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Tasty sauces based on yogurt, oil, lemon, herbs and spices can help you reduce the amount of salt in vegetables and salads. A not insignificant advantage, considering that we Italians consume a much greater quantity than that recommended by the World Health Organization, which suggests a reduction of at least 30%.
Why reduce the consumption of salt
An abundant consumption of salt like that of Italians today is a risk factor very important for many heart diseases (favors the onset of arterial hypertension), blood vessels and kidneys, as well as for stroke. It is also associated with an increased risk of stomach cancer, greater urinary losses of calcium and, therefore, a greater chance of developing osteoporosis. Reducing intakes is therefore an important preventive and therapeutic measure for many people.
How to reduce the use of salt
In large part, the salt we ingest is what we add in the kitchen, for example when we cook it pasta or we dress the salad and the vegetables. The one added in a “discretionary”Corresponds to approximately 35% of the fee that we assume.
Spices and herbs they can help to enhance the taste of food without adding salt. And with a double advantage: being plants, in fact, in addition to giving flavor they also contain a wide range of bioactive molecules calls phytochemical, responsible not only for the aroma that characterizes them, but also capable of bringing antioxidants useful for health. They also contain vitamins and minerals often in a more concentrated way.
Also vinegar aromatic or balsamic e lemon juice or lime, although not belonging to the category of herbs and spices, they are also flavor enhancers allowing you to reduce the addition of salt without any contraindication. Indeed, their traditional role as a preservative is linked to the high content of acetic and citric acids which can, in some cases, limit the bacterial growth.
And who thinks it is difficult to reduce the use of salt because of of habit, you are wrong. Using less is not complicated, especially if the reduction occurs gradually. In fact, the taste for salty changes very easily and it is possible to re-educate it in a few moments week or month.
French dressing
In the glass of a blender, pour 1 egg yolk, 25 g of mustard, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, a pinch of curry and blend for about 1 minute until you get a kind of mass.
In a saucepan, put half chopped shallot, 1 whole clove of garlic, 85 g of water and 90 g of aromatic vinegar and cook for 5 minutes over low heat. Remove the garlic and pour in the yolk cream, add 1 tablespoon of dried mixed herbs (e.g. chives, parsley, basil, oregano) to taste and mix.
Place this cream in the blender glass and emulsify for 1 minute. Meanwhile, slowly pour in 250 g of sunflower oil.
Transfer the French dressing sauce into a bottle, refrigerate and use as needed.
Honey and balsamic vinegar dressing
Put 30 g of honey, 50 g of balsamic vinegar, 30 g of fresh squeezed lime juice and 40 g of extra virgin olive oil and salt.
Blend for 10 seconds and use this dressing for salad dressing or vegetables.
Lime dressing
Put the juice of a in the blender glass lime, its grated rind (prefer an organic one), 1 egg, a pinch of black pepper and blend for 3 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour in half a glass of sunflower oil very slowly.
Transfer the sauce to a saucepan and cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes, let it cool before using it and dress the salad.
Pomegranate dressing
Put 150 of juice in the glass of a blender pomegranate, 30 g of extra virgin olive oil, 20 g of apple cider vinegar and 20 g of mustard. Blend for 10 seconds and serve immediately before the pomegranate juice oxidizes.
Chilli dressing
Put 50 g of mustard, 30 g of liquid honey, 1 chili pepper, 5 g of grated ginger, 3 teaspoons of lemon juice and 100 g plain yogurt in the glass of a blender and blend for 15 seconds.
Add 20 g of extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of black pepper and mix for 2 minutes.
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