I was looking through my collection of cooking oils and reading the labels and so far, the only major difference is the taste.  I have Olive Oil, Sesame Oil and Peanut Oil that I use for different types of cooking.  I also checked the can of Pam.  The Pam was amazing - it essentially adds no calories.  I tried it with my veggie Stir Fry last night and since I add seasonings, I didn’t even miss the flavor of the Sesame oil.  I didn’t see anything that looked bad, but if anyone has heard otherwise, let me know. 

Quick Veggie Stir-fry - a nice change from steaming.  The ginger Teriyaki helps keep the sweet cravings away.

Baby Veggies - I found a mix of carrots, summer squash and sugar snap peas
Quick spray of Pam and cook on high for about a minute stirring
Add a splash of Sweet Ginger Teriyaki - really great flavor, only 35 calories per tablespoon
Cover and cook over low heat another 2 minutes (depends on how crunchy you like your veggies)

Paula

What kind of seasonings do you add to your stir-fry? I have been using the sauces that come in the jars . They are full of sodium though and I have to watch that. I also heard to use wine as your oil and flavoring. The sweet ginger teriyaki sounds good where do you find that?

Darlene

I get a lot of my sauces from Trader Joes… but you’re right, you have to watch the sodium and other content. 

One of my biggest things at the moment is trying to find things that are made WITHOUT corn syrup.  I’d rather it be made with sugar, which is natural and easy to process, than corn syrup, or one of it’s many other varieties ending with an -ose. 

I’ve only found one, yes one, spagetti sauce in the regular market that is made with just plain sugar.  I think it’s called Francisco Rinaldi? 

Another great flavor enhancer is the Mrs. Dash collection.  The Chipotle is a current favorite, and it just takes a little to make a big difference in the flavor.

I’d love to hear where you got the sweet ginger teriyaki as well - yumm!

Cheers,
~ Josette ~

I get my Sweet Ginger Teriyaki at the local Safeway.  I’ve seen it at both stores I use here, but what’s available probably depends somewhat on where you live.  It only has about 1/3 the sodium of the plain Soy or Tamari sauces, but I think it still has a fair amount. 

Josette - You’re right about avoiding most of those -ose’s, but fructose is the natural sugar found in fruit.  That one is OK as long as it’s packaged in the fruit and not a box.  I love the Mrs Dash collection.  Lots of flavor and nothing really bad for you.

My main secret though is to avoid buying just about all canned or processed foods.  Usually I buy fresh veggies, fresh herbs, have a collection of spices, a few basic sauces like low sodium Soy, plain Teriyaki, the ginger Teriyaki and some Thai peanut sauce for when I’m feeling lazy.  Almost everything else I make fresh and freeze.  (Like spaghetti sauce) It’s the best way to reduce the fat, sugar, salt and avoid corn syrup.  I experiment with substitutions for fats / oils and usually just leave out the sugar, or add just enough to get a good taste.  Most of my meals are really simple - baked / broiled or grilled fish or chicken (usually boneless breasts) for protein, and steamed, sauteed, or stir fried veggies with one of my frozen sauces or one of my lazy sauces.  I like to cook, but I’m basically lazy except when I have someone around to cook for, or with.

One of my favorite things to make is Crab Cakes.....

I use the Crab Meat from Costco (in a 1 lb can by Phillips)…

My recipe changes, depending what I have in the kitchen....

Mix in some egg, some seasonings, bread crumbs, cilantro, maybe some orange rind....maybe some lime
Form them into patties and bake them for 20-25 minutes at 350.........
drizzle some flavorful sauce, or one of my favorites, Champagne pear vinagarette .....sooooo good!

Lots of protien, and great leftover for lunch the next day (or put some pieces in a salad- yum yum)

Very easy to make, quick and yummy!

While making it, do admit to ‘stealing’ some crab pieces .......(shh don’t tell anyone)

Josette - 08 February 2007 09:57 AM

I get a lot of my sauces from Trader Joes… but you’re right, you have to watch the sodium and other content. 

One of my biggest things at the moment is trying to find things that are made WITHOUT corn syrup.  I’d rather it be made with sugar, which is natural and easy to process, than corn syrup, or one of it’s many other varieties ending with an -ose. 

I’ve only found one, yes one, spagetti sauce in the regular market that is made with just plain sugar.  I think it’s called Francisco Rinaldi? 

~ Josette ~

Hey Josette,

You might try Newman’s Own Marinara sauce.  It’s made with sugar but the salt is high: http://www.newmansown.com/product_detail.cfm?cat_id=2∏_id=67

I just noticed that Pam comes in different flavors, they even have an olive oil Pam, though I don’t know if such a small amount really has any of those good fat in there.  Its nice to have choices though.