Good sources of fat

[AirCartman]

MY diet is pretty low in fat.. I might want to add some good fats.. or so i hear.. any suggestions?

 

[CowPimp]

Flax seed/oil, hemp seed/oil, fatty fish, nuts/peanuts (Walnuts are highest in omega-3s I believe), olive oil, safflower oil, borrage oil, sunflower seeds/oil, etc.

 

[Emma-Leigh]

MY diet is pretty low in fat.. I might want to add some good fats.. or so i hear.. any suggestions?

My first check: Make sure you get 6-10g of your fish oils.
Then you need a good mix of mono-unsaturated fats and a bit of polyunsaturated fat too.. Your saturated fat will usually just tag along, so don't go looking for it.

So then you go for things like:
fatty fish
avocado
olive oil
nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans etc) and their oils (eg: walnut oil) or nut butters
seeds (linseeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds), their oils (eg: linseed oil) and spreads (eg: tahini)

 

[joesmooth20]

so can u fry foods in these oils? I like to make Lo Mein but never do because of the oil

 

[Emma-Leigh]

so can u fry foods in these oils? I like to make Lo Mein but never do because of the oil

To cook - olive oil, sunflower oil or peanut oils are your best options.

 

[joesmooth20]

How much is too much when making about 6 servings of Lo Mein? Just curious because it's about the only food I would use oil in.

 

[Emma-Leigh]

How much is too much when making about 6 servings of Lo Mein? Just curious because it's about the only food I would use oil in.

Depends on how much fat you want in your meal!

Here are a few recipes, pick something that is close to what you want:

Shrimp Lo Mein
2 lbs medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup soy sauce
8 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
12 ounces snow peas
2 cups shredded carrots
1 head bok choy, sliced
1 (15 ounce) can chicken broth
7 scallions, sliced
12 ounces fettuccine, cooked and drained

Combine first 5 ingredients and set aside for 10 minutes.
In skillet or wok, heat 1 tsp oil over high heat.
Drain shrimp, reserving soy mixture.
Cook shrimp until pink, 2-3 minutes.
Remove from skillet.
Add 1 tsp oil to skillet, then add peas and carrot, and cook 1 minute.
Add to shrimp.
Cook cabbage in skillet with remaining oil 1 minute.
Combine broth and reserved soy mixture and add to skillet, along with shrimp mixture.
Cook until thickened, 1 minute.
Remove from heat and mix in scallion and fettucini.

Calculated for 1 serving (511g) - Recipe makes 6 servings
Calories 511
Total Fat 9.0g
Saturated Fat 1.6g
Polyunsat. Fat 3.3g
Monounsat. Fat 2.5g
Total Carbohydrate 60.0g
Dietary Fiber 6.2g
Protein 47.4g



Cluckin' Lo Mein
1-1 1/4 lb chicken tenderloins, sliced into bite size pieces
4 teaspoons white sugar
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce, divided
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 (8 ounce) package linguine, cooked to package directions,drained & set aside
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
2 tablespoons gingerroot, grated
1 tablespoon garlic, grated
1/2 lb button mushrooms, sliced think
6 scallions, sliced on the diagonal (white & green)
1 carrot, peeled & julienned
2 cups shredded cabbage

In a glass bowl, combine the chicken, 2 tsp Sugar, 1 tablespoons Vinegar, and 1/4°C Soy Sauce. Mix together well, cover and marinate in the fridge for 1 hours.
In a quart glass jar combine Chicken Broth, Water, Sesame Oil, ground black pepper, the rest of the sugar, vinegar, and soy sauce. Shake well.
Pour a 1/2°C into a small bowl and dissolve the cornstarch in it well-- then pour it all together in the jar. Shake well.
Heat 1 tbsp of canola oil in your wok, when it's smoking, add the chicken which you have drained well. Stir fry until the liquid evaporates and the chicken starts to brown. Put this on a plate and remove to a warm place.
Heat 1 tablespoons of Canola oil in the Wok again, add garlic and ginger, stirring briefly until you can smell it start cooking. Add in the rest of your vegetables. Stir it up well and let cook until the vegetables start to wilt some.
Scoop the veggies to the side and make a well in the middle. Pour in about half of the sauce from the jar. When it starts to warm up, mix in the veggies and add back the chicken. If you want more sauce, add more and stir until it heats up enough to start thickening. Once you have enough sauce, let it cook for a few minutes and then add in your warm drained linguine.


Calculated for 1 serving (247g) - Recipe makes 8 servings
Calories 269
Total Fat 7.0g
Saturated Fat 0.9g
Polyunsat. Fat 2.3g
Monounsat. Fat 3.1g
Total Carbohydrate 30.5g
Dietary Fiber 2.2g
Protein 21.0g



Chicken-Mushroom Lo Mein
12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons cornstarch
8 ounces linguine
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced (3 cups)
1 medium red or green sweet pepper, cut into 2-inch strips (1 cup)
4 green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces
6 ounces fresh pea pods, strings removed (1-1/2 cups)
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon instant chicken bouillon granules

Cut chicken into bite-sized strips. In a small bowl stir together soy sauce, dry sherry, and cornstarch. Add chicken; stir to coat. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook linguine according to package directions, omitting oil and salt. Drain well.
Add cooking oil and sesame oil to a wok or 12-inch skillet. Preheat over medium-high heat (add more oil if necessary during cooking). Add mushrooms, red or green sweet peppers, and green onions to wok; stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add pea pods and stir-fry about 1 minute more or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Remove vegetables from wok.
Drain chicken, reserving liquid. Stir-fry chicken for 2 to 3 minutes or until no longer pink. Combine water, bouillon granules, and reserved marinade; add to wok. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Add drained linguine and cooked vegetables. Stir to coat. Cook and stir about 1 minute more or until heated through.

makes 4 serves
434 calories
11 g total fat
2 g saturated fat
54 g carbohydrate
28 g protein.

 

[AirCartman]

Anything outside of all these oils.. Like just normal food?

 

[Emma-Leigh]

Anything outside of all these oils.. Like just normal food?

What is not normal about:

fatty fish
avocado
olive oil
nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans etc) and their oils (eg: walnut oil) or nut butters
seeds (linseeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds), their oils (eg: linseed oil) and spreads (eg: tahini)

 

[Skate67]

What is not normal about:

i think he means "how could you incorporate these into a regular meal without having to choke them down"

 

[Skate67]

NUT BUTTERS!!! i cant believe i never thought of that!!!! omfg... they are pretty low in saturated fat too!!! omg...

edit: btw... is there an optimal ratio of omega 3/6/9 that you should be getting over the day? also.... is monounsaturated = omega 3? and polyunsaturated = omega 6.... no thats not right.... how can you tell whats omega what from www.nutritiondata.com ?

 

[Emma-Leigh]

NUT BUTTERS!!! i cant believe i never thought of that!!!! omfg... they are pretty low in saturated fat too!!! omg...

As long as they are only made of pure nuts then yup they are excellent additions!

edit: btw... is there an optimal ratio of omega 3/6/9 that you should be getting over the day? also.... is monounsaturated = omega 3? and polyunsaturated = omega 6.... no thats not right....

Your omega-3 fats and omega-6 fats are both polyunsaturated fats. The ratio of 3 : 6 should be as close to 1 : 1 as you can get it - which almost nobody in modern western societies achieves... Anything under about 1:4 or 1:3 is great.

Omega-9 (oleic acid) is a mono-unsaturated fat and the exact ratio of this in regards to your other omega-fats is not as important.... But mono-unsaturated fats in general should make up about 50% of your diet.

how can you tell whats omega what from www.nutritiondata.com ?

Ok, if you scroll down to the 'fat' bit then it will give you a list of the types of fats. The mono-unsaturated fats are easy to tell from the poly (as it tells you which are mono v's which are poly). It doesn't matter a great deal about which mono fats you are getting, but the omega-9 fat (oleic acid) is the ones next to the figure: 18:1

The poly's are a little more difficult as there are lots of them... But generally, anything with a n-6 is an omega-6 and anything with a n-3 is an omega 3...

The main ones you need to look at:
18:2 = the main 'important' omega-6 (linoleic acid)
18:3 = linolenic acid (of which you have:
18:3 n-3 = alpha-linolenic acid (main plant source of omega-3)
18:3 n-6 = gamma-linolenic acid (omega-6)

And the important fish ones:
20:5 n-3 = eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)
22:6 n-3 = docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)

 

[cha]

Anything outside of all these oils.. Like just normal food?

Air, you can put avocado slices on a turkey or chicken sandwich or in a salad, slap some natural nut butter (almond, peanut, cashew, etc.) on some bread or you can add a tablespoon or 2 to your shakes. You can put some olive oil in a salad. As for the fish oils, etc - you don't have to get them in oil form - you can get the fish oil caps, etc. and just swallow them like a pill.

 

[Skate67]

ah thanks emma-leigh. i was just wondering because i read somewhere that if you become deficient in one of the two (either 6 or 3, i forget) it starts to become an issue.

Edit: I found what i was referring to if it makes any difference

A balance of omega-3 and omega-6 EFAs in the diet is recommended by experts. Americans typically consume higher quantities of omega-6 EFAs, because these are found in meat, animal products, and common cooking oils. Research has shown that too many omega-6 EFAs in the diet can lead to the imbalanced production of prostaglandins, which may contribute to health problems. Experts recommend that omega-3 and omega-6 EFAs be present in the diet in a ratio of around one to three. Americans consume a ratio as high as one to 40. Thus, the need for greater amounts of omega-3 EFAs in the diet has increased.

 

[Emma-Leigh]

ah thanks emma-leigh. i was just wondering because i read somewhere that if you become deficient in one of the two (either 6 or 3, i forget) it starts to become an issue.

Edit: I found what i was referring to if it makes any difference

You can also read this if you want more info.