What replaces oil?

[Conundrum]

Particularly interested in what I could use instead of oil for lettuce salad dressing.

Thanks. I keep reading oil is unhealthy.

 

[tamino]

First reaction when I read this: Shucks, a little oil never hurt anybody.

Second reaction: what if you switched to a creamy style instead? something based on yogurt?

Third reaction: Applesauce. You can get applesauce in an unsweetened variety where it's just the natural sweetness of the apples, not any added sugar. You would maybe not even need vinegar, because the applesauce would be its own acid.

Pick the reaction you like best

 

[StacyK]

It depends on if you’re looking for oil-free or fat-free. If you just want to avoid processed oils, then try tahini (sesame butter) or avocado. They’re high fat but nutrient rich.

 

[Treknik]

Well, lets start with fats. Is eating fat essentially bad. No.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-truth-about-fats-bad-and-good
Should you avoid oils? No. You should avoid refined oils.
https://happilyunprocessed.com/the-basics/refined-oils-and-why-you-should-never-eat-them/
If you are looking for something to avoid then avoid sugar in all of it's forms.
The macro nutrients you eat are Fat, Protein and Carbohydrates. Carbohydrates (sugar) is the only one your body doesn't actually need. Your body can manufacture all the carbohydrates it needs.
Do you need to avoid carbohydrates completely? No. Just avoid the wrong ones.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323014
Bottom line is make a low carb salad dressing using extra virgin olive oil. I like 3-2-1 or 5-2-1 whatever you prefer. EVOO, Red Wine Vinegar, Mustard with perhaps some herbs like rosemary or maybe a splash of balsamic.

Not recommending the Keto diet as that low amount of carbs is very difficult. However if you look at what foods are recommended and which should be avoided the science is spot on. Weird autocorrect here **** = KKeto?

 

[Conundrum]

First reaction when I read this: Shucks, a little oil never hurt anybody.

Second reaction: what if you switched to a creamy style instead? something based on yogurt?

Third reaction: Applesauce. You can get applesauce in an unsweetened variety where it's just the natural sweetness of the apples, not any added sugar. You would maybe not even need vinegar, because the applesauce would be its own acid.

Pick the reaction you like best

Applesauce? I'll try on one leaf. I'd like to stay as close as possible to the oil and vinegar dressing I used to enjoy. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Conundrum]

It depends on if you’re looking for oil-free or fat-free. If you just want to avoid processed oils, then try tahini (sesame butter) or avocado. They’re high fat but nutrient rich.

Oil free is the idea. Not familiar with tahini. I'll research what it is. Not sure if avocado oil is considered good or bad. Will check. Thanks for the ideas.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

If going oil free make sure you are getting enough fatty acids somewhere else in your diet.

As for alternatives for salads, my favorites:

gravy​

chilli​

BBQ pork, chicken, beef (w/ lots of BBQ sauce)​

mayo (I mix with tuna and onion)​

cream based dressings​

honey-mustard​

with no dressings (just the veggies)​

​

Other options I'm not so fond of:

cranberry sauce​

pureed fruits (like applesauce)​

canned fruit in juice, no added sugar​

As to oils: olive, flax, avocado, are considered good oils (high in good cholesterol, low in bad cholesterol). I use olive oil mixed with apple cider vinegar as a quick dressing, sometimes adding fruit or Italian spices.

 

[user 22017]

Olive oil is very good for you and is part of the Mediterranean diet. If you haven't heard of it, it is not a weight loss diet, but a way of eating. Maybe the healthiest way to eat.

See: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/a-practical-guide-to-the-mediterranean-diet-2019032116194

Safflower oil helps to lower your levels of bad cholesterol without adversely impacting your good cholesterol, but there are better options.

Foods high in polyunsaturated fat include a number of plant-based oils, including: soybean oil, corn oil, sunflower oil

Other sources include some nuts and seeds such as walnuts and sunflower seeds, tofu and soybeans. The American Heart Association also recommends eating tofu and other forms of soybeans, canola, walnut and flaxseed, and their oils. These foods contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), another omega-3 fatty acid.

From: https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/fats/polyunsaturated-fats

If you start using polyunsaturated oils, I think it is important that you also eat olive oil. I read somewhere that eating only polyunsaturated oils/fats can harm you.

Doing a search for "best substitute for oil on salads" brings up many websites and pages with substitutes for oil.

 

[Conundrum]

Well, lets start with fats. Is eating fat essentially bad. No.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-truth-about-fats-bad-and-good
Should you avoid oils? No. You should avoid refined oils.
https://happilyunprocessed.com/the-basics/refined-oils-and-why-you-should-never-eat-them/
If you are looking for something to avoid then avoid sugar in all of it's forms.
The macro nutrients you eat are Fat, Protein and Carbohydrates. Carbohydrates (sugar) is the only one your body doesn't actually need. Your body can manufacture all the carbohydrates it needs.
Do you need to avoid carbohydrates completely? No. Just avoid the wrong ones.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323014
Bottom line is make a low carb salad dressing using extra virgin olive oil. I like 3-2-1 or 5-2-1 whatever you prefer. EVOO, Red Wine Vinegar, Mustard with perhaps some herbs like rosemary or maybe a splash of balsamic.

Not recommending the **** diet as that low amount of carbs is very difficult. However if you look at what foods are recommended and which should be avoided the science is spot on. Weird autocorrect here **** = KKeto?

Thank you for the many tips and suggestions. I don't know what the keto diet is. What I was reading about is calorie restriction studies.

 

[Conundrum]

If going oil free make sure you are getting enough fatty acids somewhere else in your diet.

As for alternatives for salads, my favorites:

gravy​

chilli​

BBQ pork, chicken, beef (w/ lots of BBQ sauce)​

mayo (I mix with tuna and onion)​

cream based dressings​

honey-mustard​

with no dressings (just the veggies)​

​

Other options I'm not so fond of:

cranberry sauce​

pureed fruits (like applesauce)​

canned fruit in juice, no added sugar​

As to oils: olive, flax, avocado, are considered good oils (high in good cholesterol, low in bad cholesterol). I use olive oil mixed with apple cider vinegar as a quick dressing, sometimes adding fruit or Italian spices.

Thank you for the suggestions.

 

[StacyK]

Oil free is the idea. Not sure if avocado oil is considered good or bad.

Sorry—I wasn’t clear. I meant actual avocados, not avocado oil. Mash an avocado with, say, lime juice, and a little water to thin it, and add whatever seasoning you like. But if reducing calories is the idea, substituting an avocado for oil won’t help!

 

[egilbe]

Fat free diets are very bad for you. People end up replacing those missing calories with processed sugars, which is why America is so damn fat. Processed food is normally loaded with preservatives to make it last longer, increase shelf life. I love a can of Spam as much as the next person, but it's loaded with salts. Keep your food simple. Oils on salads aren't a bad thing, depends on the oils. It's recommended to eat oily fish, for example, or walnuts, or grass fed beef or free range chickens.

The original research stating that fats were bad for you was based on junk science and scientists have been parroting the same badly done study ever since.

 

[SpinnerUp]

Hey, this America..ask and ye shall receive

 

[Conundrum]

Sorry—I wasn’t clear. I meant actual avocados, not avocado oil. Mash an avocado with, say, lime juice, and a little water to thin it, and add whatever seasoning you like. But if reducing calories is the idea, substituting an avocado for oil won’t help!

Thank you

 

[Conundrum]

Fat free diets are very bad for you. People end up replacing those missing calories with processed sugars, which is why America is so damn fat. Processed food is normally loaded with preservatives to make it last longer, increase shelf life. I love a can of Spam as much as the next person, but it's loaded with salts. Keep your food simple. Oils on salads aren't a bad thing, depends on the oils. It's recommended to eat oily fish, for example, or walnuts, or grass fed beef or free range chickens.

The original research stating that fats were bad for you was based on junk science and scientists have been parroting the same badly done study ever since.

This is what I eat. Lettuce is in the fridge. I am not a vegetarian but I eat very litttle meat. Never had Spam. I've heard of it but not sure what it is. I eat lettuce salads with oil and vinegar. I would like to eliminate the oil. My question is whether there is something that would replace oil and yet result in about the same taste as an oil and vinegar dressing.

 

[tamino]

I think if you were to buy fat-free dressing at the store, they'd use carrageenan instead of the oil, but I didn't suggest that at first because -- yeah -- it doesn't really fit in the same category as all the rest of the stuff in your picture. (All good stuff!!)

My feeling is that salad dressing basically does three things, maybe four:

1. salt (because veggies kinda need it)
2. acid (makes everything more tasty)
3. sticks to the leaves (so that the salt and acid doesn't collect in a liquid puddle at the bottom)
4. optionally: sweetener, some commercial salad dressings have it, but you don't need it

When you mix oil and vinegar and make an emulsion, I believe the emulsified oil is basically helping with #3, sticking to the leaves. Carrageenan (in the commercial fat-free dressings) I think is doing the same thing.

So I think you're basically looking for a vehicle that will carry salt and acid and that will stick to the leaves. That was where my brain was going when I suggested applesauce. I figure it's something that would stick to the leaves and provide acid. I've never tried it myself, but it seems like it should work. The next time I go to the store I might get some, and add garlic and tarragon to it and see how well it works.

If you experiment and find something tasty I hope you'll update us!

 

[ibuzzard]

I use a balsamic reduction. That’s it, nothing else. As you reduce it, it gets so sweet , I never felt the need for anything else, though I imagine herbs, finely diced chives, maybe roasted garlic would be great.

 

[tamino]

I use a balsamic reduction. That’s it, nothing else.

That's another good idea!! When balsamic vinegar gets that thick and viscous, it sticks to the leaves all by itself. So I think that satisfies all the criteria I listed, too.

 

[Conundrum]

I think if you were to buy fat-free dressing at the store, they'd use carrageenan instead of the oil, but I didn't suggest that at first because -- yeah -- it doesn't really fit in the same category as all the rest of the stuff in your picture. (All good stuff!!)

My feeling is that salad dressing basically does three things, maybe four:

1. salt (because veggies kinda need it)
2. acid (makes everything more tasty)
3. sticks to the leaves (so that the salt and acid doesn't collect in a liquid puddle at the bottom)
4. optionally: sweetener, some commercial salad dressings have it, but you don't need it

When you mix oil and vinegar and make an emulsion, I believe the emulsified oil is basically helping with #3, sticking to the leaves. Carrageenan (in the commercial fat-free dressings) I think is doing the same thing.

So I think you're basically looking for a vehicle that will carry salt and acid and that will stick to the leaves. That was where my brain was going when I suggested applesauce. I figure it's something that would stick to the leaves and provide acid. I've never tried it myself, but it seems like it should work. The next time I go to the store I might get some, and add garlic and tarragon to it and see how well it works.

If you experiment and find something tasty I hope you'll update us!

As soon as the grocery stores reopen I'll be the first to buy applesauce and I'll guineapig how it tastes mixed with vinegar, garlic and pepper on a green salad.

 

[Conundrum]

I use a balsamic reduction. That’s it, nothing else. As you reduce it, it gets so sweet , I never felt the need for anything else, though I imagine herbs, finely diced chives, maybe roasted garlic would be great.

Thanks for the idea. I have balsamic vinegar but I'll see if they have it as a reduction.