Having a delicious, nutritious meal option in the form of frozen food keeps you from reaching for some processed snacks when you’re on a weight loss program. Most foods keep their nutritional value when frozen, so your body can enjoy the full benefits of minerals, vitamins, and other essential nutrients.
However, not all frozen foods offer the same health benefits. Here are some tasty dietitian-approved examples you can stock up your freezer with.
Veggie Burgers
Most veggie burgers are made of vegetables, legumes such as lentils and beans, and whole grains. These are nutrient-packed foods rich in fiber, minerals, and vitamins, supporting overall health and weight loss. If you’re ever on the hunt for a healthy meal after a long day at work, you can always go for veggie burgers.
What’s even better is that they keep you full for a long while thanks to the protein content, meaning less snacking and more weight control! An average veggie burger has around 150 calories, fitting most weight loss plans.
Edamame
Edamame is a perfect fiber-packed addition to grain bowls, stir-fries, and salads. It also works as a midday snack. One cup of edamame has around 0.6 ounces of protein, making it among the most satiating snacks of plant origin. As you most likely already know, a protein-rich diet helps boost weight loss and makes you less hungry over the day.
Spinach
Spinach contains very little fat, it’s high in fiber, and it’s best when kept frozen. If not, it tends to wilt relatively easily when stored in a fridge. Plus, it’s good to always have spinach on hand for casseroles, side dishes, and similar. Also, smoothies, pasta, and soups taste much better with spinach in them.
Many studies showed that consuming five grams of spinach extract per day leads to a much higher weight loss percentage. It’s believed that the content of thylakoids, plant membranes that promote satiety feeling and delay fat digestion, is responsible for this.
Spinach helps suppress one’s appetite, forcing someone to eat less and boosting weight loss in the long run.
Greek Yogurt Bars
Let’s face it – everyone gets the sweet tooth sometimes, regardless of the weight loss program they’re following. Greek yogurt bars are just the dessert you need, as a low-calorie sweet treat that also promotes weight loss and overall health. They’re packed with protein and probiotics, so they promote gut health too.
Furthermore, avoiding sugars completely barely does any good. In fact, it can even lead to burnout. Make sure you have enough sweets to prevent you from feeling deprived on your weight loss journey and prepare some Greek yogurt bars for when the cravings arrive.
Frozen Berries
Berries are heaven-sent for those on a weight loss program. They’re low in sugars, high in fibers, and are a great addition to smoothies and baked dishes. In fact, studies have shown that eating a 65-calorie berry snack leads to consuming less food on your next meal compared to eating the same caloric content of candies.
Shrimp
Here’s yet another low-calorie and high-protein food to keep you from snacking too often. These foods are packed with protein and contain very few calories. You can add them to salads, pasta, or tacos, bake, sauté, or air fry them.
Salmon
The omega-3 fats are essential to combatting inflammation in the body and can even help fight obesity. If you were looking for omega-3 food supplement pills, stop looking. You don’t need them. Eating salmon will ensure you get all these heart-friendly nutrients naturally. Plus, salmon is also rich in protein.
Salmon is super tasty whether it’s grilled, pan-fried, or baked. It can be served as an entrée or with salads, pasta, or burgers.
Cauliflower Rice
Did you know that cauliflower rice has 4.7 grams of carbs in a 100-gram serving? This translates to just 29 calories. You could say that there’s no better substitute for regular rice than cauliflower! Toss it into your casserole or stew or replace your traditional rice dish with it. It’s super convenient, versatile, and easy to cook.
Cold and Tasty
The weight loss journey doesn’t have to be so hard. Stuffing your freezer with nutrient-dense, tasty food will make it easier to go through different stages of food craving and the like. We’ve provided you with enough options to satisfy your sweet tooth and prepare delicious dinners and salads right from the freezer.
