Ideas to lower your fat intake
Select one or two ideas that would work for you.
TO LOWER YOUR FAT INTAKE
Try lower fat substitutes…
- Select a bagel instead of a croissant, pastry or muffin.
- Have pretzels or plain popcorn instead of potato chips.
- Prepare dips or spreads that use cottage cheese or yogurt instead of mayonnaise.
- Choose lower fat products or eat smaller portions.
- Choose fresh fruit with a scoop of vanilla yogurt instead of a piece of pie or cheesecake.
- Try spreads and sauces that contain little or no fat such as jam, relishes, chutneys, mustard, cranberry sauce, mint sauce, tomato sauce or salsa.
In restaurants or away from home…
- Order dressings or sauces on the side—then use a smaller amount.
- Choose menu items that offer low-fat relishes or chutneys instead of traditional high-fat sauces.
- Ask your server how the food has been prepared and request changes if necessary (e.g. smaller portion, salad instead of fries, baked instead of fried).
- Share an order with a friend or take half of it home.
If most of your fat comes from preparation methods…
- Bake, broil, barbeque, microwave, steam, poach or stir-fry with little or no fat.
- Trim visible fat from meat; remove skin from poultry.
- Collect interesting lower fat recipes and try them out.
TO ENSURE ADEQUATE UNSATURATED FAT INTAKE*
- Steam broccoli or cauliflower and drizzle with olive oil.
- Prepare salmon salad, egg salad or tuna salad with a small amount of mayonnaise.
- Dip a crusty bread in olive oil with a little balsamic vinegar.
- Spread a little mayonnaise on your bread when preparing sandwiches.
- Stir-fry vegetables in a little canola oil.
- Dress pasta with olive oil and fresh tomatoes and basil.
- Steam greens such as beet greens, chard, kale or dandelions. Drain and dress with olive oil, fresh ground pepper and lemon juice.
- Keep a favourite salad dressing handy for use on salads. use pesto in soup, with pasta, or on bread. Substitute oils for shortening or lard when frying or baking. Spread tartar sauce on fish.
* Canada’s Food Guide recommends a small amount—2–3 Tbsp. (about 30–45 mL) of unsaturated fat each day.
To find out more about how much fat is in the foods you eat, take a look at FoodTrack Check on Fat.