How to Stay on Your Diet in a Thai Restaurant

The typical Thai restaurant offers dozens of dishes on its menu, but not all of those dishes are diet-friendly. Whether you create your own diet plan or use an established plan, you know that eating the wrong things lead to feelings of guilt and a thicker waistline. Deep-friend dishes are particularly bad because the chef fries those dishes in heavy lard or butter. Even a thick sauce can add unwanted calories, but picking the right dishes helps keep you on track.

As soon as you sit down, take a moment and look over the menu. Some dishes sound healthy or nutritious on paper, but come with additional calories. Any dish that uses coconut milk is a no-no for your diet. Coconut milk contains added calories and high amounts of fat. Depending on the type of coconut milk used in the dish, it may even contain extra sugar. Curry sauces that contain milk or cream also add unwanted calories to your meal. Some restaurants even add milk or heavy cream to stir-fries.

That does not mean you must avoid Thai restaurants completely. Instead of going all out, look for meal choices that save you calories. Choose steamed rice over fried rice, which contains fat from oil, vegetables with the nutrition cooked out, and more calories than you would ever guess. Jasmine rice contains a light and delicious flavor and when steamed, packs much less calories than fried rice.

Look for dishes that incorporate a large amount of vegetables. The vegetables fill you up faster without containing empty calories. Use caution though, as some vegetable-based dishes contain extra calories. The sauces added to the dish bring fat, sugar, and calories to an otherwise healthy dish. Steamed vegetables are a better option. For a filling choice, pick steamed rice with steamed vegetables and add low-sodium soy sauce for flavor. Vegetable rice paper rolls contain a mixture or rice and vegetables and steam cooked. You get the rich natural flavor of the ingredients without the excess calories.

Unless you are on a low-carb diet, choose dishes with a noodle base. Thai restaurants offer noodles mixed with different vegetables. Ask for light oil or no oil if possible, which further lowers the fat and calorie content. Pad Thai has a rich flavor without the extra calories. Adding chicken to the Pad Thai makes the dish a little richer.

Meat lovers should try a satay dish. Satay is similar to shish-kabobs because the chef places the meat on a pole and cooks it over a low or high heat. Chicken or seafood dishes contain less calories, but even beef or lamb is a better option than a high-fat dish. Avoid using any extra sauces that come on the side, as these typically have a lot of fat and calories.

As a last resort, pick your favorite dish and only eat half. Divide a line down the center of the plate and reserve the leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day. Or, take along a friend and split a dish together. You still get the great Thai flavor and your favorite dish, but without all of those calories.

References:

Eating Out on a Diet

Ethnic Eating-Out Tips