When you’re trying to trying to eat healthfully on a regular basis, there can be a certain learning curve involved. For most of us, it means cutting out several foods that had been staples in our lives and replacing them with alternatives. That said, those alternatives frequently come with some rather bland flavors.
If you truly want to enjoy your foods, a series of bland flavors on your plate simply won’t cut it. Eventually you’ll end up heading back to those old tasty favorites because you’ll feel as though you need to. Before that happens, take some time to learn some healthy and easy ways to get some flavor back into your healthy foods so that you can enjoy them just as much as the unhealthy ones you used to eat all the time.
It may seem hard to believe, but if you use these tricks long enough, you might actually find that when you have those old favorites as a rare treat, they don’t taste nearly as good. Not only can healthy foods be very tasty, but over time your taste buds adapt to them so you end up enjoying them far more than artificial flavors, unhealthy fats and high sodium levels.
The following are 3 healthy ways to get started:
Many of us already use dry herbs and spices to add some zing to our foods. That’s a great idea and will certainly draw out some new tastes that your mouth will love. That said, if you really want to take your meals to the next level, fresh herbs can easily do that for you. They don’t taste the same as their dried counterparts. They have a fuller and yet more delicate flavor. You can find them in the fresh produce section at your grocery store or you may even choose to grow them in your garden or in a window box inside your kitchen window so you’ll have them all year long. Experiment with flavors. You’re certain to find some you adore.
If you think your grilled chicken breast or white fish is missing something, don’t paint on a high sugar, high sodium bottled sauce full of chemicals from the grocery store. Leave that on the store shelf. Instead, marinate your protein using ingredients such as lemon or lime juice, grapefruit juice, balsamic vinegar, wine, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and a few favorite herbs and/or spices. The longer you let the marinade remain, the more flavor will be infused into the meat. Chicken is best marinated for 12 to 24 hours while fish can take in the flavors in as little as six hours.
The less your foods had to travel before reaching your home, the better their flavors will be. Therefore, as much as possible, buy fresh foods that are in season. As much as frozen foods maintain their nutrition, their flavors are frequently not as vibrant as their truly fresh alternatives. Therefore, when you can, try to be as close to farm fresh as you can. Farmers markets are wonderful for picking up local produce. Other than that, pay attention to what grows during which seasons and how far foods had to travel to arrive at your grocery store.