Thai food originates from the Thailand. It is influenced by the cuisines of neighboring countries India and China. Authentic Thai food combines ingredients and flavors in a manner that it gives a distinct personality on its own.
Thai cuisine is well known for its distinct sweet, salty and spice flavor. Thai food is delicious and is prepared using a combination of herbs and spices. Many of the herbs used to prepare Thai food have medicinal properties.
Though some types of cuisines are always left alone if you are looking at healthy food options but the good news is that you can choose a galore of healthy options from while dining at a Thai restaurant.
Thai food is made with a combination of vegetables, rice, meat, fruits, sauces and spices. They are cooked quickly and hence retains most of the nutritive values. Secondly, the portion size of the food served is generally small which makes it favorable for all weightwatchers.
Thai food is growing in popularity because of its reliance on lots of colored vegetables and focus on healthy food. However, it is important to choose wisely to make healthy choices as Thai food also offers options of mouth watering temptations of oily dishes, fried appetizers, and palatable dessert.
Let’s understand the healthy Thai food options:
Begin your meal with soup as an appetizer. The water content in the soup will help you feel full quickly and help you eat less when the meal arrives. However it is suggested that you should stay away from cream based soups, instead opt for a clear soup with lots of vegetables and meat.
- Steamed dim sums or dumpling
Avoid fried starters. Choose items that contain the word ‘steamed’. This means that you can choose steamed dumplings or dim sums. You can avoid the extra calories and fat that goes hand in hand with any fried items.
One of the best ways to ensure that you are making healthy food choices is to add vegetables to your meal. You can start with a Thai noodle salad, or Sam Tum(Green Papaya salad).
Boiled or steamed rice should be the preferred option to fried rice which is cooked using lots of oil and hence adds unnecessary fats and calories. Boiled or steamed rice with vegetables is one of the best way to enjoy a low cal Thai cuisine.
- Grilled or steamed fish, poultry and fish
Grilled or steamed fish or poultry can be a healthier option to creamy vegetables which are cooked using large amount of high fat coconut milk. You can also choose steamed or grilled mussels with Thai herbs and garlic sauce.
Choices to watch
- Coconut or fried rice as they have high fat content.
- Thai curries and dishes cooked with coconut cream as they have high caloric value
- Satay dishes as they are cooked using high fat peanut sauce
- All deep fried dishes such as spring rolls, prawn toasts, crispy noodles etc
- Pad Thai noodles are stir fried with lots of oil to keep them sticking to the pan. Ground peanuts add to the fat content. Though noodles are tasty but they are high in simple carbohydrates that can cause blood sugar spikes and can leave you feeling tired. You can opt for brown rice instead of noodles or rice. Brown rice contains more fiber than white rice.
Health Tip
Thai curry is usually made with a paste of garlic, ground chilies, spices and coconut milk which is high in calories. If you cannot avoid the Thai curry, you can eat it along with a second lighter dish and share the curry with others at the table
Well Known Nutritionist, Shamika Kulkarni says, “Thai cuisine can be chosen as a good option of dining out by making healthy choices. Thai clear soups or broth soups and salads which are in non mayo dressing can be chosen. Stir fried, grilled, sautéed or braised options of vegetables, tofu, lean meats or fish are quite nutritious. Choose from lemon grass, lime, curry, sweet and sour, basil, chili, or fish sauce and avoid coconut and coconut based curries. Skip Nam Prik (a spicy pea nut sauce) and Sao Nam(which contain coconut) as both have high fat content.
Dining out not only offers opportunities to try new cuisines but also offers healthy food choices. Making healthy choices when eating out may sound difficult but if you put your thought into what you order, you won’t need to limit your dining out experiences.
