How do you feel about barbecue sauce?

At my college cafeteria I get the grilled chicken breast, brown rice, and steamed veggie meal option all the time - problem is, it's quite bland so I need something to dress it up. I like spicy brown mustard on my chicken and in my brown rice I've been mixing in barbecue sauce - I don't know if this is healthy or what but right now I'm really enjoying it.

Will 2-4 tablespoons of barbecue sauce have a significant impact? From what I see 2 tablespoons is like 50 calories - not bad, but not the best. Do you guys have anything better to dress up my rice - I really can't eat it plain.

Salsa! I love adding it to chicken and rice and it's so delicious and healthy. If they don't offer it at the cafeteria, perhaps you can bring some with you?

BBQ sauce isn't bad, it's just that commercial brands tend to add a lot of sugar. You could try soy sauce in your rice or experiment with spices. You could even buy a salt-free spice mix, like Mrs. Dash & add it in. I don't know... I LOVE plain rice!

If you're feeling adventurous, you can try furikake (Japanese rice toppings: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furikake). There are a lot of different types with different combinations of ingredients. 

Amazon sells them and has reviews if you're interested.

Love BBQ!!  and Salsa!!  50 calories for 2 tblsp isnt too much to worry about for a condiment and it's plenty to give you the flavor you want.  I say go for it!

I always add pepper to food to instantly make it taste less bland. Or maybe you could try adding some dried herbs or spices or something like that?

Instant flavour with none of the calories of sauces!

Low cal, high flavor rice toppings not already mentioned.....teriyaki sauce (Yoshida's is a good one), turmeric powder, unsweetened yogurt...... 

SOY SAUCE... I add it to EVERYTHING

it makes everything taste oriental.. and for less then 5 cal per tablespoon you don't even need to worry about extra calories... just watch the sodium!!

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

Original Post by carmenxox:

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

 I did mention it in my reply

Original Post by carmenxox:

SOY SAUCE... I add it to EVERYTHING

it makes everything taste oriental.. and for less then 5 cal per tablespoon you don't even need to worry about extra calories... just watch the sodium!!

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

The sodium intake is ridiculous thats why I didn't mention it, I love it but its so bad for you.  920 mg per serving, that's 38% of your daily intake!!  If you care about such things.  I'm on a low sodium kick, no offense, like I said I do love the stuff.

Original Post by foreverme24:

Original Post by carmenxox:

SOY SAUCE... I add it to EVERYTHING

it makes everything taste oriental.. and for less then 5 cal per tablespoon you don't even need to worry about extra calories... just watch the sodium!!

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

The sodium intake is ridiculous thats why I didn't mention it, I love it but its so bad for you.  920 mg per serving, that's 38% of your daily intake!!  If you care about such things.  I'm on a low sodium kick, no offense, like I said I do love the stuff.

 You can buy low sodium varieties of soy sauce.

Original Post by cellophane_star:

Original Post by foreverme24:

Original Post by carmenxox:

SOY SAUCE... I add it to EVERYTHING

it makes everything taste oriental.. and for less then 5 cal per tablespoon you don't even need to worry about extra calories... just watch the sodium!!

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

The sodium intake is ridiculous thats why I didn't mention it, I love it but its so bad for you.  920 mg per serving, that's 38% of your daily intake!!  If you care about such things.  I'm on a low sodium kick, no offense, like I said I do love the stuff.

 You can buy low sodium varieties of soy sauce.

This is true but the low sodium soy sauce is 40% less sodium than the original which makes the intake around 552 mg per serving, even at that it's a ridiculous amount of sodium intake in 1 tbsp.  Who actually only uses 1 tbsp, I know I usually use a lot more.  Again, just my opinion. 

Original Post by foreverme24:

Original Post by cellophane_star:

Original Post by foreverme24:

Original Post by carmenxox:

SOY SAUCE... I add it to EVERYTHING

it makes everything taste oriental.. and for less then 5 cal per tablespoon you don't even need to worry about extra calories... just watch the sodium!!

I grew up eating rice with soy sauce.. I'm rather shocked that no one's mentioned it yet, I thought it was really common?

The sodium intake is ridiculous thats why I didn't mention it, I love it but its so bad for you.  920 mg per serving, that's 38% of your daily intake!!  If you care about such things.  I'm on a low sodium kick, no offense, like I said I do love the stuff.

 You can buy low sodium varieties of soy sauce.

This is true but the low sodium soy sauce is 40% less sodium than the original which makes the intake around 552 mg per serving, even at that it's a ridiculous amount of sodium intake in 1 tbsp.  Who actually only uses 1 tbsp, I know I usually use a lot more.  Again, just my opinion. 

 so... you would rather add an extra 50+ cals of empty calories and ~10 grams of sugar instead? 

if you drink lots of water, sodium isn't too bad... and I think it's better in comparison then refined sugar or extra fat depending on what sauce you use. I'm sure BBQ sauce has it's share in sodium too.

for the record, I never use a full tablespoon anyways... half a packet of soy sauce (about 4ml) usually does it

290mg of salt and 9g of sugar for 2 tablespoons in the BBQ I use.  I see this as a better option in my opinion for my own personal choice in my own diet.  I really am not trying to upset you by saying your choice is wrong, it isn't, thats whats so awesome about making your own choices, you choose what you want to put in your body.  I did say I like soy sauce, just that I try to stay away from it as much as possible. 

Maybe I'll try soy sauce, I'll look and see if they have it in my cafeteria :)

I have notably low blood pressure so sodium's not really a problem for me - plus Idrink a tonof water.

No to BBQ Sauce! Too much sugar, no nutritional value... its like your pouring sugar on your chicken! 

BBQ is the best!!! Becareful though some of them, like Kraft, Ken's Steak house and Sweet baby ray's are very high in sugars and can add 60-100 calories per 2 tablespoons. The Kraft light has about 15 or 20 (can't remember off hand) and it taste okay. I found an organic chipotle one for 20 cals per 2 tablespoons! It's by a brand called full circle