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Mexican Food Survival Guide

Nachos, Margaritas, and Chips Oh My! Going out for Mexican food doesn't have to be a dieting nightmare. In fact, authentic Mexican cuisine is very in line with the Zone guidelines; lean protein, lots of vegetables, salsas and sauces. Here we'll give you some tips for dining out so you can feel like you've indulged without the guilt.

0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-icons5Starters and Sides

Chips are often flowing and frequently refilled in many establishments. One serving can add up to about 450 calories and that doesn't include the guacamole for dipping. Instead of blowing your entire days calories at the start, here's our guide to which starters and sides to choose and which ones to skip.

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0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-iconsSoups and Salad

Mexican soups and stews pack a ton of flavor with the combination of spices and slow cooked meats. Look for soups that use tomato, bean or even use guacamole as a base and avoid the ones where cream or cheese are the primary ingredient. Salads are great as either an appetizer or main entrée. When using as an entrée ask for protein to be served on top such as chicken or fish and skip the taco shell if your salad comes served in one.

 

Soups

  • Asado de Bodas- A traditional Mexican soup with pork and chiles             
  • Black Bean Soup
  • Lime Soup
  • Chilled Avocado Soup

Salads

  • Fajita Salad with Chicken/Fish
  • Taco salad with Chicken/Fish- no shell

0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-icons2Entrees

Mexican dishes go beyond burritos, quesadillas, and fajitas to include stewed meats and fish served over a bed of vegetables with various sauces. When ordering entrees aim for ones with lean meats and veggies, avoid the rice and ask for beans instead. 

  • Fajitas: You can still enjoy fajitas, just eat the filling and ask for beans as a side
  • Seafood: Aim for grilled seafood served with light sauces or salsas on top.
  • Grilled Meats: Aim for chicken or leaner cuts of meat served with grilled veggies and salsas.
  • Tacos: Ask your server if you can replace your corn tortillas with lettuce instead. While it may not be offered everywhere, this is one way to enjoy all the flavors of fish or chicken tacos without the extra carbs from the tortillas.

0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-icons3Sauces

Mexican Sauces pack a ton of flavor. Entrees using the following sauces tend to be Zone favorable but always read the ingredients or ask your server just to be sure.

  • Mole: Mole encompasses a variety of different sauces used in Mexican dishes many of which have numerous ingredients and cover a spectrum of flavors. Most mole sauces are brown and include a blend of various spices often accompanied by chocolate.
  • Chimichurri: A traditional chimichurri includes parsley, vinegar, garlic, oregano, crushed red pepper and olive oil. It makes for a great addition on top of meat.
  • Red/Green Chile Enchilada sauce: A sauce that uses tomatoes or tomatillos as base and a blend of various spices.

0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-icons4Alcohol

Alcohol is treated like a carbohydrate in the Zone and the more alcohol you drink the more restrictive you need to be with your other carbohydrate choices. This is why we recommend avoiding it all together. Where with traditional carbohydrates (fruits, veggies, legumes, starches) for every one gram you consume, it supplies 4 calories, with alcohol for every 1 gram you consume it supplies 7 calories. Ideally it’s best to avoid alcohol, but should you want to indulge have it in place of dessert, try and keep it to simple drinks like wine or beer and couple it with protein. 

Margaritas are popular drinks at many Mexican restaurants, but the issue is they are packed with sugar. Frozen margaritas can range anywhere from 350-450 calories. You might be able to find drinks that use agave syrup, stevia, or other sugar free alternatives but that shouldn’t be an excuse to consume more. Your best bet if you want one is to lighten them up like the recipe below and aim for a classic margarita with just tequila, triple sec or Cointreau and lime juice. This would give you about 185 calories in 4 ounces. 

Zone Margarita- Zonearita

Instructions:
1. Fill a glass with ice. Add the liquids, a dash of stevia and salt.
2. Shake, shake and shake.

Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): Calories 187; Carbs 7

0518-CincoDeMayo-Blog-icons6Recipes

Want to bring the spice of Mexican cuisine home, try out these Zone recipes.

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Instructions:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, stir in the onion and garlic. Cook until the onion is soft and turned translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Stir in the chicken broth, green chiles, diced tomatoes and tomatillo salsa. Season with oregano and clove. Bring to a boil over high heat add Zone PastaRx Orzo, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 16-20 minutes.
  3. Stir in the Perdue Short Cuts to warm up 2-3 minutes.

Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): Calories 371; Protein 25g ; Total Fat 12g; Total Carb 40g; Fiber 7g

Coconut Lime Black Beans Recipe

Instructions:

  1. Heat the beans on medium heat, with coconut oil and lime juice and season with salt and pepper.
  2. Garnish with the scallions.

Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): Calories 136; Protein 7g; Total Fat 3g; Total Carb 21g; Fiber 7.5g

Zone Orzo and Pinto Bean Salsa Salad

Instructions:

  1. Prepare Zone PastaRx Orzo according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking set aside.
  2. Using an imersion blender mix half the avocado, garlic, lime juice, water, salt and chili powder to make a dressing, set aside.
  3. In a medium sized bowl mix the beans, peppers, and onions. Add the dressing and toss to coat evenly. Gently fold in the tomatoes, remaining 1/2 diced avocado, cilantro and serve over Zone PastaRx Orzo.

Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): Calories 360; Protein 21g; Total Fat 11g ; Total Carb: 46g; Fiber 10g

As always, we want to help you stay in the Zone everyday and through all challenging special occasions and holidays. Please contact our customer service department at  800-404-8171 or customersupport@zoneliving.com to answer any additional questions you may have. 

 

Zone Foods make it easy to stay in the Zone! 

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Tofu: Tips and Recipes Ideas

I have been eating tofu for a very long time, much longer than the 30 or so years I have been following the Zone Diet. Back then many of my favorite recipes came from the Tassajara cookbooks by Edward Espe Brown, the celebrated chef from the kitchen at California’s famous Zen Mountain Center, and cookbooks by Louise Hagler, a.k.a. Wendy Louise, a well-known authority on vegetarian cooking who is associated with a community in Tennessee known as The Farm. Those books are still among the best resources for tofu recipes. My mantra has always been if you don’t like something, don’t eat it. Keep this in mind if you’re new to tofu, start slowly by combining it with flavors and foods you like.    Tips and Suggestions    Firm-sprouted tofu is my preference for the Zone Diet. Unlike traditional tofu, which contains significant amounts of both protein and carbohydrate, sprouted has almost no carbohydrates. It’s lighter tasting, refreshing, and very filling.   Freezing tofu results in a chewy, sponge-like texture. I don’t recommend freezing, but some people prefer it when using tofu to substitute for meat in a recipe.    Baked tofu comes in a variety of flavors and makes an excellent quick meal with some vegetables and fruit added. It’s also great in salads.     Tofu made it into the book “The Top 100 Zone Foods” by Barry Sears.    Some recipes call for draining the tofu first. I find that usually isn’t necessary.   Tofu takes on the flavor of whatever is added to it.    Add nutritional yeast flakes to give a cheesy flavor to vegan tofu scrambles and dips. It’s also rich in protein and vitamin B12.   Cherry Vanilla Tofu “Ice Cream”   Tip: This doesn’t freeze or store well, so prepare only the amount you plan to serve immediately.   Using an immersion blender or a food processor blend equal parts of frozen dark cherries and firm tofu, plus some vanilla extract (preferably alcohol-free for best flavor). Serve immediately.  Tofu Scramble  This is great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and we’ve even brought it on long day hikes for a snack.   Crumble some firm tofu and stir in a generous amount of seasonings, taking care not to overdo it with the salt. Heat in a well-seasoned or nonstick skillet with a little Zone-friendly oil to the desired doneness.    Optional: If time allows, sauté some chopped onion in the skillet before adding the tofu and seasonings.    My favorite seasoning combination for this dish at my house is onion powder, garlic powder, turmeric, paprika, some oregano or thyme, nutritional yeast flakes, salt, and ground black pepper. The yellow color of the turmeric makes it somewhat like scrambled eggs.   Tofu Veggie Almond Pasta Salad   Dressing: Thin some smooth almond butter by stirring in some water, a little vinegar, and either soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (an unfermented soy sauce found in the health food section of most grocery stores).    Toss together cooked Dr. Sears’ Zone PastaRx Fusilli, tofu cut into cubes, matchstick cut red bell pepper, chopped green parts of scallions (a.k.a. green onions), and the almond butter dressing. Serve immediately or chill to serve later. It will keep well in the fridge for two or three days.   Use your imagination and see what you can come up with.  Experiment and have fun with it. Try using tofu to make cheesecakes, whipped desserts, tofu chocolate pudding, tofu “cream” based soups, tofu pot pie (think chicken pot pie), tofu burgers, tofu burritos, Buffalo tofu (like Buffalo wings), layered Mediterranean dips, tofu “meatballs”, grilled tofu, and more.    Enjoy! 

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Simple Homemade Zone Meals

Simple Homemade Zone Meals

  Even people who swear by Dr. Sears' new pasta meals should create one homemade Zone meal just about every day. Cooking in the Zone isn't hard to do, especially if Zoners keep packages of frozen chopped onion and chopped peppers in their freezers. If a cup of chopped onion is needed, it's ready to go. Also keep sacks of frozen vegetables, including broccoli florets, handy.   Here are some meals, shown for both women and men, that are a snap to make for people on the go.   Ginger Chicken Ingredients:   Dinner for women 1 teaspoon olive oil 3 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast 2 cups broccoli florets 1 ½ cups snow peas ¾ cup yellow onion, peeled and chopped 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated ¼ cup water ½ cup seedless grapes Dinner for men 1 1/3 teaspoons olive oil 4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast 2 cups broccoli florets 1 ½ cups snow peas ¾ cup yellow onion, peeled and chopped 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated ¼ cup water 1 cup seedless grapes Directions: In a wok or large nonstick pan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken and saute, turning frequently, until lightly browned, about five minutes. Add broccoli, snow peas, onion, ginger and water. Continue cooking, stirring often, until chicken is done, water is reduced to a glaze and vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. If the pan dries out during cooking, add water in tablespoon increments to keep moist. Serve grapes for dessert or garnish dish with grapes. Salmon Patties Ingredients:   Dinner for women 3 ounces canned pink salmon 2 egg whites 1/3 cup slow-cooking oatmeal, cooked Quarter of an onion, diced 1 teaspoon dill Garlic salt and pepper 1 teaspoon refined olive oil ½ apple Dinner for men 4 1/2 ounces canned pink salmon 2 egg whites 1/3 cup slow-cooking oatmeal, cooked Quarter of an onion, diced 1 teaspoon dill Garlic salt and pepper 1 1/3 teaspoons refined olive oil 1 apple Directions: Flake salmon in a medium bowl. Combine all ingredients except olive oil and mix well with hands. Heat olive oil in pan at medium heat. Shape mixture into a patty and cook for about three to five minutes on each side (or until golden brown). Serve immediately. Have apple for dessert. Tuna and Three Bean Salad Ingredients:   Dinner for women 3 ounces canned tuna ¼ cup kidney beans, canned, drained and rinsed ¼ cup garbanzo beans, canned, drained and rinsed ¼ cup black beans, canned, drained and rinsed 1 teaspoon olive oil Rice vinegar to taste 1 teaspoon onion powder or to taste ¼ teaspoon garlic powder or to taste Bed of lettuce Dinner for Men 4 ounces canned tuna ¼ cup kidney beans, canned, drained and rinsed ¼ cup garbanzo beans, canned, drained and rinsed ¼ cup black beans, canned, drained and rinsed 1 1/3 teaspoons olive oil Rice vinegar to taste 1 teaspoon onion powder or to taste ¼ teaspoon garlic powder or to taste Bed of lettuce ½ apple Directions: Mix together tuna and beans. Whisk together olive oil, rice vinegar, onion powder and garlic powder. Pour over tuna mixture and toss. Serve over a bed of lettuce. Have fruit for dessert. Chicken and Green Beans Italian Style Ingredients:   Dinner for Women 1 teaspoon olive oil 3/4 cup onions, chopped 1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes 1 teaspoon bay leaf (1 small) Italian seasoning to taste Salt and pepper to taste 3/4 cup green beans cut into 1-inch pieces 3 ounces precooked chicken Dinner for Men 1 1/3 teaspoons olive oil 1 1/2 cups onions, chopped 1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes 1 teaspoon bay leaf (1 small) Italian seasoning to taste Salt and pepper to taste 1 1/2 cups green beans cut into 1-inch pieces 4 ounces precooked chicken Directions: Cook the green beans to your liking - boil or steam. Heat the olive oil in a medium-size saucepan. Add onion and saute until tender. Add tomatoes, bay leaf, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and chicken. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain excess liquid from beans, add to the tomatoes and onion mixture and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving.

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