A Few Healthy Main Courses

On a low cholesterol diet, you may only have 3 servings of lean beef or pork (my husband’s favorites) per week so I have to be creative in coming up with tasty main dishes. I serve a lot of poultry and fish–especially fish high in omega-3 fatty acids. It is amazing how fast we have adjusted. Lean poultry or fish, complex carbohydrates and high fiber vegetables can make a satisfying meal.

Since I cannot just throw some hamburgers in a pan on a busy evening, I tried making turkey burgers. I found them a challenge because they tend to dry out and shrink. The first time I cooked them, I just seasoned them and browned on each side. Since turkey needs to be thoroughly done, I covered them and let them cook on low to finish. I opened the skillet to find little, tiny burgers sitting in a pan full of liquid. I guess I could have served meatball soup! My solution is to add heart-healthy oatmeal, onion and bell pepper and cook longer on lower heat without covering. It works.

Mexican Turkey Burgers

1 pound ground turkey
2 tablespoons minced onion
2 tablespoons minced bell pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/3 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
Cooking spray

Combine the first 5 ingredients. Put the oatmeal in the food processor and pulse a few times until it is the consistency of bread crumbs. Add to the turkey mixture. Combine well and shape into four patties.

Spray a skillet with cooking spray and cook over low heat about 7-8 minutes per side or until done through. Serve with salt-free salsa and fat-free sour cream or with ketchup.

Buttermilk-Marinated Chicken Breasts

Only some of the buttermilk stays in the breasts so I do not worry too much about the sodium in this recipe, but I do look for the buttermilk with the least sodium. Gustafson® whole-milk buttermilk has 130 mg per cup. It is too high in fat for drinking, but it is great for this use and it comes in quart bottles so you do not have to buy too much at a time.

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme

Pound the chicken breasts with a meat mallet until a bit thin, but not as thin as for a scallopini. Mix the remaining ingredients in a shallow container and add the chicken. Marinate 4 hours or so in the refrigerator. Grill on a charcoal grill or under the broiler (5 inches from the heat) until done, turning once–about 6 minutes per side.

Mock Fried Fish

During my label reading excursions, I found that Panko crumbs are lower in sodium than regular (purchased) bread crumbs and they make a nice crispy crust. The Panko crumbs I use have only 75 mg of sodium per 1/2 cup. Unseasoned bread crumbs have about 220 and seasoned breadcrumbs 420 mg in 1/4 of a cup.

Fish fillets
Mayonnaise (I use my homemade salt-free mayo made with egg substitute)
Panko crumbs
Cooking spray
Lemon wedges

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pat the fish dry with paper towels. Put some mayonnaise in a small bowl. (You do not want to brush the fish and dip the brush back into the container.) Brush the fish fillets with the mayonnaise. Add some panko crumbs to a plate. Roll the fish in the crumbs, patting them to make them stick.

Line a cookie sheet with foil. Fit it with a rack. Spray the rack with cooking spray. Bake 10-15 minutes or until the fish flakes easily and the crust is browned off. The timing will depend on the thickness of the fillets. Serve with lemon wedges.

Baked Salmon with Cucumber/Dill Sauce

1/3 cup fat-free sour cream
1/3 cup fat-free plain yogurt
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 teaspoon spicy brown mustard
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped
black pepper
2 salmon fillets
Freshly ground black pepper
Mrs. Dash table blend
Cooking spray

Combine the sour cream, yogurt, dill weed, mustard and lemon juice in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Stir in the cucumber and season with a few grinds of black pepper. Chill until serving time.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Season the fillets with the black pepper and Mrs. Dash. Spray the pan with cooking spray and spray both sides of the fillets. If the fillets have skin place in baking pan skin-side down. Bake 10-12 minutes or until the salmon is done and opaque in the center. (Do not overcook or they will be dry.)
Serve with the cucumber sauce.

Baked Tuna Croquettes

3 4.5-ounce cans low-sodium tuna, drained and shredded
2 tablespoons minced onions
2 tablespoon minced bell celery
1/3 cup egg substitute
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup panko crumbs, divided
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Put all the ingredients except the panko crumbs into a mixing bowl. Add 1/4 cup of the panko crumbs and mix. Shape into 6 patties and roll them in the remaining panko crumbs.
Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Bake the croquettes on the baking sheet 15 minutes or until done and browned.

Serve with horseradish sauce:
3 tablespoons low fat sour cream
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash table blend
Combine all the ingredients. Serve over the croquettes.