TOP TIPS FOR HEALTHY PROTEIN CHOICES

Tips to help you make wise choices from the Protein Food Group

Go lean with protein:

• Start with a lean choice:
  • The leanest beef cuts include filet steaks and roasts, top loin, top sirloin, and shoulder and arm roasts.
  • The leanest pork choices include pork loin, tenderloin, center loin, and ham.
  • Choose extra lean ground beef.
  • Buy skinless chicken parts, or take off the skin before cooking.
  • Boneless skinless chicken breasts and turkey cutlets are the leanest poultry choices.
  • Choose lean turkey, roast beef, ham, or low-fat meats for sandwiches instead of deli meats with more fat, such as salami.
    
• Keep it lean:
  • Trim away all of the visible fat from meats and poultry before cooking.
  • Steam, grill, roast, poach, or boil meat, poultry, or fish instead of frying.
  • Drain off any fat that appears during cooking.
  • Skip or limit the breading on meat, poultry, or fish. Breading adds calories. It will also cause the food to soak up more fat during frying.
  • Prepare beans and peas without added fats.
  • Choose and prepare foods without high fat sauces or gravies.

Vary your protein choices:

• Choose seafood at least twice a week as the main protein food. Look for seafood rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, trout, and herring. Some ideas are:
  • Salmon steak or filet
  • Salmon loaf
  • Grilled or baked trout
• Choose beans, peas, or soy products as a main dish or part of a meal often. Some choices are:
  • Chilli with kidney or pinto beans
  • Stir- fried tofu
  • Split pea, lentil, minestrone, or white bean soups
  • Baked beans
  • Garbanzo or kidney beans on a chef’s salad
  • Rice and beans
  • Veggie burgers
  • Hummus (chickpeas) spread on pita bread
• Choose unsalted nuts as a snack, on salads, or in main dishes. Use nuts to replace meat or poultry, not in addition to these items:
  • Use pine nuts in pesto sauce for pasta.
  • Add slivered almonds to steamed vegetables.
  • Add toasted peanuts or cashews to a vegetable stir fry instead of meat.
  • Sprinkle a few nuts on top of low-fat ice cream or frozen yogurt.
  • Add walnuts or pecans to a green salad instead of cheese or meat.

What to look for on the Food Label:

• Processed meats such as hams, sausages, frankfurters, and deli meats have added sodium. Check the ingredient and Nutrition Facts label to help limit sodium intake.
• Fresh chicken, turkey, and pork that have been enhanced with a salt-containing solution also have added sodium.
• Lower fat versions of many processed meats are available. Look on the Nutrition Facts label to choose products with less fat and saturated fat.

Keep it safe to eat:

• Separate raw, cooked and ready-to-eat foods.
• Do not wash or rinse meat or poultry.
• Wash cutting boards, knives, utensils and counter tops in hot soapy water after preparing each food item and before going on to the next one.
• Store raw meat, poultry and seafood on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator so juices don’t drip onto other foods.
• Cook foods to a safe temperature to kill microorganisms. Use a meat thermometer, which measures the internal temperature of cooked meat and poultry, to make sure that the meat is cooked all the way through.
• Chill (refrigerate) perishable food promptly and defrost foods properly. Refrigerate or freeze perishables, prepared food and leftovers within two hours.
• Plan ahead to defrost foods. Never defrost food on the kitchen counter at room temperature. Thaw food by placing it in the refrigerator, submerging air-tight packaged food in cold tap water (change water every 30 minutes), or defrosting on a plate in the microwave.
• Avoid raw or partially cooked eggs or foods containing raw eggs and raw or undercooked meat and poultry.
• Women who may become pregnant, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and young children should avoid some types of fish and eat types lower in mercury.