From: "Paul G. Barnes" <_pbarnes@ya.hoo.com> Subject: Re: Back from the hospital after another 3 night stay Date: 2000/03/06 Message-ID: <38C3D723.2D5A50AA@ya.hoo.com>#1/1 Organization: Save The Concrete Foundation Dan Tropea wrote: > > Thank you for your wishes Witch. You are a kind person. > I am on a strict diet basically a no sugar, no salt diet. > I live with my mother and grandmother and they specially > cook everything right now. The food pretty much is very > bland. No salt diets don't have to be bland. You just have to get creative. I've been cooking without adding salt for a long time now. I started removing salt from recipes because my dad would salt his food without tasting it and then I married a woman who did the same thing. Over the years, I've worked up a dried spice mix that gives good depth to most savory dishes. Paprika - Hungarian is best, but Spanish is also good. Garlic Powder (not Garlic Salt - that contains NaCl) Onion Powder Crushed Dried Oregano Crushed Dried Basil Crushed Black Pepper Ground Cayenne Pepper (Sweet/Hot) Ground White Pepper (Savory/Hot) The proportions vary depending on the taste you want, but the Paprika is the base - use about as much of it as all the rest combined (i.e. 1/2 Paprika and 1/2 all the rest combined). Play with the proportions, change ingredients, experiment. Find what you like. Be sure to read the ingredients on the label and get only pure spices and herbs - some companies will use fillers (including salt). Keep it in a small bowl. Because the ingredients are not all the same size, you'll want to mix it every time you use it. >I can use fat free sour cream which i now love > and salt substitute. Most salt substitutes are herb and spice mixes. If you have to use a salt substitute, it's more economical to by the spices and mix them yourself. That way you know what's in it too. >Lots of boiled food. Try broiling lean cuts of meat. Marinate the meat in a dry wine [1], rub it down (both sides) with your spice mix and broil. Serve with vegetables and pasta or rice (prepared with your spice mix instead of salt, of course). More information: http://www.nosalt.com/ http://www.culinarycloset.com/spices.html Happy eating and get well soon. -- pgb -[1] Never use cooking wines - they have added salt. The rule is never use a wine you wouldn't drink. That being said, you can use cheaper California table wines. Dry wines have a lower sugar content and add a savory flavor to meat. If you are concerned about alcohol, it evaporates in the cooking process, but there are nonalcoholic wines that work just as well.
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