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Quarantine has allowed many people the opportunity to unlock their inner chef, with all the extra time at home perfect for gathering new recipes to add to the repertoire. On the other hand, it may have sent you into a cooking rut, tired of every meal and depending on easy, but not necessarily healthy choices to get you through. While staple dishes are key to any weekday lineup, there are some quarantine dishes that health experts recommend avoiding if you don’t want to suffer from stomach bloat.
Casserole
Casseroles can be great for meal prep, especially if you’re feeding a family and not just yourself. However, registered dietitian Shena Jaramillo warns to steer clear of this basic dish, or at the very least, modify it. She says, “Oftentimes, casseroles are loaded with cream and cheeses which can be high in fat and saturated fat.” The excess of fat in this recipe can lead to stomach bloating, so Jaramillo recommends a lasagna loaded with veggies for a similar flavor with a higher nutritional value.
Spaghetti & Canned Sauce
Pasta is one of the most basic meals a novice chef could make, and especially in quarantine it can be easy to rely on simple staples to take the thinking out of meal prep. But while pasta can be a delicious and nutritious dish, Jaramillo notes it’s the sauce you should be wary of. “Store bought sauce can be loaded with sugars and high fat meat products. Try creating your own pasta sauces with tomato puree and seasonings with lean meat or even a plant based protein.” While jarred sauces are certainly more simple, sugar is known to contribute to weight gain, and many of the processed ingredients in sugar can lead to severe bloating and digestion issues.
Pizza
Although pizza is a classic weekend dinner for when you can’t think of anything else to make, you may have found yourself ordering it more and more during the pandemic for a little comfort in your food. While ordering every once and a while won’t affect your health long term, Jaramillo notes that pizza is loaded with fat, particularly saturated fat which has been known to cause bloating. “If you do choose pizza, swap out some of your meat toppings for veggies, choose a thinner crust or even a cauliflower crust.”
Creamy Soup & Pasta
While delicious and easy to heat up in a rush, creamy soups and pastas are not the best choice for a staple meal according to Jaramillo. She notes, “They are loaded with added fats, saturated fats and calories. Try making broth based soups and using herbs and veggies for the primary flavor.” With just a few tweaks to a simple recipe, you can easily craft a soup that is much heartier and just as delicious with less of a negative impact on your health.
Although quarantine meals are born out of the desire for quick and easy dishes, that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your health in the process. By simply making your own pasta sauce from fresh ingredients or picking up a cauliflower crust at the store, you can make simple quarantine meals that won’t cause your stomach to inflate like a balloon. With a little extra work up front, you can craft a lineup of dishes that satisfy all of your cravings with a healthy twist.
