Let’s Eat! | Healthy Meal Ideas Packed with Flavor, Not Salt
Courtney Carter
/ Categories: WELLNESS, 2024

Let’s Eat! | Healthy Meal Ideas Packed with Flavor, Not Salt

Cutting down on salt is one of the kindest things we can do for our health. From reducing blood pressure and the risk of a heart attack to helping with liver and kidney health, a low-salt diet simply does a body good.

Fortunately, there are plenty of recipes that make it easy to skimp on salt but not flavor. Here are just two options to slip into your menu rotation. My guess is everyone will be too busy enjoying their meal to even notice the lack of salt.

 

Southwest Turkey Burger

Serves 4   

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound ground turkey breast

  • 1/2 cup no-salt-added canned black beans, rinsed and drained

  • 3 scallions, green part only, finely chopped

  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

  • 3/4 teaspoon chili powder

  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

  • 1 serrano or jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped (optional)

  • Cooking spray

  • 4 burger or other type of sandwich rolls

  • 1-2 cups lettuce, chopped 

  • 4 tomato slices

  • 1 avocado, peeled and sliced

  • 1/4 medium onion, red or white, sliced

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 450°F.

  2. In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, black beans, scallions, garlic powder, cumin, and chili powder, black pepper, and serrano or jalapeno pepper until blended. Form into 4 patties.

  3. Lightly coat a medium frying pan with cooking spray. Cook burger patties, covered, until they reach 165°F, roughly 4 minutes per side.

  4. Serve cooked patties on buns, topping lettuce, tomato, avocado, and onion. 

 

Air Fryer Crispy Chicken

Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup all-purpose, gluten-free, or whole wheat flour  

  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, or, 2 teaspoons dried parsley, crumbled

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground oregano

  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional), or 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

  • 1/2 to 1 cup low-fat buttermilk

  • 1/2 tablespoon red hot-pepper sauce, or to taste (optional)

  • 1/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs

  • 1/3 cup shredded or grated Parmesan cheese

  • 1 pound chicken tenders or boneless skinless breasts pounded to ¼”

  • Cooking spray

Directions:

  1. Preheat the air fryer to 390°F.

  2. In a shallow dish or pie pan, whisk together the flour, parsley, oregano, pepper and cayenne.

  3. In a separate shallow dish, whisk together the buttermilk and hot sauce. In a third shallow dish or pie pan, stir together the crispbread crumbs and Parmesan. Set the dishes and a large plate in a row, assembly-line fashion.

  4. Pat chicken pieces dry then dip in the flour mixture, turn to coat evenly. Shake lightly to remove excess. Then dip in the buttermilk mixture, again turning and shaking lightly when done. Next, place the chicken in the breadcrumbs and gently press the mixture on the chicken so that it sticks.

  5. Arrange chicken pieces in a single layer in the air fryer basket, leaving space between each piece. You may need to cook in batches. Cook for 5-7 minutes on each side  , or until the chicken reaches 165°F and the coating is golden brown. Serve with no- or low-salt dipping sauces such as barbecue, honey mustard, or chipotle mayonnaise.

 

For more low-salt recipes, visit the USDA’s MyPlate website.

Kristin Irace, RD, LDN, is a registered dietitian in in-patient, renal dialysis, oncology, and cardiac rehab services at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center.

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Moving Forward Safely

One of the most frustrating and anxiety-producing traits of our COVID –19 pandemic is how much uncertainty is involved in all aspects of this disease. Symptoms caused by the Coronavirus, age groups affected, the usefulness of medications, anticipated death rate, and the timeline for development of a vaccine are examples of information that sometimes change on a weekly basis.

Vermonters have done a great job of limiting the spread of the virus and protecting our most vulnerable neighbors by following the Governor's "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order over the past few months. Now, we've all been directed to wear masks in public. Both Bennington and Wilmington's Select Boards have passed local mandates requiring masks in public places. Thanks to these efforts—along with distancing, handwashing, and other factors—Vermont is among the states with the fewest number of infections. Continuing each of these important infection-prevention strategies is crucial to returning to a more normal way of life.

As we open up and begin to re-connect, we fully expect to see a rise in COVID –19 cases in Vermont. Thankfully, we have had time to prepare for this increase. We also have adequate PPE, and increased testing will help us gather crucial information for stemming the spread with less disruption to our normal lives.

More than ever, I find it helpful to focus on what we have learned and how it can help us move forward safely. Here is some of what we have learned so far: Most large hospitals, often treating over 1000 COVID patients daily, effectively protected their workers by obsessively following the rules of screening, hygiene, distancing, and masking. Each of these components is designed to work together; Each alone has its inherent limits.

  • Absent quick testing at the workplace, the best screening is asking employees if they have COVID-like symptoms (fever, chills, new cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, loss of taste or smell) and to stay home if they do.
  • Washing our hands (or using sanitizer) after touching well-handled items or visiting populated areas. Washing your hands 10 times daily is not too often.
  • Though an uncovered sneeze or cough can travel farther, 6 feet distancing continues to be the sweet spot for safety.
  • Masks (double layer cotton and surgical) are effective to prevent spreading of large and some small droplets containing virus. They also seem to give some minimal protection to those wearing a mask. Since possibly 40 percent of transmission happens when we do not have symptoms, we wear our masks to protect others and to suppress overall infection rate. They also help many people (not all) to avoid touching their face. The downside is a warm chin; the upside is you may be protecting someone from a significant illness. Masks are not a symbol of government intrusion. Masks are simply a tool to protect others and show empathy.

It is difficult to predict how many COVID-19 infections will occur in our communities in the coming months. What I am certain of is that our choices, on where we go and what we do, often affect the safety of those around us. As we learn to live with this virus in our community, following the recommendation above will help us all.

Marie George, MD, is SVMC’s infectious disease specialist.

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