can anyone help this pasta/rice loving family to reduce carb intake please

adouglasmhor

LilElvis wrote: »

Read my subsequent post - the one where I said I was joking about frying the courgette.

I don't need to "educate my palate" as I love my food and have eaten most things - from abalone to zebra. I am very open to trying new things but I'm not going to ruin a perfectly good meal by pairing it with a food item which my palate knows will not complement it.

Thank you for implying that it is not only my palate which requires educating. I didn't realise that it was necessary to provide proof of my A levels or degree before posting my opinion :T

:
But your palate is subjective, you can train it like you train your appetite or your stamina, they are the other things I referred too, not your academic achievements which are okay but hardly germane to this thread.

onlyroz

Slinky wrote: »

If you want just a plain rice, wash your cauli and blitz it a few florets at a time in a blender until you get rice sized grains. Fill a pint sized bowl or basin for enough for 2 people, you don't need to add any water to the bowl. Microwave for 6 mins on full (850w oven) and serve with a dollop of butter on top. We eat this about 4 times a week and use it to replace rice, pasta and mashed potato.

I was mainly wondering how the taste and texture changed depending on whether you microwaved it or stir-fried it in a pan with other veg and some olive oil. Which method would result in the tastiest rice and the best texture?

easy

Edwardia wrote: »

:eek:

Pasta is fat free until you eat it. Then, as the body digests it, the carbohydrate becomes glucose (sugar). If your body doesn't use the energy, it will be stored.. as fat.

Diets don't work long term. If you cut portion sizes or eat fewer meals or eat strange combos of food or fast two days a week you will lose weight. But the hard part is keeping it off, longer term. people think I'll have that pasta, once won't hurt or two biscuits won't hurt and soon they've relaxed back into the old eating habits.

What works is changuing your eating habits, eating proper food not processed, not overeating, keeping the carbs in check as well as sugar (sugar is 50% glucose, pasta and rice become 100% glucose).

The more sugar and carbs you eat, the more your body has to crank out insulin to drive the glucose out of your blood into your cells. But as well as acting like a key to allow glucose into cells for energy, insulin allows your body to hold onto fat.

Before synthetic insulin was made, people with Type 1 diabetes died, because no matter how much they ate they couldn't retain weight.

So the fewer carbs and less sugar you eat, the less insulin your body needs to pump out. High levels of insulin keep that fat on. High levels of glucose can give you diabetes.

People don't feel full despite eating lots of carbs because over time their body loses the ability to recognise leptin. If you eat less carbs, in time your leptin becomes recognisable to the brain again. For part of it's journey from the brain, leptin uses the same pathway as insulin and if there's a lot of that it doesn't work properly.

Forty years ago Ancel Keys did some really flawed research without using computers, without testing that all permutations of his hypotheses actually worked ie using linear reggression. He also cherry-picked 7 out of 27 countries yo get the result he wanted. He convinced the American government to back his research that fat was the enemy. It isn't - fat doesn't become fat.

BBC Radio 4 broadcast a programme on just this subject last week, it was fascinating , you can listen

Thanks to all contributors so far. Just to be clear, in my opening post I wasn't suggesting that we try to eradicate carbs, or go on some sort of specifically low-carb diet. Our intention is to cut down on just about everything, smaller portions, and try to do more exercise - although that is a bit awkward for me, as I'm disabled with mobility probs from birth, so taking up a sport isn't an option. My lh is also having trouble with knees & one hip (yes, we know that will get less of a problem once he is less heavy), so only swimming is a sensible option really for him at the moment, and finding time & motivation at the end of a long day at work is difficult. I'm trying REALLY hard to talk him up tho'.

I was really just looking for exciting recipes to replace Pasta twice a week.

I'm watching with interest, and thinking about trying cauliflower 'rice' - altho what that will do in the stomach of a 15 y.o. lad who tends toward windyness anyway is pretty :eek: :rotfl:

Slinky

We don't experience wind problems with cauli rice. OH has become noticeably less windy since going low carb.

Georgiegirl256

Think we're going to have to give this cauliflower rice a try! We eat quite a lot of rice, so it would be good if we could find a healthier alternative.

Is this a new thing or has it been around a while?

dandelionclock30

Since the big bang really.

Kim_kim

easy wrote: »

Just to be clear, in my opening post I wasn't suggesting that we try to eradicate carbs, or go on some sort of specifically low-carb diet.

You can get all the carbs you need from vegetables & lentils, which are nutritious, rather than white refined carbs.

onlyroz

Well here is my cauliflower rice and saag aloo prepped for tomorrow, and I'm quite impressed with the result. I stir-fried some onion, garlic, carrot and sweet-corn for a few minutes and then scrambled in an egg, some crushed chilli and turmeric. I then stirred in the "cauliflower rice", added a splash of soy sauce, put the lid on and left it for 5 mins. I then stirred in some chopped spring onion. It *doesn't* taste like rice but it is pretty damn tasty, and I think it will go well wit the veg-vindaloo I'm making tomorrow.

pollyanna24

fozziebeartoo wrote: »

I put it in the food processor and it comes out looking like grains!

Into a bowl, cover with cling, pierce, microwave.

Most instructions say 7 mins.

I did a HUGE cauli and did 10 mins,

That's it.

Taste-wise it was great but did have it with curry.

Fart-wise the next day.......no comment

I wish we had tried it when I 1st read about it.

Going to try cauliflower pizza base next!!

Heard great things about cauliflower rice and am going to try it soon. Do you put any water in when you are microwaving it?

ciderwithrosie_2

I grate my cauliflower, because there's only me eating it and I have half a med/small cauli at a time. Can't be bothered to get the processor out and then have to wash it all up. I add 1tsp butter to a non-stick frying pan and chuck it all in with some salt and black pepper. Stir it around, so it starts to colour a little tiny bit, then add about 3 table spoons boiling water and it then finishes cooking by steaming. You can add whatever spices you like to it.

Onlyroz, your meal for tomorrow looks gorgeous!!