The Low Sodium Cookbook (4 page)

As a rule, try to eat fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables that you prepare yourself whenever you can. When fresh produce isn’t an option, the next best choice is frozen produce that is fresh-frozen in its natural form with no seasonings or sauces added. Canned produce is a distant third, unless you can find low-sodium or no-salt-added versions. Canned soups, stews, and sauces and frozen or prepared meals should be avoided if at all possible, unless you can find versions that are truly low in sodium.

And remember, for every high-sodium food you have to give up, there is a flavorful and satisfying alternative just waiting for you to discover.

Sneaky Sodium

By now you’re probably pretty savvy about recognizing obvious high-sodium foods like salted nuts, chips, and cheeseburgers, but there’s a whole range of foods that stealthily deliver sodium bombs without us even realizing it. To spot them, you have to be vigilant about reading labels and comparing brands.

Many grain-based foods like breads, rolls, and tortillas fall into this sneaky category. A large regular flour tortilla might contain 450 mg of sodium. A regular corn tortilla, on the other hand, can come in with a sodium level as low as 10 mg.

Likewise, instant rice contains as much as 600 mg of sodium per cup, while regular rice cooked without added salt contains almost none (2 mg per cup). Rice cooked with seasonings, such as yellow rice, Spanish rice, or rice pilaf, may top 1,000 mg of sodium per cup.

As previously discussed, condiments are often high in sodium, especially when you consider how much of them you might eat in a sitting. Now let’s look at those little flavor packets that come in boxed rice mixes, noodle soup mixes, or other justadd-water foods. Take ramen soup mix, as an example. That tiny, innocent-looking flavor packet often contains 900 mg of sodium. And the packet that comes in boxed rice mixes often tops 600 mg of sodium per serving.

The breakfast cereal aisle is another minefield for anyone trying to avoid excess sodium. Even the “healthful,” all-natural, no-sugar-added varieties of breakfast cereal are often loaded with sodium. One popular brand of raisin bran contains 280 mg of sodium per serving. And who among us hasn’t gobbled two (or more!) servings while reading the morning paper?

And then there’s the beverage aisle, which might seem like the safest place of all, but even here you have to check labels. For instance, you might be tempted to grab a vegetable juice to sneak in a serving or two of healthful vegetables without really trying, but you’d likely be sneaking in a whopping 480 mg of sodium per serving. Sports drinks, which are designed to replenish sodium that has been lost through sweat, are also, as you’d expect, high in sodium. And even low-fat milk has 100 mg of sodium per cup.

The bottom line is, until this new low-sodium diet becomes second nature for you, you’re going to have to read labels, compare and contrast, research, research, research, and track your sodium intake.

Naturally Low-Sodium Foods

As mentioned previously, there are many delicious, nutritious, and satisfying foods that are naturally low in sodium. Among these are fruits and vegetables (fresh, or frozen without added seasonings); fruits; meats, poultry, and fish (fresh, or frozen without added seasonings); whole grains such as rice, wheat, oats, quinoa, and barley; fresh and dried herbs; spices (excluding spice mixes that contain salt); and flavorful ingredients like citrus juice, vinegar, and unsalted butter.

Alternative Seasonings

The primary use of salt in home cooking, of course, is to add flavor. And no one wants to be sentenced to a diet of bland foods for the rest of their life. Not to worry; there are a million and one ways to spice up your meals without adding even a grain of salt.

Fresh and dried herbs and spices can add complex layers of flavor. From basil, oregano, and thyme to turmeric, smoked paprika, cayenne, or dried mustard, there are many ways to flavor savory dishes with herbs and spices. When using spice mixes, like curry powder, just be sure to check the label for added salt.

There are also herbs and spices that complement sweet dishes as well as savory ones. Ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, and mint are just a few such multipurpose seasonings.

Of course, aromatic vegetables are another source of intense flavors. Onions, garlic, shallots, chilies, and leeks complement meat, fish, or vegetable dishes. Onion powder and garlic powder, too, are a convenient way to add flavor to dishes (just don’t confuse garlic powder with garlic salt).

Vinegars offer tons of seasoning variety, too. To start, there are vinegars made from red wine, white wine, champagne, and sherry. There are fruity vinegars like apple cider, raspberry, or fig. And vinegars come infused with herbs, too, such as tarragon or thyme.

And let’s not forget oils. Ubiquitous olive oil adds fruity and earthy flavor all by itself. Then there are oils infused with fruits, herbs, and spices: Meyer lemon, rosemary, roasted garlic, and other intensely flavored oils pump up the flavor profile of a dish with just a drizzle, and without adding any sodium. And last, but by no means least, toasted sesame oil and chili oil flavor many favorite Asian dishes.

Citrus fruits are another great low-sodium source of flavor. Both the juice and the zest of lemons, limes, oranges, grapefruits, and even kumquats can be used to flavor everything from salad dressings to desserts.

Low-Sodium Substitutes

Several manufacturers make salt substitutes that are designed to both replace salt in cooking and substitute it for seasoning food at the table. These salt substitutes are made primarily of potassium chloride, which is a sodium-free salt (it is made up of potassium and chloride instead of sodium and chloride like table salt). While these substitutes don’t taste or function exactly like salt, they can be used to add a “saltiness” to foods without the sodium.

Check with your doctor before using salt substitutes
. The FDA has warned that although these substitutes are safe for healthy folks, they could be dangerous for people who have kidney disease, diabetes, or heart disease, or who take certain medications.

As more and more people adopt low-sodium diets, food manufacturers are responding with versions of their products with reduced sodium levels. According to the FDA, in order to be labeled “low sodium,” a food must contain less than 140 mg of sodium per serving. When purchasing prepared foods, look for these low-sodium versions, but don’t forget to watch your portion size. What you think of as a serving may not be the same as what’s indicated on the label.

Many canned vegetables and fruits these days can also be found labeled “no salt added.” Remember, this means that no additional salt has been added to the product during cooking or processing, but it doesn’t mean that it is sodium-free. You should still check the label and include the sodium content in your tracking.

CHAPTER FOUR

Low-Sodium Eating

The Low-Sodium Diet Challenge

Talking about a low-sodium diet is all well and good in theory, but actually eating low-sodium food all day, every day is the real challenge. As previously discussed, there are plenty of low-sodium alternatives for your favorite foods, but incorporating them into your diet, and more important, nixing the high-sodium versions, can be difficult.

Remember to drink eight (or more!) glasses of water a day.
Water flushes sodium from your body, which is an important part of reducing blood pressure. Get in the habit of keeping a glass or bottle of water nearby and sipping throughout the day.

Making a change in your diet as drastic as reducing your daily sodium intake from, say, 3,000 mg to the recommended 1,500 mg isn’t easy, but here are the essentials boiled down to five easy-to-remember steps:

1. Stop adding salt to your food, either while cooking or at the table (this includes condiments like soy sauce).
   
2. Limit prepared foods and fast foods to once-in-a-while treats or emergency conveniences. When you do opt for these foods, choose low-sodium versions.
   
3. Get in the habit of reading nutritional information labels and choose foods that are naturally low in sodium.
   
4. Become acquainted (or reacquainted, as the case may be) with your kitchen and spice cabinet. Cook most of your meals at home so that you can control what does and doesn’t get added.
   
5. Choose whole, natural foods over processed foods whenever possible.
   

Eventually, your body will adjust to your new diet and you’ll stop missing the added salt. In fact, you may be surprised to find that within a couple of months you will be so used to low-sodium eating that foods you used to enjoy, like potato chips or French fries, taste much too salty to you now.