Need ultra low/no fat recipes/meal ideas a completely inexperienced cook can pull off independently

[saraha]

Starting this weekend I am menu planning and shopping for meals for mil who has a bad gallbladder infection. I am stopping one step shy of doing all the cooking. Fil and mil have a girl who is supposed to work 5 days a week, usually manages to show up three or four days a week who does their cooking when she’s there, except she doesn’t know how to cook. She usually feeds them frozen dinners and hamburger helper type meals. But now mil has a strict new dietary need of ultra low/ no fat. I made foods for her this week but next week hha will be doing their cooking.

So I need links, meal ideas, recipes for low to no fat ideas and I am really short on time. These have to be SUPER easy or hha might not be successful. I cannot be there to supervise cooking, she will be on her own with whatever papers I leave for her. She definitely needs step but step instructions clearly spelled out.

Thanks for any help!

PS how do we feel about the Tyson pregrilled chicken in this case? Thinking I don’t want to overwhelm her with too many from scratch steps at first.

[Harriet Vane]

Easiest veg soup. Cook in water or stock whatever combination of vegetables are on hand, plus one onion and one potato, until soft. Puree. Salt and pepper to taste. Immersion blender is easiest for pureeing but it works great in a regular blender. Can add chicken bits or noodles or rice after pureeing if desired, but not necessary. 

(Tell the hha to then clean the blender easily by dumping in some dish soap and water and turning it on for a minute. Easy peasy. )

Easiest egg-drop soup. Heat broth with some green onion and a dash of soy sauce if that's allowed. Just a dash. Beat an egg. Pour egg into soup in a thin drizzle while stirring soup gently with a fork. If egg ribbons are too long for mil to manage, just slice them up with kitchen scissors or a knife. 

**Corn does not digest as easily, so I'd probably avoid that for now.**

[Beth S]

I discovered the Tyson chicken pieces on vacation . . . & haven't looked back since!
       Definitely use pre-cooked chicken like this.

My dh eats low-fat, & the easiest (?!?) step was to swap out condiments.
   Fat free Ranch Dressing.
   Walmart's Light Vanilla Yogurt (it's like dessert), but dh uses it instead of butter.
   Baby carrots, fruits, vegetables = these are easy to serve.
   Bag salads
   Olive oil Spray, if needed to grease a pan for frying egg whites.
   Soup with BBQ sauce, Teriyaki Sauce . . . other lowfat broth flavorings.

IMO:  It's actually more likely that you'll find MIL doesn't WANT to eat lowfat.
             If she's over 80yo, I would just let this whole effort DROP, & let her enjoy her final years.

[elegantlion]

Pop a batch of chicken breasts in the oven to bake. They will stay fresh in the fridge for a few days. They can cut them up to use in rice with some very light seasoning (check which ones are allowed). They can also be served alone with a side of potatoes. I usually bake some red potatoes with just a bit of italian seasoning on it. 

Bake a turkey breast & cut into portions and freeze. 

Applesauce as a side. 

I am not a cook and I don't like messing with multi-step recipes. SO & I tend to just eat whole singular foods. I have diverticulitis and gallbladder issues. When I have a flare up, I go to the bland boring diet for a few days. 

[Faith-manor]

If you can afford to buy a rice cooker, you can have the aide put two cups of chicken broth from a carton into the rice cooker, 1cup of white rice, open and dump a can of Swanson or off brand chicken breast, a little salt and pepper, a bay leaf, a tbsp of thyme, and a cup of frozen green beans into the rice cooker. One pot meal. 

Mil needs to eat a pretty boring, same old same old diet. So this could be doubled, and they can eat it for lunch and for supper. It can be done multiple times per week. Fil will just have to learn to deal with it.

Simple chicken with pasta. 1 cup pasta, 1 cup peas, 2 cups water, boil until soft, drain, add one can of canned chicken, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp basil, toss with 1 tbsp of olive oil and a tbsp of water to spread the herbs around.

[knitgrl]

I got a rice cooker from Amazon years ago. Best $30 I ever spent. Because for some reason, I can't make rice on the stove.

[almondbutterandjelly]

Turkey Italian sausage, pasta, marinara

Borden makes fat free cheese singles

Tortillas are about 2 grams of fat. Make breakfast tacos with boxed egg whites, fat free cheese, and turkey bacon or turkey sausage. Or quesadillas with fat free cheese and chicken and salsa 

 

[lmrich]

I would make a menu for her with the meal for each day and plan for leftovers. Do they eat their big meal at noon? Are they on their own for dinner, then? 

Pasta with frozen veggies and  grilled chicken.

Rice and veggies and chicken stir fry. 

Egg white omlette with veggies 

Turkey kielbasa and gnochhi (look at the fat content there.. not sure as I eat gluten free) and onions stirred in  a  pan 

Baked potatoes topped with turkey chili 

Roasted turkey breast with  veggies 

Sweet potatoes hash with turkey sausage (I like the breakfast sausage for this) 

Rotisserie chicken breast, oven roasted potatoes (a   little olive  oil  goes a long  way) and veggies 

lots  of  salads.. 

lots of soups... 

oatmeal with skim  milk and protein powder with lots of fruit 

most breakfast cereals

Smoothie with spinach, frozen fruit, and proten powder 

Some sandwiches -  look for low fat breads or   pita, turkey or chicken with lettuce and no or low fat chesse use 1/2 slice, pickles, pretzels on the side. 

 

 

[saraha]

Can almond milk be substituted for cows milk? Would that make a difference? Her favorite meals all include dairy. Pot pie, creamy rice casseroles, gravy.

[wisdomandtreasures]

Check out Jane Esselstyn on YouTube. She uses no oil and very little fat by way of nuts and avocados. 

[Clarita]

54 minutes ago, saraha said:

Pot pie, creamy rice casseroles, gravy.

You can make those things without milk and just use broth or water just thickened up a little more. Thickener can be cornstarch so you don't have to make a roux (flour and butter).

[Corraleno]

1 hour ago, saraha said:

Can almond milk be substituted for cows milk? Would that make a difference? Her favorite meals all include dairy. Pot pie, creamy rice casseroles, gravy.

Almond milk and oat milk both have ~2.5g of fat per cup, which is about the same as 1% dairy milk. Sometimes you can find "light" soy milk which is ~1.5g per cup. I'd use fat free broth + cornstarch, as Clarita suggested, if you want to add some "creaminess" to a dish without any fat.

[Carol in Cal.]

When I had gall bladder problems, the non fat requirements to keep attacks at bay were severe.

The meats I could eat were:

Shrimp

Scallops

Turkey breast, skinless

Chicken breast, skinless

Lamb tenderloins

Ground turkey breast

 

There were probably some fish that would have worked, but I don’t like fish.

I would cook meat using Pam spray instead of butter.

It was hard to get full.

I like rice a lot and would cook various kinds without any butter, just water and salt.

The easiest recipe that was hearty was:

3-4 skinless chicken breasts (boneless is ok but not required)

Saute briefly in Pam, just until they turn white, in a deep, heavy pot.  Dump in two cans of condensed cream of chicken soup.  I can’t remember whether I used the healthy request style or the other healthy one, but I read labels and picked the lowest fat one.  Cover and cook over low heat until the chicken is done through.

The soup makes its own gravy, which is good on fat free rice.

I found that most so-called low fat recipes were not low fat enough.

Lamb tenderloins we would slice, sprinkle with lemon pepper, and saute in Pam.  Then eat with nonfat rice.

Pork tenderloins we would slice, dredge in flour with salt and pepper in it, and saute in Pam.  Then deglaze with apple juice and eat with nonfat rice.

Pricey little boxes of purple or red rice or forbidden rice are awfully good even if low-fat, and more filling than white rice.

Non fat cottage cheese with chopped fresh chives mixed into it is a great spread on rye or pumpernickel bread, salt it after you spread it on, eat open faced.

Boxed Mac n Cheese works fine without the butter and made with nonfat milk.

 

[Emba]

https://www.vegan-magazine.com/2013/08/24/vegan-recipe-quick-three-bean-soup/amp/
 

this is a soup my family has enjoyed (and we are not vegan, so it’s hard for me to slip in more plant based meals). The recipe is a lot of opening cans, mostly, though it calls for diced onion and garlic, too, and mixed vegetables, which could be frozen from a bag.

I don’t know what the fat content of the jarred garlic is, but would something like that help? Or I think you can buy pre-diced onions in the frozen section.   I would be going with anything pre-prepped that you can, including the chicken you mentioned.  You could even dice onions ahead and leave them in the fridge for her.

[Faith-manor]

Our honorary daughter had emergency surgery for her gall bladder. Same day as she was admitted seen at the ER. I just went back and looked at the Cleveland Clinic diet that she followed and no legumes was recommended for a while, then add back slowly. So no peas in that meal I suggested above. Green beans or carrots would be a better choice. Also no nuts for a spell.

I remember my hdd referring to her meals as, "Sadness on a plate". 

It also said no chicken or turkey skin, so that is another food prep issue. I think canned chicken, and then something like meals made with canned salmon or tuna would be for the best if the aide is not going to be reliable for food prep and cooking technique. 

[Harriet Vane]

4 hours ago, saraha said:

Can almond milk be substituted for cows milk? Would that make a difference? Her favorite meals all include dairy. Pot pie, creamy rice casseroles, gravy.

For savory dishes, I think cashew milk is a more neutral alternative to almond milk. (I'm lactose intolerant.)

[Harriet Vane]

3 hours ago, Corraleno said:

Almond milk and oat milk both have ~2.5g of fat per cup, which is about the same as 1% dairy milk. Sometimes you can find "light" soy milk which is ~1.5g per cup. I'd use fat free broth + cornstarch, as Clarita suggested, if you want to add some "creaminess" to a dish without any fat.

I agree about the cornstarch. 

I would never use soymilk in a savory dish--it has a specific, characteristic taste and is naturally sweet. (Rice milk also tastes sweet even when unsweetened.)

[Scarlett]

I cannot imagine eating this way for the rest of my life.  My DIL went through several weeks of this before they took hers out.  She could not eat ANY fat or she was instantly throwing up.  She went to the ER several times but they just sent her home even after discovering by blood sample she had an infection.  (Stupid rural hospitals) The surgeon was quite annoyed they did not admit her and do emergency surgery. 

[knitgrl]

I know a previous poster mentioned that beans might not be ok. My gall bladder was taken out almost 20 years ago, so I don't remember all the specific dietary details, aside from avoiding fat. If beans are ok, this is a stupid easy recipe, which is pretty tasty:

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/14021/grandmas-slow-cooker-vegetarian-chili/

[Carol in Cal.]

Be aware that the surgery does not necessarily resolve the dietary issue.  I couldn’t eat fat for several years after having my gall bladder out.  The subsequent hardships were not as severe as gall bladder attacks but were still debilitating.

ALSO!  Jelly beans are nonfat.  I ate a lot of those.  I also lost a lot of weight.  It’s hard to get enough calories on a diet like this.

[Carol in Cal.]

Beans were fine for me, and Van Camps Pork n Beans was a very low fat hearty main dish.