Mexican food is no doubt delicious beyond imagination but normally when we say Mexican, we know it for being spicy, fully delectable, and flavorful. It is definitely not known for being low in calories.
Even though you can make low-calorie Mexican entrees at home, it is potentially harder to keep the waistline in check when you are out at a restaurant. But it does not mean you should not visit a Mexican restaurant. You definitely can visit. All you would need is to be careful and make nutritious decisions. A few smart swaps can help you make a great choice with your Mexican favorites.
Yes, now you can definitely eat healthy, and less-calorie Mexican food. Here’s a
Pro-Tip
If you are headed to a Mexican restaurant in Hong Kong, one of the top low-calorie choices is tacos made with corn tortillas, grilled meat, and salsa. You can skip the rice and ask for vegetables on the side.
Go With Corn Not Flour
Tortillas form the basis of a number of Mexican culinary favorites such as tacos, burritos, and fajitas. The calories in a tortilla depend on the size and the brand, but you can definitely see the difference in the calories. Corn tortillas will have fewer calories as compared to the flour tortillas.
For instance, a 28-gram corn tortilla will contain approximately 60 calories as per research. A similar size flour tortilla will have around 100 calories. To enjoy a low-calorie entree at a Mexican restaurant, you can specifically ask the chef to get you a taco or fajita made with corn tortillas.
Get it Grilled
Grilled proteins are typically some of the lowest-calorie foods you will get at a Mexican restaurant as long as they are paired with the side smart dishes. Choose grilled seafood, chicken, or steak with a side of black beans, grilled or sauteed vegetables. Again, you can skip the rice because these contain about 150 to 200-plus calories per serving. So, it is suggested to go with the grill.
Pick a Bowl
For burritos, tortillas wrapped up with all the insides provide calories in bulk. A low-calorie option should be considered when it comes to filling. You must choose it wisely about what will go into the bowl. For instance, if you load the bowl up with rice, carnitas, sour cream, cheese, guacamole, black beans, etc. All these ingredients in a bowl will give you a quick break from the calorie bank. Put a base of lettuce and then add a half portion of brown rice into it. Then you can choose chicken, fish or even steak as the protein. You can even stick to the beans and later load a lot of veggies and salsa on it.
Red Signal for Mexican Sauce
Almost every Mexican dish comes up with a sauce or a dip such as salsa, guacamole, and sour cream. Just consider these sauces as a stoplight: Green signal for salsa, yellow for guacamole, and red for sour cream.
Since you are looking for the lowest calorie option, salsa would be the best as it typically contains just 5 calories per tablespoon. Guacamole is not as low in calories compared to salsa. Each tablespoon contains about 25 calories but it does contain heart-healthy fats too. Sour cream contains about 30 calories per tablespoon but it does not share the same heart-healthy fats as guacamole does.
Other Ways to Cut Back on Calories
If you want to go for your favorite Mexican dish without freaking out on calories, then you must take some small steps and you will go a long way.
- Rather than going with a sugary margarita or sangria, it is better to order tequila and club soda with lime. It is even better if you try to stick to club soda on its own for a calorie-free beverage.
- If you want to eat a taco salad, ask for it to be served without any form of tortillas like a tortilla shell or deep-fried tortilla strips.
- Tacos are not a bad option. But if you really want to save on calories, eat tacos in the order described above.
Through this, we get to know that Mexican food can be ordered in a healthy way. Just make a twist in your choice of fillings for Mexican cuisines and here you go healthy, wealthy, and fine.
If you crave mouth-watering Mexican food, come over to La Vista, a Mexican restaurant in Hong Kong.
