The love for burgers has reached epic proportions in recent years in the United States. But it’s also the dread of many that are trying to lose weight. Still, the art of making the healthiest burger has become a mission for many that are dieting or keeping lean. That has become a challenge for so many but we have mapped out a way to create the skinny burger at home or on the run at restaurants.
You won’t have to fret when your burger cravings reach a pinnacle state because we have you covered on every end of the spectrum. Take out your pad and beginning taking notes right now.
Go With The Leaner Meats
The learner the better when it comes to chopped meats — that goes for beef, chicken, turkey and pork. But when shopping for the healthiest meats to cook then you will need to search for the “lean” on the label. That means that the meat is less than 10 grams of fat and four and half grams of saturated fat per 100 grams. The “Extra Lean” label translates to half of those previous stats. You need to shop for meats that are 90 and 9 percent lean. Either way, the flavors will be equally flavorful. All you need to remember is to keep the burgers juicy when you cook them on the grill or pan (the key is to handle the patties as little as possible).
Find the Right Alternatives
The number one diet killer of burgers is the simple: the bun. The negation of the traditional white bun will turn your burger into a dream Keto diet meal. Still if you need the bread, then there’s whole grain and oat choices in the supermarket. The fiber count will be enough to help burn the fats. There’s also “cloud bread”. It’s an ultimate low-carb alternative. The egg-based bread contains two grams of carbs per slice and you make it easy at home. You also have the chance to spice up the “cloud bread” with herbs like oregano or spicy with red pepper flakes. The best option in this sector remains the wide lettuce leaves and portobello mushroom caps.
Don’t Make the Fully-Loaded Option
Every burger joint fancies itself on creating unique burgers with the inclusion of unique toppings such as mayo or pineapples. Some of these choices could ruin your diet. The biggest culprit is ketchup. There’s a very large amount of sugar in ketchup so stay away. Rather, you should add homemade salsa on the burger. There’s new wave trends such as fried eggs that is healthy addition to a burger (think protein). The veggies like onions, peppers and greens are always valid to add-on your healthy burger.
The Fast-Food Healthy Burgers
Believe or not, there’s a lot of viable fast-food burgers that will fit in your diet. But there’s only a few to choose from but don’t overdo it. The best of the bunch is surprisingly at McDonald’s. The food chain’s “Quarter Pounder” only has 250 calories and eight grams of fat. The Carl’s Junior burger meats are all grass-fed and free-range patties (no hormones or additives). It’s easily the best amongst all the competitors. The standard burger has 230 calories without all the toppings. Then there’s the bunless burger at Five Guys that contains roughly 16-grams of protein and hardly any carbs. You could also spice up the burger with the veggie toppings and they pile it on at Five Guys.
The Healthiest Restaurant Burger
There’s your typical restaurant chains like TGIF, Applebees, and IHOB (formerly IHOP and “B” stands for Burgers) that offer plenty of unique and tasty burgers. But all have the downfalls as they an average of 1200 calories. That sets the stage for the ultimate healthy and tasty hamburger restaurant franchise: Bareburger. The burger joint started in Astoria, Queens in New York City and has stretched to 23 locations from Ohio to Toronto. The chain has pride itself on grass-fed meats on sprout and wheat buns. All the meats are fresh and they are various choices such as elk, wild boar, ostrich, lamb and bison. The food doesn’t have any GMOs, additives and pesticides in any of their burgers. They have become the best option for finding the healthiest restaurant burger in the country.
The burger patty itself will remain king amongst All-American meals — next to the hot dog. In fact, the lean burger patty without a bun is quite possibly the easiest and healthy option you will have on any diet and a dream for those engaged in Keto.
Image credit: Quentin Lagache [Unsplash]
