Fast food
When eating out or ordering takeaway ensure that you enjoy yourself without over-indulging. Zotrim will help you to stay in control so you don’t eat too much. Some restaurants now display the number of calories each meal contains on the menu so keep an eye out of these to help you.
We’ve done the research for you, so you don’t have too; here is a list of popular cuisines with a breakdown of what to, and what not to eat:
Chinese and Thai
A good choice as these meals contain lots of vegetables and not too much fat apart from the obvious deep-fried items. Most menus give descriptions of the ingredients in the dish and how it is cooked.
Good Not so good
Soup Prawn crackers
Crispy duck Spring Rolls
Noodles Sweet and sour dishes
Stir-fries Spare ribs
Steamed dishes Fried rice
Plain boiled rice
Top tip: If overeating is a potential problem, using chopsticks can usually slow down eating and reduce overall consumption.
Japanese and Noodle Bars
Probably the healthiest choice you can make with a wide choice of rice, noodles, vegetables, fish and meat containing a limited amount of fat.
Greek
Greek meals are built around salad, vegetables, bread, pasta and rice and are therefore generally healthy. They do rely on a lot of olive oil which is actually pretty healthy but like most things, not in excess.
Good Not so good
Tzatziki, hummus, pitta bread Fried Foods e.g. Calamari
Greek salad with feta cheese
Grilled meats and fish
Kebabs
Stuffed peppers, tomatoes
Vine leaves
Plain rice
Boiled potatoes
Greek yogurt
Fruit
Italian
Italian restaurants can be healthy and low calorie but creamy sauces such as carbonara can add a lot of calories to your pasta. Those great tasting pizzas are usually very high in calories with 200 – 350 calories per slice; that’s up to 2000 calories in a whole pizza! Opt for a ‘lighter’ version with less cheese and ensure to have a side salad.
Good Not so good
Bread and breadsticks Pizza
Minestrone soup Creamy sauces e.g. carbonara
Pastas
Tomato-based sauces
French
Look for simple meals on the menu, grilled meat or fish with fresh vegetables is a good choice. But be careful when the cheese platter comes out!
Good Not so good
Bread Whitebait
Grilled, steamed, poached Fried, sautéed, au gratin, battered
Baked, casseroled or roasted Creamed, buttered
Poultry
Rice
Boiled potatoes
Indian
Menus usually explain what each dish contains and sometimes how it has been cooked. However, Indian food can be calorie charged.
Good Not so good
Soups e.g. lentils (dahl) Samosas, crispy rolls
Raita Fried starters
Tandoori and tikka dishes Kormas, pasandas, masalas (creamy)
Kebabs Dishes in ghee (clarified butter)
Biryanis, dhansak, Poppadum
Rogan josh, jalfrezi All puddings
Plain rice, special fried rice
Naan, chapattis
Puris, roti and paratha
Mexican
Mexican food does tend to be high in fat and therefore calories so limit visits if you possibly can. Portions can also be big, avoid ordering additional sides.
Good Not so good
Enchiladas and burritos Corn chips
Fajitas Tostadas
Sour cream (small amounts) Deep-fried potato skins
Guacamole (small amounts)
Rice
Traditional pub grub
Good Not so good
Jacket potatoes with baked Most savoury snacks
beans, chilli or tuna
Shepherd’s pie and vegetables Anything fried
Ploughman’s (less cheese)
Soups with bread
Sandwiches (low fat filling)
