Hanoi Tired of the 14-dish feast, Ms. Tam, 41 years old, decided to celebrate Tet in a "thematic" way, meaning each meal only cooks one dish such as vermicelli, pho, and spring rolls.
Previously, the woman spent most of the 5 days of Tet cooking and cleaning, so she was "extremely fed up". In addition, because she and her husband are both at risk of metabolic disorders, since last Tet, she changed her eating habits, eating one dish a day, in a thematic style.
From the 28th to the 5th of Tet, Ms. Tam plans the menu for each day, for example, fried spring rolls, hot pot, vermicelli with grilled pork, vermicelli with crab soup, pho... All are prepared early in the morning, eaten during the day, with white rice or banh chung as two fixed dishes. With each dish, she tries to add vegetables and fruits to ensure more nutrients.
According to the woman, this way of cooking saves time, effort, and limits the amount of calories consumed. "For example, when I eat fried spring rolls, I roll them in large quantities the morning or evening before to eat all day the next day. Or for hot pot, I just need to prepare a pot of broth, meat, and vegetables," she said, adding that thanks to this way of eating, her family has more time to enjoy spring and is less stressed.
Similarly, the family of Mr. Nhat, 36 years old, in Cau Giay has also applied this method for 3 years now. His parents have diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and his two children are obese level 2, so the family agreed to celebrate Tet in a "minimalist" way, consuming only one dish per day, noodles, pho, hot pot, or spring rolls.
"Eating Tet this way limits starch, fat, and protein, ensuring good health and having more time to have fun," said Mr. Nhat, adding that cooking offerings is simple and not fussy, "the important thing is the sincerity from your heart."
Everyday dishes such as bun cha, pho, nem... can be eaten on Tet holiday and to entertain guests without necessarily having to have a big feast. Photo: Kim Oanh
Doctor Dang Ngoc Hung, Institute of Nutrition Research and Consulting, said that this way of eating is basically the same as cooking dishes as usual, which is encouraged.
In fact, the Vietnamese tradition is to have a "full feast" on Tet with many dishes rich in protein, fat, salt, and sugar. Chung cake, sticky rice, jellied meat, sausage, braised meat, candies, jams, etc., combined with many types of alcoholic beverages such as beer, wine, soft drinks, and carbonated drinks, create a nutritionally unbalanced menu.
"Long-term use of these foods not only puts pressure on the digestive tract but also affects health, weight, and body shape, and is especially dangerous for people with chronic diseases such as diabetes, blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease," the doctor said.
Changing your taste every day also helps prevent boredom and makes you feel more appetizing. Housewives also don't have to rush into the kitchen to prepare, instead they will have more time to rest and spend time with their family, thereby feeling happier.
However, Mr. Hung believes that if each meal only cooks a large quantity of one dish, or eats one dish all day, it will be difficult to ensure food diversity and enough energy-generating substances. Therefore, each family should calculate the amount of calories in the ingredients of the dish, the necessary nutrients in the dish to harmonize. For example, each meal should ensure green vegetables, protein from meat, fish, eggs, starch including rice, sticky rice... and seasonal fruits.
Specifically, carbohydrates need to be supplemented 50-60%, should be chosen from vegetables and fruits, in addition to brown bread, brown rice, potatoes... with the recommended amount.
The protein group from plants and animals is about 13-20% of total energy, it is recommended to "lean slightly towards vegetable protein, not boycott all animal protein". Animal fats such as fat (meat fat, fish fat) and vegetable fats such as oil (oil found in nuts, fruits). For example, if you only eat one pho dish, you should add more vegetables to ensure the minimum amount of green vegetables is one bowl per meal.
"If you eat hot pot with lots of vegetables and meat, you can supplement the amount of starch with corn and potatoes to balance it out," Dr. Hung advised.
Some other healthy ways to eat are to eat on time, limit cakes, candies, soft drinks, especially alcohol. Drinking too much alcohol will negatively affect your health, make you unsafe when participating in traffic, and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, gout, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Thuy Quynh
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