Soul food tends to be high in fat, sodium, and cholesterol. Bad for everyone, but especially bad for diabetics, already at risk for hypertension and heart disease. The good news is you don't have to surrender such rich Southern cooking. Soul food is rife with vegetables and seafood that is good for your diet, though these can be mixed with fatty meats, butter, and creams. With a few modifications, diabetics can continue to enjoy their favorite soul foods.
Making Substitutions
Simple substitutions exist for many of the most common ingredients in Southern cooking. When a recipe calls for heavy cream or whole milk, use skim milk or low-fat sour cream. Use two egg whites for every egg and replace salt with certain herbs. A partial list of good herbs to consider is basil, parsley, dill weed, and marjoram, all of which go well with fish.
Butter and lard are two of the fattiest substances found in soul food. Substitute canola or olive oils when frying. Replace ham hocks and fatback with smoked turkey, turkey sausage or turkey necks, or lean Canadian bacon. Sugar and brown sugar can easily be swapped for artificial sweeteners, or in a pinch, molasses or honey, though use these sparingly.
Diabetics worried about foods high in carbohydrates should switch from traditional white flour to whole wheat breads and grains. And if you're buying pre-packaged items, read the labels to find products that are low in sodium, saturated fat, and carbohydrates.
Cooking Your Meals
Fried foods are usually high in fat. Experiment with grilling or baking, especially with fish, where oven-baked is often difficult to distinguish from pan-fried. If you must fry, use oils and trim the fat from the meat. This includes removing the skin from chicken before barbecuing or making soup stock. Another trick for making healthy soups is to use low-sodium bouillon cubes.
Some foods require great limitations or possible elimination. If you can't sacrifice pork rinds or chitlins completely, restrict them to holiday meals or special occasions.
In some cases, especially with vegetable dishes and barbecues, you may not notice any difference from what you usually enjoy. In others, some of that soul-food taste might be missing, but you'll be healthier for it and your blood glucose readings should reflect that.
Grill Instead of Smoke
Avoid smoked fish, which is often packed in salt. Grill fish over charcoal to give it a smoky taste and then sprinkle lemon or lime juice over your dinner to replace the salt.
Lower-fat biscuits
Serve biscuits with sugar-free jams for breakfast but skip sopping up fat-laden gravy with them at dinner. Dumplings offer an opportunity for major substitutions, including replacing the wheat, eggs, salt, milk, and butter.
Veggie Dishes
Veggie dishes usually require few substitutions unless you're making them with various meats. Feel free to indulge in collard greens, turnips, mustard greens, pinto beans, and black-eyed peas, but limit your portions of corn and potatoes, which are starchy and high in carbohydrates.
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