Holidays can be a time to let go and forget about the diet – but in the New Year, you might be starting to get sick of leftovers and thinking about how you can get back into healthy routines and focus on wellness and fitness.
Thanks to a new study from Hayes & Jarvis, it’s easy to pick out a few new low-calorie meals to get started.
Explore the popular meals and national dishes of 34 destinations worldwide, from Hong Kong to the US – and find something new that’ll trim off the Christmas pudding.
New Calendar, No Calories
If you’re thinking about cutting back but don’t want to miss out on good meals, why not go for a plate of:
- Buttered Toast – It’s a popular meal worldwide, but in Chile, it’s a staple breakfast. With only 60 calories on a small slice of toast, it’s a good and easy way to start the day (or a convenient snack!)
- Garudhiya – A light tuna fish broth at 61 calories a serving, this dinner is packed with protein – the ideal boost to support anyone getting into the gym in the New Year. It’s a little high in salt, but it’s been loved by generations of Maldivians.
- Slow Cooker Refried Beans – While the name’s a bit misleading (they’re not fried more than once at most), refried beans are a Mexican staple in all sorts of dishes, especially breakfast, and a light serving of 64 calories is packed with nutrients like fibre to keep your health up in the cold weather.
- Smoked Marlin Fishcakes – Smoked marlin isn’t well-known in the UK, but fish-based diets are among the healthiest in the world – particularly when they have lower sugars and salt and a good balance of vitamins, like this Mauritian breakfast offering that clocks in at only 73 calories a fishcake.
- Miso Soup – Often found with other Japanese meals, but also as a breakfast dish, miso soup has the double advantage of not only being light in calories (86.3), but also quite filling due to the high protein content. It doesn’t hurt that the soy-based soup tastes great!
Not So Sweet
Recent studies have revealed that the UK is massively overeating on its sugar budget. Children aged 10 are eating more than the recommended maximum for 18-year-olds – and it’s not just from eating sweets.
Sugary foods, especially cereals, are contributing to the nation’s sugar problem. Why not consider some international, low sugar options? Refried beans have little to no sugar, as well as being low on calories, and scrambled eggs are a sugar-free, high protein start to the day. Low calorie smoked marlin fishcakes also have less than 0.5g of sugar on average.
Happy, Healthy Holidays
Are both travelling and healthier eating among your New Year Resolutions? If you’re focused on getting the top nutrition, these countries may offer you the opportunity to achieve both, with the best in healthy meals and plenty to see and do:
- India – While masala dosas are on the bulkier side for a lunch option, they’re still healthy, and fibre in the local food is on the whole quite high – while sugars are 21% lower than the recommended maximum.
- China – Keeping to recommended carb limits and remarkably low sugars for the number of calories per meal, steamed buns, kung pao chicken and beef chow mein also keep cholesterol quite low, as well as keeping sugar a stunning 57% under the recommended maximum.
- Sri Lanka – The vegetable, fish, and chicken curries that make up some of Sri Lanka’s most popular dishes all make for a lighter diet with no fatty red meat and a low sugar intake – 43% lower than the recommended maximum.
Lesley Rollo, Managing Director at Hayes & Jarvis, comments: “This tool can’t cover every meal in the world, but offers a fantastic overview into what different cultures cook and the type of delicacies that can be found around the world. We hope the tool helps influence future travel plans and inspires travellers to try new holiday destinations and local cuisines whilst away.”
For more meals around the world, and to see the full country list, have a look at the complete graphic on Hayes & Jarvis.
