Meal Prep: Healthy Sauces
By Rachel Carver
Trying to figure out healthy meals for the week can be overwhelming. Maybe you are tired of the same recipes. Maybe you have some leftovers that you need to eat. In both cases, sauce can be the answer.
A good sauce can transform a meal. Add some vinaigrette and lettuce to your pile of roasted chicken and sweet potatoes to make a salad. Heating the same thing in a coconut milk sauce gives you a curry.
Use these tips to make delicious, healthy sauces best for meal prep.
Good Sauces Need Flavor
Salt, fat, and acid are the three most important components of good flavor. You need these three things to produce a flavorful sauce.
Determine what you will use in your sauce to add these key components. Finish your sauce with some spices and other flavorings.
The Salt
Salt reduces food bitterness while making it sweeter. Salt-rich condiments that add great flavor to sauces include soy sauce, teriyaki, and Worcestershire sauce. If you need to reduce your sodium intake, decrease the sauce you use on your meal. Some items such as soy sauce have low-sodium versions.
The Fat
Fat flavors your sauce and keeps you satiated. It can also bring some life back to dry food in the fridge. Healthy fats such as grapeseed or light olive oil will not change your sauce flavor. However, you can enhance the flavor with oils such as peanut, pumpkin seed, or sesame.
Add coconut mil to your sauce to give it a creamy texture. Butter also adds rich flavor. But use butter sparingly because buttery sauces solidify in the fridge.
The Acid
Acids taste sour. Citrus juice and vinegar are popular acid options for sauces. Acid is an important part in vinaigrettes. But the acid simply balances the flavor in a curry or a tomato sauce.
If a sauce tastes salty, add a squeeze of lemon juice. As an acid, lemon juice can make a variety of flavors less pronounced.
The Finishing Touches
All sauces need more than salt, fat, and acid. Spices and herbs are important to most sauces. Blended fruits and vegetables can give your sauce a unique taste.
Find some sauce recipes to try. You might find a sauce you like and another you will never use again. Getting creative with your sauces can keep meal prepping exciting. Excitement will motivate you to stick with your meal plans.
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