Mayo, Herb Cubes, & Popcorn

Why do I search out low sodium products? Because sometimes I need a break from making everything from scratch.. When you're on a low sodium diet, the quick fixes that others may turn to when pressed for time or energy, don't work for you. Take out pizza? Chinese to-go? Deli meats? Fast food? Frozen dinners? Canned soup? Nope! None of those time & energy savers are acceptable. So when I find a low sodium product that I can use, I grab it. 'Cause I never know when it'll come in handy.

Mayonnaise... There are some advantages to having store bought mayonnaise on hand. For one thing, it lasts a long time because of its professional canning process. And it's ready-made & convenient. Homemade mayonnaise is wonderful and is not difficult to make. It's great for when I'm going to use a cup or more at a time. But for quick swipes on sandwiches or brushing on chicken or fish before dredging in crumbs, I prefer to use an already prepared mayonnaise.

I've checked out the brands available online at low sodium web sites. Spectrum makes a 16 oz. eggless/vegan light canola mayonnaise that has only 70 mg. sodium per tablespoon. It's available at  Healthy Heart Market. Spectrum mayonnaise varieties are also sold in most health foods stores and some grocery stores. The natural foods sections of my local grocery stores carry both the light and regular version. I'm not a fan of most low fat/low cholesterol products (too many added gums & stabilizers), and I'm not vegan, so the light version does not really appeal to me. The regular Spectrum mayo does not have a lower salt content.

However, I've found two products that just about match the more expensive Spectrum products and are available at ALL my local grocery stores. Saffola Mayonnaise  and Kraft Mayonnaise both have only 70 mg. sodium per tablespoon.Pretty good for store-bought.

Dorot Cubes... These are wonderful teeny-tiny frozen cubes of crushed herbs. I've found them at Trader Joe's and a couple of local supermarkets. They're great and super handy. I usually keep a couple of trays each of the crushed basil, crushed ginger, and the crushed garlic. The basil and ginger have 15 mg. sodium per cube, while the garlic has 25 mg. per cube.  They are a product of Israel. When I'm in a hurry, it's so easy to pop a couple of the tiny Dorot cubes into whatever I'm cooking. Yes, I have fresh garlic on hand as well as frozen home grown basil leaves. But sometimes I don't feel like crushing garlic, grating ginger, or chopping basil. I do have my lazy days!

Smart Balance Smart 'N Healthy Microwave Popcorn... Most microwave popcorn is deadly. It's so salty that after just a few handfuls, my husband's feet swell up and fluid starts accumulating in his lungs. How do I know? Because a friend always brings some when he visits. A few times, just to be polite, my husband joined him in snacking but no more. Even I can't eat t
he stuff. It's so salty that my mouth starts burning. Between the phony butter flavoring that congeals almost immediately and the humongous amounts of salt, I don't see how anyone can eat such a vile product.

But Smart Balance to the rescue! Its Smart 'N Healthy microwave popcorn is pretty good: 1/3 of a bag is only 75 mg. sodium. And the good news is that I can find it at all my local grocery stores.

The Low Sodium Pantry: Vinegar

When you remove extra salt from your cooking, vinegar becomes a favorite friend. I always have at least five kinds on hand: Red wine, white wine, dark balsamic, white balsamic, and unseasoned rice vinegar.

The balsamic vinegars have a touch of sweetness, and the rice vinegar is very mild. Flavored vinegars are great too. I usually have some raspberry vinegar on hand along with Trader Joe’s Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar. Probably the most expected use for all these vinegars is in making salad dressings. That goes without saying.

Basic Vinaigrette
(Printable Recipe)

1/2 cup olive oil (Extra Virgin has a stronger flavor & will solidify when refrigerated)
1/4 cup vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon low sodium Dijon mustard
1-2 teaspoons honey
1 clove crushed garlic
1-2 tablespoons water

Combine ingredients in jar & shake or whisk together in bowl.

By changing the vinegars and/or oils, adding different herbs, using different sweeteners, or substituting different ingredients for the mustard & water, you can come up with a variety of flavors. For example, changing out just a couple of tablespoons of plain olive oil with a flavored oil will add an entirely new dimension. Similarly, using a flavored vinegar or citrus juice for the acidic ingredient will do the same. Instead of honey for the sweetening, consider using brown sugar, maple syrup, or even jams/jellies. Pepper jelly adds a nice combination of sweet & spicy. And ketchup or even mayonnaise can be substituted for the mustard.

I make a delicious & easy Raspberry Vinaigrette by using raspberry vinegar and Torani Raspberry Syrup in place of the mustard and honey in the basic vinaigrette recipe. Many variations are possible from such a simple & basic recipe.

When making classic American potato salad, I toss the drained, warm potatoes with some of the basic vinaigrette (I usually add a bit more vinegar). It flavors the potatoes nicely and adds moisture so I don’t end up overdoing the mayonnaise. The vinegar provides the zip that salt usually adds. I do the same thing when making old-fashioned American macaroni salad too. Oh, and I do NOT salt the cooking water for either the potatoes or macaroni.

I make quick dressing combos for both cooked and raw vegetables too. Usually equal parts vinegar & oil with a little added sweetener. I vary the oils and vinegars used and add whatever herbs or spices I think appropriate. Top the vegetable off with some toasted nuts or buttered breadcrumbs and you’ve got a “fancy” no-salt vegetable dish.

I also use vinegar in cooking. Whenever I make a braised dish (stew or pot roast), I always add 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar to the pot. Red wine vinegar with beef or lamb and white wine vinegar with chicken or pork. Again, the vinegar adds a zip that salt usually provides. A splash of vinegar ten minutes before finishing cooking can also brighten a braised dish.

I also add some red wine vinegar to any type of tomato sauce I’m cooking (lemon juice is also good with tomato sauces). Sometimes the unsalted tomato products not only taste flat but they taste overly sweet. Reasonable enough – salt is a foil to the natural sweetness in tomatoes. So I’ll add a dribble of vinegar to my spaghetti sauce and chili during cooking. Again, a splash ten minutes before finishing cooking can also brighten tomato sauce based dishes. A light splash of sherry vinegar right before serving can also add some sparkle to bean soups.

You can easily make a balsamic vinegar reduction. You’ll end up with a dark brown syrupy glaze that can be drizzled on fish, chicken, or vegetables to add a sweet-tart zing to any dish. If you’re artistic, swirls of balsamic vinegar glaze make a lovely edible plate decoration sure to impress guests. (Please note: I am NOT artistic as the accompanying picture will show.) I use the dark balsamic vinegar from Trader Joe’s and buy two bottles. Rather than making a little bit at a time, I use up an entire bottle. That way, I have a good supply of balsamic vinegar syrup always on hand.

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction
(Printable Recipe)

Pour the contents of one bottle of balsamic vinegar into a heavy bottomed non-reactive saucepan (stainless steel works well). Bring the contents to a boil, and then lower heat to a simmer. (Because you’re dealing with vinegar and its fumes, be sure to turn on your kitchen exhaust fan. There’s no danger; it’s just that vinegar can be a strong odor.)

Continue simmering until the vinegar is reduced by about half. It should be slightly syrupy, similar to a glaze, and coat a spoon. Take the reduction off the heat when it is still just a bit thin. It will continue to thicken as it sits. Let the vinegar stand at room temperature until it is cool. Pour into wide-mouth container, and store in the refrigerator.

Before using, be sure to set the container out until it comes to room temperature, or, if necessary, heat it a bit in the microwave or set it in a warm water bath (similar to what you do with crystallized honey.)

Use a spoon to drizzle desired amount. (Instead of making your own, you can purchase ready-made balsamic glaze at Trader Joe's and at many supermarkets.)

You can also make your own herb-infused vinegars. The National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) website gives complete directions. (NCHFP is the authoritative source for information about canning, pickling, and other safe preservation methods and techniques.)

You can find wine vinegars and balsamic vinegar at most grocery stores, and rice vinegar is usually found in the Asian foods section of most grocery stores. Specialty food shops, Cost Plus World Market, Trader Joe’s, and even some natural foods stores also carry a good selection of vinegars, often including some flavored ones. I consider red & white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, and plain rice vinegar as basic necessities. But I do love the flavored vinegars as well.

Rice Patties

Have you ever looked in the fridge and realized you've got a bunch of stuff that MUST be cooked right away? Well, that's exactly what happened to me.

We seem to always have leftover brown rice hanging around. My husband is the "Rice Captain," so he's the one that takes care of it for me. Lately he's been mixing regular brown rice with some Lundberg Black Japonica rice. We have a rice cooker and usually end up fixing 3 cups of raw rice at a time. But it makes for a lot of leftovers. So that's the first thing I noticed.

Then I discovered a plastic bag full of green beans and a couple of jalapeno peppers from my local CSA in the crisper drawer. They needed to be cooked pronto. And hiding under all the tomatoes & fruit from the farmer's markets was one very ripe avocado. Oh, my pot of chives growing outside needed a haircut too.

OK, so I had my ingredients. I just had to somehow turn them all into a meal. The rice part was easy. Usually I just whip up a quick stir-fry. But ever since Lucy of Sweets, Savories, etc. posted about Italian rice balls I've been craving an old favorite -- rice patties. They've always been a special treat. Crispy on the outside, chewy (from the brown rice) & flavorful inside. Sometimes I'd make a Chinese sweet & sour sauce to go with them. And sometimes we'd just eat them plain.

My recipe is similar to Lucy's. The biggest difference is that she does a great job making perfectly rounded spheres. I'm not as talented; it's always patties for me. The thing that makes rice patties an interesting low sodium dish is simply the fact that they're fried. Believe me, anything crispy tastes good even if it doesn't have any additional salt in it.

Rice Patties
(Printable Recipe)

2 cups leftover brown rice (cooked in unsalted water or broth)
1 large egg, beaten
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. milk/cream
1 tsp. salt free herb/spice blend
1/4 cup finely chopped onions, scallions, chives, or shallots
1/4 cup finely shredded Swiss cheese (Swiss is naturally low in sodium)
Oil for frying

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Heat a 10-12 inch frying pan with about 1/4 cup oil over medium heat. Once the oil is heated, drop spoonfuls (about 1/4 cup) of rice mixture into oil. Fry until lightly browned on one side; then turn and fry until other side is also browned. Remove and drain on a baking sheet that has been lined with paper towels; keep everything warm in a 250 degree oven.

I made guacamole with the avocado. Nothing complicated. Just peeled & seeded a ripe tomato from the farmer's market. Then finely chopped one of those jalapenos. A crushed clove of garlic, some lime juice, mashed it all up, and I was done.

I steamed the green beans and marinated them in a simple balsamic vinaigrette, sprinkling on a couple of crumbles of goat cheese before serving (goat cheese is usually fresh & soft, so it is much lower in sodium content than harder cheeses).

I served everything up and called it dinner. Actually it was pretty good thanks to a lot of different tastes and textures. And my refrigerator is cleared out. Hmm, it may be time for me to go to the farmer's market again. And so the cycle continues...

Keeping Track

One thing about following a low sodium diet -- you become very familiar with the items carried by your local grocery stores. That's because you can spend literally hours examining the labels of everything stocked on the shelves. I think I study the jarred spaghetti sauces in all my local stores at least three or four times each year. Turning each jar around until I could read its sodium content. Then putting the jar back on the shelf and grabbing for another jar. Jotting information down in a small notebook. And then when I'm finally finished with one product, moving on to another.
The problem is that not all grocery stores carry the same items. So you've got to come up with a system that keeps track of which store carries which items. And you've got to note the sodium content in case you need to make comparisons.

I realize that I'm pretty fortunate living here in Northern California near Sacramento. I've got three local supermarkets I shop at regularly: Raley's/Bel Air (a Northern California chain); Safeway, & Save-Mart. In addition, there's a Trader Joe's along with a Whole Foods relatively close by along with a Nugget Market (a smaller Sacramento area high-end chain) and it's sister store, ForkLift. And, of course, I'm a card carrying Costco member.

I found great low sodium products at so many different stores and from online sources that I knew I had to do something to keep track of them. So I gathered all my information and entered it into a Microsoft Word table. I could have put it in database form. Or just jotted everything down in a spiral notebook. The method I chose was not as important as just getting the information all together in one place so I could refer to it as needed.

I included the following information: the product description; the brand name; the serving size amount; the sodium content per serving size; where to purchase the product; and any special bits of information that would be helpful.
As I bring home new products, I add them to my list. About twice a year I review my information by printing out my list and taking it with me to the stores. I re-visit every item to see if there are changes. For instance, today I reviewed the products from Raley's/Bel Air and discovered that they no longer carry Saffola Unsalted Margerine. Instead they are carrying Smart Balance 50/50 Butter Blend Unsalted Sticks.

Keeping track of low sodium products is especially helpful when I am running low on something and need to get some more. If I can't exactly remember where I purchased it, my list helps me out. My list is very personalized. I only note the low sodium products that I have found tasty & useful. For example, although all my local grocery stores carry Mrs. Dash marinades, since I don't like them that much, I haven't recorded them.

Keeping track of favorite products helps make the challenge of low sodium cooking just a little bit easier.

2016 Update:
Just this last year my husband, a computer programmer, created a nifty database program specifically for grocery shopping. It includes a list of items I regularly purchase linked to the stores that carry them. I can add or delete products easily and do the same with store links. Here's an example:

Specialized Grocery Store Products Data Base

The Low Sodium Pantry: Introduction

Your pantry is your most formidable weapon in the Low Sodium Battle. Just removing salt from favorite recipes is not enough. Let’s face facts: Salt makes food taste good. So if you’re going to lower the salt content in food, you’ve got to be prepared to use your imagination, to experiment, and to come up with tasty alternative seasonings.

There is nothing intrinsically evil about salt. Even the Lord recognized its importance when He told His followers, “You are the salt of the earth...” It has been used for thousands of years as a preservative and seasoning. Hams, sausages, cheeses, anchovies, pickles, sauerkraut – all these salted foods and more have been mankind’s way of preserving the earth’s bounty.

Perfectly seasoned food is NOT salty. However, the last fifty years or so has seen an explosion of packaged, processed, and prepared foods in the grocery stores and of fast food restaurants near our homes. We are accosted by overly salty food everywhere we turn, and many people are unable to overcome the salt shaker habit.

In my Greek family, we never had a salt shaker at the table. My mom was a good cook, and everything she made was well-seasoned. Lots of tomatoes, onions, garlic, herbs, & spices. I never encountered the salt shaker habit first hand until I was in college. I was with a bunch of friends at a local restaurant. One of the fellows ordered a typical American breakfast – eggs, hash browns, & sausage. I looked on in absolute horror as he sprinkled everything on his plate with a white layer of salt. Then came the black/grey layer of ground pepper followed by a layer of bright red ketchup. He cut everything up and started to eat. I was aghast! Since then I’ve noticed people in Chinese restaurants salting chow mein and fried rice or in Italian restaurants salting spaghetti and lasagna. Salt on enchiladas and salsa; salt on a chef’s salad; salt on pizza; salt on already salt-laden French fries. It boggles the mind!

So, considering our national addiction to overly salted foods, it’s no wonder that staying on a low sodium diet is difficult for many. Serving grilled chicken sprinkled with Mrs. Dash every night is not enough incentive. That’s why having a well stocked pantry is so essential. It’s your arsenal in the Low Sodium Battle.

My goal is to cover what I consider essential pantry items for good tasting low sodium cooking. I will try to discuss how the items can be used and to include some brand names and shopping sources. Obviously, I can’t discuss everything in one post, so there will be several parts.

Sauerkraut and Pork Chops

Four hot dogs with a couple spoonfuls each of sauerkraut does not use up an entire 32 ounce package of the stuff. Needless to say, I had quite a bit left over. So I decided to make pork chops smothered in sauerkraut.

I used the B & G Reduced Sodium Sauerkraut for our Labor Day picnic meal. Let me be perfectly frank, it is LESS sodium but certainly not NO sodium. The package claims that it is 25% less sodium than the regular stuff. Two tablespoons contain 135 mg sodium while the regular kraut has 180 mg. Now that's OK if you're eating one hot dog with just the 2 tablespoons of kraut as a topping. But it's not OK if you're going to have sauerkraut as a side dish.

So the first thing I did was rinse the sauerkraut well -- twice -- under cold running water. Then I drained it and placed it in a bowl. To that I added a grated medium-sized potato, a grated apple, a couple of cloves of crushed garlic, and a finely chopped medium-sized onion that I had sauteed in butter until translucent. I mixed everything up in the bowl. The combination of the rinsing and all the additional vegetables cut the sodium content considerably. This is just another example of how to lower the sodium content of favorite foods by experimentation and imagination.

I started putting this meal together mid-morning for some reason, so I decided to use my crock pot instead of waiting to bake everything later in the afternoon. All I did was put four pork chops on the bottom of the slow cooker and cover them with the sauerkraut mixture. (I have to admit, I was feeling rather lazy, so I didn't even brown the pork chops.)

I set the slow cooker on high for about an hour and then turned it down to low for an additional four hours. By dinner time, they were done. For an added flavor adventure, I could have sprinkled each serving with a bit of slightly crushed caraway seeds. (I wouldn't want to cook them with the chops because the flavor might become overwhelmingly powerful.) I served the sauerkraut smothered chops with some lovely beets from the farmer's market. All in all, a pretty easy and very tasty meal.

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2016 Update: B & G no longer produces their low sodium sauerkraut, and I have not found another online source.