Long week. Can't remember

[frankiethewaffle]

Hey chef and followers. What I am asking for is a seasoning change for my Father. Like the title says. Long week.

I have to ask again. I have heard of books and all kinds of resources for no salt and sugar replacements for recipes. I am looking for tried and true or close for me to try.

Mostly, I know you can make anything and skip the salt. I can do that. But in less than a week? Not good enough.

What I am looking for is a replacement to salt based spice mix. Anyone is MORE than welcome.

I was as simple as olive oil, salt and pepper for when I cooked cuts of meat for my Dad. Not even very much and none at the table. We like Beef, or Chicken, or whatever, not a salt loaded dish. But it did add something in cooking as I have noticed.

Any mixes from anyone?

[tokenuser]

The tuna steaks we did tonight had a nice crust ...

Toasted 2T of fennel seed, 1T of coriander seed, and 1T of black peppercorns over med heat for 3min, then ground them up. We did add 1T of salt, but that could easily be skipped.

We rubbed the fish with olive oil then coated in the toasted spice mix. It would work well with steak too ... Almost a steak Diane type taste.

Fish and poultry also take a light dusting of curry powder well.

BUT something you might like to look at are herb and spice infused olive oils. These add a lot of taste to food, and olive oil is high in Omega3 so it helps with cholesterol and other diet needs. Provided you are cookingvat the right temps, then you are not using that much oil and it can be healthy.

To be honest though, there is no direct replacement for salt. Even things like worchestershire sauce and soy sauce have sodium in them, so can't be used in a slat restricted diet. There are some fruit salts out there, but they are not typically used as a replacement in savory dishes.

If you are using sugar as a sweetener, and not for baking, then something like stevia might be worth looking at.

[chefniall]

I am not going to lie to you...salt is one of the ingredients that will make your food as tasty as hell! There are defo lots of other herbs and spices that can give you flavor ( I like cajun seasoning for example) but the best way that I think you can do it is by just cutting the salt you use down each time. Use a little tiny bit less and before you know it you will be back to eating food that doesn't have salt in it but still tastes great!

N

[frankiethewaffle]

You didn't have to lie.

I have been doing a trial and error thing. Make one thing regular and then one cutting salt. HUGE difference. Everything was better when I made it with salt. I don't know, but I think I am actually lite when cooking with salt too. Maybe I am right on, nothing tastes salty, just much better.

I guess I should start doing a delivery type thing.

[chefniall]

Well you have the name and everything already....

Frankie's waffles!

N

[ariastar]

Use "lite" salt (it's what we use) or salt substitute. Lemon juice also is yummy. We don't use a lot of salt for anything (unsalted saltines is my favorite oxymoron because it's what we buy for regular crackers).

For seasoning mixes, you're better off making your own using dried herbs. Almost every blend has a buttload of salt. Mrs. Dash has a salt-free blend, if you can find it.

[ronaldo]

You probably need to find someone with actual experience. The only time I use little to no salt is when it is being supplied by other ingredients.

How does it work? Is he given a daily allowance? If it is a daily allowance my best advice is to stick with fresh ingredients as much as possible because you don't want him to be eating ridiculously bland food for dinner because he had a can of soup for lunch. Also, if it is a daily allowance situation, I personally, have a smoothie for breakfast 4-5 mornings a week. The only sodium in it is naturally occuring. Of course not everything that works for one will work for another but I feel so well I don't even need coffee most mornings. If I were on a low sodium diet I would have more allowance left over for lunch and dinner.

The only company I am aware of that advertises a spice/herb blend specifically for low sodium diets is Mrs. Dash:

http://www.mrsdash.com/


I have a feeling this is going to be a trial and error and compromise situation because, as it has been mentioned, there is no real substitue for salt.

[frankiethewaffle]

Well you have the name and everything already....

Frankie's waffles!

N

....and you used the Waffle thing too! Honestly, this name is a joke.

It was around '97, AOL, YES AOL! allowed 16 letter names for the first time. I was reading a lot of mafia books and wanted a name that suited me. I am not Mafia obviously, but it had to represent me. Like in the movies. Jimmy two times said everything twice. Like in the movies. Jimmy two times said everything twice.

I am a goof, so something that was nothing like me was good. The Waffle thing can't be explained. I have nothing, but that it is stupid and has nothing to do with me. I guess, like me.

Became a pro wrestler under an earlier name that is not mine. Came back with the E-Mail. Participated in a radio thing and they liked it so I gave them more. So the name has stuck. Like a fungus you can't shake.

[oneyedjack]

Try balsamic vinegar (any vinegar for that matter) or lemon. I find that when I use them I tend to use less salt or none at all.

A little off topic..... When eating sushi, rather than using a swimming pool of soy sauce, try squeezing a lemon into the dipping dish and using a small amount of soy sauce for flavor. Tastes great and really reduces the sodium intake.

[ronaldo]

Try balsamic vinegar (any vinegar for that matter) or lemon. I find that when I use them I tend to use less salt or none at all.

A little off topic..... When eating sushi, rather than using a swimming pool of soy sauce, try squeezing a lemon into the dipping dish and using a small amount of soy sauce for flavor. Tastes great and really reduces the sodium intake.


Green tea mixed with soy sauce is also good, at least to me. My dip consists of 3 parts soy, 1 part green tea, and a big chunk of wasabi all whisked together. I realize this doesn't help the OP much but I love discussing sushi.

[oneyedjack]

As far as salt-free spice mixes goes, I have used the Mrs. Dash salt free blends and enjoyed them. I also like the Penzey's Mural of Flavor salt-free blend. They are most pleasing on simple vegetable dishes and fish though. I thnk steak and pork dishes are tougher (literally) to pull off salt free.

Eating familar dishes minus the salt can be torture. If your dad does not eat much fish, try and introduce more fish dishes. They can be very good without salt and it will be something new. I found 'new' dishes are easier to adapt to when making drastic changes to a diet than turning out old favorites wihtout the salt.

Best of luck to you and your father.

[ronaldo]

As far as salt-free spice mixes goes, I have used the Mrs. Dash salt free blends and enjoyed them. I also like the Penzey's Mural of Flavor salt-free blend. They are most pleasing on simple vegetable dishes and fish though. I thnk steak and pork dishes are tougher (literally) to pull off salt free.

Eating familar dishes minus the salt can be torture. If your dad does not eat much fish, try and introduce more fish dishes. They can be very good without salt and it will be something new. I found 'new' dishes are easier to adapt to when making drastic changes to a diet than turning out old favorites wihtout the salt.

Best of luck to you and your father.


The problem with that is that a lot of seafood starts off at a much higher sodium content than beef and pork which is why you don't need to salt it as much.

[tokenuser]

Hey chef and followers.Would the followers be called Nialists?