Healthy Options When Ordering Food Delivery

By Victoria Robertson on January 24, 2020

When it comes to ordering food, healthy options have some slim pickings. In reality, there are a lot of healthy options out there, we just need to take the time to look for them before resorting to the usual burger and fries combo.

This is a big part of the reason that many people fail in keeping up with healthy diet resolutions, as eating healthy is often more expensive and more difficult to accomplish when ordering “fast food.”

So, in order to help you stick to your New Year’s resolution and keep up with a healthier diet, here are six healthy options that you should consider when ordering food delivery.

Photo Via: Pixabay.com

1. Salad

It’s an age-old option for a reason – salad is easily one of the healthiest options on most menus. That being said, don’t fall victim to the salad trap. Many individuals assume that a salad is always healthy, but dressing can ensure that’s not the case.

Between fries and a vat of Caesar dressing, you’re likely eating more calories by choosing a salad drowning in dressing. So, in these cases, it typically makes more sense to order your dressing on the side to ensure your salad is actually a healthy choice.

2. Tofu

Vegetarians typically have a small selection on each menu that they order off of, but even if you aren’t a vegetarian, you should consider taking a look at these selections. Typically, vegetarian options, such as tofu, will actually save you a large number of calories and are just as filling.

One of the biggest areas in which this is relevant is with Chinese food. Rather than ordering orange chicken, which is deep-fried and extremely unhealthy, tofu options can give you just as much flavor with far fewer calories to worry about.

3. Lean Meats

In this same line of thinking, you should also consider eating lean meats rather than red meats with a lot of fat. While you may be craving a fattening, greasy cheeseburger, it’s certainly not the healthiest item on the menu, so choosing a chicken sandwich instead can help to save calories. You can also choose fish options, tofu or any other leaner meat than ground beef.

Just make sure that when you choose lean meats, you are choosing grilled options, as crispier options are typically deep-fried and therefore unhealthy alternatives that you’ll want to stay as far away from as possible!

4. Small Portions

The smaller the portions, the more likely you are to have a healthy meal. That being said, this doesn’t mean that a small side of fries will be as healthy as a small side salad, which seems like common sense, but in some instances, the appearance of food can be deceiving. This is why you should always take a look at the calorie counts on the menu.

For this reason, make sure you consider smaller portions of fast food, and perhaps several of the healthier options, to ensure you are full but that you are also choosing healthier items in your food selection.

5. Different Sides

Half the battle when ordering food is combating the awful, unhealthy sides that are available to you in fast food. Rather than adding fries, mozzarella sticks or onion rings to your order, opt for the healthier alternatives.

For instance, rather than fries, add a side of apple slices to your order. Or rather than onion rings, get a small side salad. Remember that there are a million other options to choose from, not just in entrées, but also in sides, so there is always a healthier choice on the menu that you are able to choose.

6. Fewer Carbs

Last, but certainly not least, you should always choose fewer carbs rather than more carbs, as these can account for a large amount of the calories you consume in fast food. For instance, ordering a burrito is a healthier choice if served over brown rice rather than on a flour tortilla.

Some individuals choose to order hamburgers without the bun or to have a sandwich in a lettuce wrap rather than on two pieces of bread. Some individuals also hollow out the bread used to make their sandwiches in order to remove some of the calories there within.

Food delivery is certainly a fantastic invention when you’re not in the mood to cook, but it’s a bit more difficult when considering your need for healthy food options. For this reason, the above six options are a great starting point to consider when looking for healthier options in food delivery.

However, make sure you take a close look at the menu at each place you order from, getting a full overview of the menu rather than reverting back to your unhealthy favorites every time.

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