Alternative to Oven Chips

Hey all,

Need some food advice as i'm pretty useless.

Every night for tea i generally have either a couple of pieces of white fish or a couple of chicken breasts with a load of veg and some chips.

I know chips aren't particually good for me, but i have those McCain Rustic Oven Chips which i dont think are too bad.

http://www.mccain.co.uk/our-food/chips/rustic -oven-chips/nutrition.aspx

But after a load of reading i think ive been fooled by the advertising on this one as chips=potato=starch=suger rush?

So two things, a) what are peoples opinions on these chips (i dont eat any other chips/crisps/bread during the day only wholemeal at lunch)  and b) can anyone reccomend a better alternative to chips?

Cheers

Oven chips aren't bad for you - good source of vitamin C and the ones with the skins on have some fibre - but it's a pity to eat the same thing every day when there are so many other foods you could try as well.  And it's also better for you nutritionally to have a variety of foods.

You could try having some brown rice on the side of your fish/chicken and vegetables... that's got less starch and more vitamin B.  Wholewheat pasta or noodles would be another option.  You could have little boiled new potatoes... those aren't as starchy as chips and don't contain any fat or salt.    

Also, why not replace the fish and chicken from time to time with other proteins.... eggs, beans, tofu, red meats.... so that you're getting the benefit of a wider range of foods?

The chips arent bad...however, if you want al alternate that might be better is take a turnip and slice in chip slices and fry or bake to desired tecture...I fry mine in a pan with light spray and if I want it firmer I oven bake them...with a small amount of sea salt...it makes a low cal chip and its nutritional as well.

Do you have sweet potatoes where you are?  Slice them up just like fries/chips and bake them with some spray oil and some herbs.

You could make you're own perhaps? Take a potato, cut up, sprinkle with pepper, spices and put on a baking sheet in oven until cooked. Could use sweet potato for this as well, it also turns out nicely.

Maybe a jacket potato? you could chop up your chicken and veggies, mix with a little light mayonnaise or some kind of tomato based sauce or something and eat it on top of the potato.

I agree w/gi-jane!  Try some brown rice, and vary your foods. here are some other ideas:

BAKE (do *not* fry) sweet potatoes at 350F for about 30-40 min (whole, with skin on - just put in a pan/baking dish).  Peel and eat w/your chicken/fish - they are very sweet and delicious.  They have about 1Kcal per gram, so weigh them after you peel them and decide what you want.

Butternut squash: prepare as above then sprinkle a little salt on top before eating.  They are yummy and starchy, but have less Kcal per gram than sweet potatoes.

Quinoa: a nice grain with twice the protein of rice. In a small pot, boil one and a half cups (about 400ml) of water w/salt to taste.  When water is boiling add 1 cup quinoa, stir and reduce flame to low.  Cover w/lid.  Steam this way for about 20 min or so, until the grain is soft and about the texture of cooked rice. You can add herbs to the boiling water before adding the quinoa if desired.

Hope these help!

V.

I like soy crisps, I am not sure how these would work with fish tho.

thanks for the tips as always guys/girls will try some of these ideas :)