4 Easy Tips for Guilt-Free Deepavali Meals

It’s Deepavali and many of us will spend the holiday over long and hearty meals with friends and family.

Murukkus, Agar-agar, Curry, Besan Laddoo, Papdi, Anarasa, Dahi Bhalla, Kheer, Gajar Halwa, Gulab Jamun, Puris, Sambal, Raita; who would be able to resist all these delicious dishes?

Unfortunately, when something tastes too good to be true, it usually is. We’re not saying that all food that tastes good is unhealthy, but that most stuff that’s high in sugar, salt, fat, or oil is irresistibly tasty.

Think about some of your favourite dishes, and chances are they tend to be somewhat sweet, salty or oily.

Most Deepavali dishes are meant to be eaten with rice or bread, so salt is added to make sure the salt levels stand up to the combination of both. This is of course on top of the salt already present in the rice or in the roti dough.

According to a recent HPB study, most Singaporeans indulge in very salty food, which can lead to serious health issues!

Just so you know, the recommended daily salt intake for adolescents aged 7-18 years is less than 5g which is roughly the equivalent of one full teaspoon of salt.

So how can you enjoy your festive foods without exceeding the recommended amount of salt? Here are 4 easy tips!

1. Get to know salt

Cutting down on salt will be easier once you keep two simple things in mind:

First, the body needs salt to work properly, but only very small amounts of it!

Salt (and the sodium it contains) is one of the most important minerals the body needs. Our body cannot function without salt, because every cell in the human body is dependent on the presence of sodium!

Sodium helps regulate some important body functions (blood pressure, fluid volume, nutrients in cells, muscle contractions, nerve stimulation, etc).

But all of this can be achieved with very small amounts of salt.

Consuming too much salt can have short-term effects such as bloating or retention of excess water, which is uncomfortable, but not dangerous. Long-term effects, on the other hand, include hypertension (elevated blood pressure), which could cause heart disease, stroke, or kidney failure, all of which can be much more harmful!

Second, some foods we eat every day may contain higher amounts of salt, even the foods we don’t suspect!

We all know that fast food, ready meals, and takeaways can contain high salt levels, but many of us don’t know that 60% of the salt we consume (but don’t need) comes from salt and sauces we eat at home and at food stalls!

Some foods are definitely high in salt, and should be avoided whenever possible: instant dishes, 'flavoured' products, canned food in brine or labelled as ‘cured’, ‘smoked’ or ‘pickled’, salted butter, processed foods (crisps, pizza, ready meals, sausages, tomato ketchup, mayonnaise), isotonic drinks.

Some foods are high in salt and should be eaten less often and/or in small amounts: Murukkus, anchovies, bacon, cheese, ham, salami, salted nuts, salted fish, smoked meat and fish, soy sauce.

Maybe the next time you go shopping for groceries with your parents you can point them towards unsalted butter, unsalted nuts, fresh foods, and any food items labelled with the Healthier Choice Symbol (lower in sugar, saturated fat, trans fat free, and sodium).

2. Change your cooking habits

Despite what many people may claim, reducing or even eliminating salt from most recipes doesn’t really affect flavours!

Sure, grandmothers may feel betrayed that their recipes have been slightly adapted, but refraining from adding salt to food during the cooking process allows the real tastes of the food to reappear.

Better yet, food can be seasoned with herbs instead of salt! Turmeric, cumin, cardamom seeds, and pepper are just some of the sodium-free spices and herbs you can find in the spice section of your shop.

Vegetables and main dishes can also be seasoned with a squirt of lemon or some lime juice, two ingredients that will give a unique taste without burying the dish in salt!

Why don’t you suggest some of these alternatives the next time you help your parents cook? Experimenting with all of these new possibilities can be done as a game with the entire family!

3. A holiday feast is not an all-you-can-eat!

Sometimes salty dishes are very hard to avoid, especially if you are invited to someone else’s house and you have no input whatsoever in the actual preparation of the holiday feast.

In such cases, moderation is the key word!

Just because it’s a festive occasion, it doesn’t mean you should eat everything in sight and stuff yourself to the utmost!

Over-eating any type of food, whether it’s a wholesome one or a less than healthy option, is never a good idea.

When invited to a Deepavali meal, avoid going on an empty stomach! Eat a high-fibre snack (fruit or a few pieces of wholemeal biscuit) before leaving the house, that way you’ll curb your appetite and prevent over-eating.

When dishing out food, leave the gravy and sauces behind because that’s where the salt (sodium) is. Another tip to reduce salt intake is to taste your food first before deciding to add salt and sauces to the food.

Eating slowly is another way of not overdosing on salty dishes.

The brain takes about 20 minutes to register fullness, so take your time and enjoy your meals by savouring the flavour of each bite! This means focusing on the quality and not the quantity of the food on your plate!

That way you’ll be able to enjoy your meal, talk and laugh with your friends and family, and there’ll be more delicious leftovers for the next day!

4. Avoid temptation

Sometimes the best solution is the simplest one!

Ditch the salt shaker: keep it off the table so that you refrain from adding salt without even thinking about it.

If you feel like you must reach for the salt shaker, try to break the habit of adding salt even before tasting the food. Sometimes no extra salt is needed, and all it takes is a little taste beforehand!

If the action of adding salt is a habit, try adding garnish (such as spring onion if it’s available) to your dish instead.

Another simple way to decrease salt intake is to reduce the amount of gravies added to your food! Thick sauces such as masala, tandoori, curry, tomato/chilli sauce, mayonnaise, and thousand islands are delicious, but they’re also extremely high in salt.

Try some healthy and delicious alternatives such as dips based on low-fat yoghurt or home-made fruit sauces!

These four easy steps will get you closer to controlling your salt intake, and help you savour every flavourful mouthful of those Deepavali favourites!!

Do you have any other tips to reduce salt in your favourite Deepavali dishes? Let us know in the comments below! You can also give us your feedback on Facebook and Twitter!