If you are looking for a healthy snack, fried potatoes are a great choice. They are low in calories and are loaded with vitamins. But before you start munching, you need to know how to cook the potatoes to make them as healthful as possible.
Sweet potato fries
If you have been looking for a healthier alternative to French fries, you may have come across sweet potato fries. This type of potato is a nutrient dense food that has been shown to help people lose weight.
Sweet potatoes are also a good source of dietary fiber. This can help you regulate your blood sugar levels and avoid the dreaded spikes that lead to binge eating.
Compared to regular potatoes, sweet potatoes have more vitamins and minerals. They are also lower on the glycemic index, a measurement of how much of a certain carbohydrate will impact your blood sugar.
While sweet potato fries are better for you than regular fries, they have more calories. The average serving of sweet potato fries contains 259 calories. However, if you’re watching your calorie intake, you’ll want to eat smaller portions.
Aside from the calorie count, deep-fried sweet potatoes can increase your risk of obesity. Deep-fried potatoes are also more fatty.
Another way to reduce the calorie count is to use healthier cooking methods. For example, instead of deep-frying, try baking or air frying. In fact, baked sweet potato fries are healthier than fried versions.
These baked sweet potato fries are a great way to increase your vitamin A intake. One whole baked sweet potato provides more than a day’s worth of this nutrient.
Glycemic index
Potatoes are a popular food worldwide. They are nutritious and have many benefits. However, they also have a high glycemic index. If you’re a diabetic, this means you should be careful with what you eat.
Although potatoes have a high glycemic value, this does not mean you should give up eating them. Instead, there are several ways you can minimize their glycemic impact.
One of the best ways to do this is to prepare your potato before consuming it. This will reduce the amount of glucose that it will cram into your bloodstream. You can do this by precooking your potatoes in extra virgin olive oil at 180-190 deg C for 15 minutes.
Another way to lower the glycemic impact of potatoes is to eat them with other foods. You can do this by eating a fried potato with a bean or a piece of meat. Eating potatoes along with meat may reduce their glycemic impact because of the fiber in the potatoes.
A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association in 1999 assessed the glycemic index of potatoes commonly consumed in North America. The results showed that the glycemic index of baked russet potatoes was higher than the glycemic index of boiled red potatoes.
Potatoes are a complex carbohydrate that contains two sugar molecules. These are sucrose and glucose. Fructose is more complex and is processed differently in the body than glucose.
Vitamins
Potatoes provide many nutritional benefits. They are low in calories and sodium and contain vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. These nutrients have been shown to support healthy heart and digestive system.
Potatoes have a lot of fiber. This is important because it helps you feel full. It also helps your body maintain healthy circulation. Fiber helps lower your total cholesterol level.
Potatoes also contain vitamin C. Vitamin C protects your body from free radical damage. Your body uses this antioxidant to help repair damaged cells.
Vitamin C is also known to slow the progression of colds. You may be surprised to learn that a typical serving of potatoes contains about a quarter of the daily vitamin C requirement.
Potassium helps maintain a balance of calcium in your bones. In addition, potassium encourages widening of your blood vessels. Adding a few fries to your diet can be beneficial to your health.
Choline is a vitamin that helps with muscle movement, learning, and memory. One large potato contains 57 mg of choline.
Phosphorus is another mineral that helps build strong bones. An average sized potato also provides a little bit of iron.
Potatoes are a good source of potassium. Some studies have found that a higher potassium intake can reduce the risk of mortality.