas with no sugar is not only tasty, but they give lots of health benefits as well! You can select a green tea, jasmine tea or an oolong tea; be sure it will not have any calories if you don’t put any sugar. Moreover, it’s much better than any other hot drinks that you like.
4. Order a soup
A bowl of hot soup contains plenty of vegetables and it will fill you up instantly! Bouillons are extremely low in calories, and are also an ideal option to begin with. When lots of dishes are coated or fried in a creamy sauce, soups give sufficient nutrition for minimum calories.
5. Share
It is a well-known fact that almost every restaurant gives enough meal for at least two persons and a Chinese restaurant does the same. To avoid unnecessary food and still be satisfied, choose any salad with a vinegar sauce to begin with – one more way to get additional greens! If you come alone to the restaurant, just ask your waiter to box up half of your food when you get it.
6. Sauce on the side
Very often the worst part of a Chinese food is the sauce that is put in it. Extremely rich in monosodium glutamate, sodium, fat and sugar it always makes you feel overfull for many hours ahead. If you are sensitive to gluten, put the sauce aside and enjoy your delicious meal without having any stomach issues that will come afterwards. Order the sauce on the side and you could add as much of it to your meal as you wish.
7. Double veggies
If you do not know what is healthier than brown rice, simply choose double veggies! Greens are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and phytonutrients. You will be full and satisfied for several hours. But, order steamed vegetables, not coated in oil or sauce, which will leave you more pleased when your little Chinese experience will come to the end!
Keep these tips in mind, and be sure that Chinese food won’t disappoint you! Just know that enjoying your most loved Chinese dishes shouldn’t leave you feeling tired, flabby and overfull. Would you like to try some of these healthy ways? If not, please share what kind of food are you going to order next time you are in a Chinese restaurant?