Thai food is the most followed food trends across the world. Thai food is adored and savored for the perfect aroma and smack of its various dishes. Thai food is a perfect blend of its neighboring regions like India and China, which also satisfies the Western palate. No wonder why it is so popular! Similar to various types of Asian cuisine, Thai food mainly includes rice and noodles. Apart from rice, Thai cuisine also includes numerous savory fish recipes, vegetables, herbs and spices, that bring a salty, saucy and sour flavor to this irresistible Eastern delight. However, many health conscious people are inquisitive about a basic question – “Is Thai food healthy?” Frankly speaking, health benefits of Thai food entirely depend on the kind of Thai recipes that you consume.

Important Thai Food Facts

Harmony of taste is the basic principle of Thai food, which you can easily find in all the Thai recipes that you make or order. Hence, remember that Thai food recipes like Tom Yum soup, chili hot chicken, fish cakes and Phad ka Prao are all made with utmost balance of ingredients and flavor. Before finding the answer to the question – “Is Thai food healthy?”, we need to understand that Thai food doesn’t contain big meat chunks and large animals. The meat that is included in the Thai food is fortified and shredded with various herbs and healthy vegetables. This fact makes the Thai food all the more healthy and tempting.

Secondly, authentic Thai food recipes are prepared with some of the best cooking methods like stewing, grilling and baking, that include least amount of oil and hence they preserve food’s nutrition to the fullest. It also means that other cooking methods like frying, deep frying and stir frying were introduced to them by foreign countries like China and Japan. Thai food is also hugely influenced by Dutch, French and Portuguese cuisine and other nearby Asian regions like Vietnam, Burma, Malaysia and Laos.

Thai Food Menu

If you want to find the answer to the question – “Is Thai food healthy?”, then it is essential for you to know some facts about the Thai food menu. Thai food contains fish cake which is made of ground fish patties, ground shrimps and curry paste. You will also find the steamed dumplings that consist of ground lean meats of pork and shrimp and Thai herbs and spices. Along with these two disease, Pad Thai is one of the authentic Thai food, which is a noodle based dish of shrimp, eggs, green onions, bean sprouts, peanuts and dried tofu. Thai food is rich with various healthy vegetables and herbs along with healthy meats.

Typical Thai food consists of soups and curries that are treated with various healthy condiments, delicious dips along with vegetables and/or fish, spice favored salads and various rice recipes. The best thing about Thai food is that they are well balanced with a complimentary food item. A very spicy Thai dish is usually combined with a relatively bland dish, so that the ill effects of consuming too much spicy food is avoided. Hence every time you enter a Thai restaurant, make sure that you order healthy Thai food that retains the same balance of all the tastes like spicy, salty, sour, sweet and bitter.

Is Thai Food Good for You?

Thai food calories is an issue that many people are always dubious about. Well as I said earlier, authentic Thai cuisine is extremely healthy since it includes some healthy cooking methods. It is important to understand that Thai food is healthy for you and can be a part of your healthy diet. Thai food contains some medicinal and low calorie food additives and condiments. Let’s have a look at some of the basic Thai food condiments, which also make it easier for me to find answer the very question from where we started – “is Thai food healthy?”

Turmeric
Turmeric contains curcumin as its active ingredient, which has some great anti inflammatory and antioxidant effects. As a result, it is beneficial for various health conditions like arthritis, food allergy, intoxication, low platelet count in blood, loss of appetite, indigestion, hearth diseases, bacterial infections, long lasting wounds, skin cancer and breast cancer, etc.

Galangal
Galangal is nothing but Thai ginger, which is yet unknown to the Western world. Galangal is a prime ingredient in Chinese, Indonesian and Thai food. Similar to the regular ginger root, galangal is a powerful herb for our body and it is beneficial for the health conditions like, abdominal cramps, indigestion, vomiting, motion sickness, morning sickness, sea sickness, diarrhea, inflammatory diseases, ulcers and lack of blood circulation in hands and feet.

Coriander
Like most of the Asian cooking styles, Thai food also utilizes coriander in its two forms, namely – fresh coriander leaves and coriander seeds. Coriander leaves and seeds have been used in various parts of the world like Greece, Rome, China, India and Europe since ancient times. Coriander is beneficial for the following health conditions – gastrointestinal diseases, indigestion, fungal infections, bacterial infections, loss of appetite, lack of energy, etc.

Coconut
We all are well aware about the coconut milk nutritional value. Coconut milk and coconut oil which are essential ingredients of the Thai food, contain a good amount of healthy fats that help to reduce the cholesterol levels and the rate of aging. It also boosts immunity, increases the rate of metabolism and provides some essential fatty acids to the body.

Lemongrass
Lemongrass is a fragrant herb, that covers an extensive part of Thai cuisine. It is beneficial for the health conditions like cold and flu, headache, fever, stomach pain, abdominal cramps, fungal infections, arthritis and other inflammatory diseases.

Healthy Thai Food Choices

Rather than being in a constant doubt revolving the questions like – “Is Thai food gluten free?” and “Is Thai food fattening?”; take initiative and make healthy Thai food choices. Since we have almost found the answer of the question – ‘Is Thai food healthy?’, it is important to remember that not all Thai food recipes are healthy. Consumption of healthy recipes in a wrongful manner and excessive quantity will surely harm your health and it is the same with the Thai food. Hence, when you are at a Thai restaurant, always make better choices as mentioned below.

Instead of the spring rolls and dumplings always opt for healthy Tom Yum soup, which includes shrimps, mushrooms and other herbs that are simmered in the hot-n-sour broth. Instead of Pad Thai recipes, opt for sautéed shrimps with herbs. Rather than having heavy curry dish, opt for the sautéed shrimps and scallops with mushrooms and vegetables like zucchini and some herbs. Instead of deep fried fish with sweet-n-sour sauce, opt for steamed mussels with garlic and herb sauce. Do not order Thai vegetable fried rice and egg fried rice recipes, rather opt for sautéed mixed vegetables. Also avoid the bean thread noodles, as they are high on carbohydrate count. Always request a curry that doesn’t contain potatoes. Dishes that include oyster sauce and sweet-n-sour sauce, should always be consumed in moderation. These are the best steps that you can take to cut back on the calories in Thai food.

Rather than staying worried about the questions like – ‘Is Thai food healthy?’, I think it is better to opt for the healthy Thai food recipes. Limiting the amount of rice and noodles and consuming any Thai dish in moderation are also the best things that you can do to stay healthy and fit!

Chinese cuisine is popular all over the world for its rich flavor, aroma and color. As per global estimation, more than one third of the population have Chinese food on a regular basis. No wonder, it is appreciated as one of the greatest cuisines of the world. The increased interest in the Chinese style of cooking is evident from the booming Chinese restaurants in the west and many other regions. This is how the American Chinese cuisine has evolved in order to suit the taste of the western palates.

If you crave for Chinese fried rice or noodles, you are not alone. There are so many people who love Chinese food and do not get bored, even if they have it on every weekends. No doubt, Chinese food recipes enriched with sauce and flavorful culinary herbs, are delicious in a unique way. But, is Chinese food healthy? Or is Chinese food bad for you? These are some of the most common queries that linger on the minds of Chinese food lovers. Scroll down to find the answers to these questions.

Is Chinese Food Healthy for You?

In today’s generation, all of us are more concern about the calorie count, rather than the delicacy of a particular dish. To be precise, most people consider the ingredients and method of cooking first, before trying out a food recipe. If taste is the first priority, green salads would have not been so popular as they are today. As far as Chinese food is concerned, the authentic or real Chinese cuisine is very healthy. In fact, it is often acknowledged as one of the healthiest food in the world.

If you go through recipes of ancient Chinese food, you will come to know about the common ingredients – vegetable oils (no cheese, cream or butter), lean meat cuts, loads of vegetables and sauce for flavoring. Thus, unlike other cuisines, vegetable oils or poly-unsaturated oils are used as a cooking medium in Chinese cuisine. And the quantity of vegetable is more than meat. So, people who are very conscious about their health can enjoy authentic Chinese food without worrying much about high animal fat content.

Coming to the answer for ‘is Chinese food healthier than pizza’, yes it is. According to nutritionists, approximately 20 percent of the calories in pizza are contributed by saturated fats. Whereas, in case of Chinese food, saturated fat counts to 4-7 percent of the total calories. Nevertheless, in this comparison also, the condition authentic Chinese food applies. Otherwise, stir fry recipes contain high amounts of fats, which is not healthy at all. In such a case, pizza may be a healthier option than Chinese dish.

You may prefer to read more on:

• Chinese Food Nutrition Facts
• Healthy Chinese Food Options
• Famous Chinese Food

With this, I hope you got your answers for ‘is Chinese food healthy’ and ‘is Chinese food fattening’. On a concluding note, the deciding factor for healthiness of Chinese food depends entirely upon where you dine and the specific recipe that you have ordered. At any point, it is wise to avoid Chinese fast foods and from take-aways too. They are loaded with saturated fats and the meat used in the dishes are not of lean cuts. The best alternative is to prepare Chinese food on your own at home. That way, you can reduce the amount of soy sauce and salt, maintain the food quality and ensure a healthy meal for you and your family members.

America is sometimes referred to as a fast food nation, which is not an exaggeration at all! Astonishingly, one out of every four Americans eat fast food on a daily basis and most of the fast food dishes that we tend to consume are Chinese! The food that we generally find at the Chinese restaurants looks tempting and it tastes delicious as well. It is commonly believed that the Chinese food recipes are unhealthy and must be avoided if one is aiming for weight loss. In my opinion, it’s not fair as far as the Chinese delicacies are concerned. Read about more healthy recipes.

When thinking about the Chinese food, we tend to imagine only about the deep fried dishes, heavy meat chucks and calorie loaded sauce covered noodles! Right? Well the authentic Chinese food can give a huge blow to our this imagination. Actually, there are quite a few healthy Chinese food options, that we are clearly neglecting. As a matter of fact, you can always order many healthier recipes, without your health! Read more on the ancient Chinese food as well.

Healthy Chinese Food Options

The authentic Chinese food, which I was referring to, is actually one of the healthiest foods you can have. Chinese food is good for you, if you know what to order! Chinese cuisine employs a lot of vegetables and various types of rice, hence, you must always try to capitalize on this point. Secondly, the Chinese food comes in larger serving sizes, hence, you must order smaller meals and ask for extra vegetables (without hesitation)! Well, here are some tips for you to make healthy Chinese food choices.

Lean Meat
However outlandish it may sound, but avoid meats and replace them with vegetarian recipes for healthy Chinese food options. Most of us believe that the Chinese food is all about healthy lean meats, but they conveniently forget the red meats of pork, beef, lamb and chicken, which are extremely high in cholesterol and saturated fats. If you just cannot live without that Peking duck, then go for the smaller serving sizes and restrict it to 2 oz to 3 oz!

Steamed Rice
Chinese cuisine utilizes rice in its various forms and it is not difficult to find the healthier one of them all. Preferably, go for brown rice or steamed white rice. The brown rice contains more than 3.5 gm healthy dietary fibers, while the steamed white rice contains 1gm of it. The fried rice, on the other hand contains 14gm of fats in an 8 oz serving size! This means, that you will have to stop consuming fried rice, totally! What you can do is, go for the brown rice and in case the restaurant doesn’t have it, then you can always settle on the steamed white rice!

Stir Fry + Noodles
Stir frying is one of the healthier Chinese cooking methods, which utilizes smaller amount of cooking oil. Basically, the noodles are loaded with refined carbohydrates, which you must always be watchful for. The stir fried recipes, which emphasize on steamed noodles (instead of fried noodles) and heaps of vegetables, is a better choice, that takes care of those additional carbs. If you are wondering whether the brown colored noodles are made of brown rice, then let me clear that those noodles are loathed with the heavy oils, which are used for cooking!

Read more on:

• Famous Chinese Food
• Chinese Food Nutrition Facts

Chinese Foods to Eat

Here is a generalized list of healthy Chinese food choices for you.

• Steamed rice
• Vegetable spring rolls
• Garlic shrimp
• Mushroom chicken
• Broccoli and beef
• Chicken and green beans
• Mandarin chicken
• Shrimp chow mein
• Moo Goo Gai Pan
• Shrimp or chicken chop suey
• Lettuce wraps
• Kung Pao Chicken stir fry
• Shrimp with lobster sauce stir fry
• Egg drop soup
• Wonton soup
• Hot-and-sour soup
• Steamed dumplings
• Teriyaki chicken skewer
• Shrimp platter
• Steamed tofu with vegetables
• Beef with Chinese mushrooms
• Steamed whole fish
• Chicken with walnuts
• Sautéed spinach with garlic

Typically, the Chinese food has a high sodium content and hence, it is better to avoid any other sources of sodium like soda and salt, when you consume Chinese foods! Surprisingly, eating with chopsticks actually limits consumption of excessive oils from the foods, than forks or the spoons.

Chinese Foods NOT to Eat

Here is a generalized list of Chinese foods, which you must try to avoid.

• General Tso’s chicken
• Battered or fried appetizers
• Egg rolls
• Kung Pao chicken
• Hoisin or sweet and sour sauce
• Crispy Veg or meats
• Spare ribs
• Fried rice, any kind

Go for the food recipes which have words like Chu (broiled), Jum (poached), Kow (roasted), Shu (barbecued) mentioned with them. Foods that are lightly stir fried, dry stir fried and/or braised can also be included as healthy Chinese food options. It may sound weird at a glance, but you must know what that dish means in Chinese! Anything apart from the above mentioned dishes including fried, breaded or coated must strictly be avoided.

As my last friendly advice, I would suggest you to go for the Cantonese cuisine if possible. Most of the healthy Chinese food options which I have mentioned above, actually belong to the Cantonese cuisine. It emphasizes a lot on the healthier cooking methods and also includes lots of vegetables and fresh ingredients! Well, this was all the information that I could gather for you about the healthy Chinese food options! All the best!