A Matter of Fat

Practical Tips to Reduce Fat in Any Meal

Each Teaspoon = 4 grams of fat (36 Calories)

Substitution: Choose lower fat products. Dairy products, processed meats, and prepared foods, such as salad dressings, mayonnaise, and other foods, such as cookies, are often available in lower fat versions. Read the labels to compare the amount of fat per serving Watch the serving size - just because you choose the lower fat version doesn't mean that you can use twice as much.

Food Preparation: Use lower fat cooking methods - broiling, grilling, barbecuing, roasting or stir-frying in a small amount of oil. Use an oiled non-stick pans and/or less oil when pan-frying to reduce the fat. Deep fry foods only occasionally.

Use lower fat ingredients in recipes, such as lower fat mayonnaise in tuna or egg salad, or lower fat yogurt in a vegetable dip rather than regular sour cream. Try tomato based sauces on pasta instead of cream sauces.

Trim fat from meat.

Remove skin from poultry.

Processed Foods: Check fat content on labels of processed or packaged foods. Some processed foods, such as baked goods, have a considerable amount of fat.

Add-on Fats: Season vegetables with herbs. Remove the fat from gravies. Use less spread, such as butter/margarine or mayonnaise, on breads.

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