With Chinese New Year just around the corner, all of us are probably excited to spend it with our loved ones over some yummy traditional Chinese New Year snacks. But no matter how delicious pineapple tarts are or how fulfilling a bit of buttery Kueh Lapis is, it would be hard to enjoy these snacks guilt-free. To help you maintain your diet and still have a joyful festive celebration with your family, here are the healthiest and low-fat alternatives you can snack on instead!
Low-calorie CNY Snacks
1. Baked Fish Strips With Seaweed
Baked fish strips with seaweed could be good to switch to much on aside from regular chips or junk food. While it may be healthier than most snacks, these baked fish strips could leave you feeling extra thirsty, so make sure to have it with a tall glass of water to keep yourself hydrated. It’s also filled with protein which makes it a healthy treat to enjoy for Chinese New Year.
Crispy bakes fish strips are said to contain around 194.1 calories and 2.2 grams of fat usually.
2. Banana Chips
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Experts say that while banana chips may appear harmless at first, they’re still loaded with calories, fat and sugar. Which is why looking for baked or dried banana chips that contain no added sugar is the better and healthier option for you to maintain your diet. As long as you are mindful of how much you eat, you can snack on them during your family reunion.
100 grams worth of banana chips contains an average of 510 calories.
3. Dried Cuttlefish
Dried cuttlefish are actually high on protein, and it’s a convenient snack to take out and nibble on during family reunions. It’s also an easy snack to share with your relatives and pass around as you catch up with them during Chinese New Year. If you’re more into munching on seafood, you may enjoy dried cuttlefish more than anything and still keep up with your healthy lifestyle.
A serving of 10 pieces of dried cuttlefish is found to contain 57 calories and zero fat.
4. Kueh Bangkit Cookies
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What’s a Chinese New Year without sharing some Kueh Bangkit Cookies with your loved ones. You’re probably glad to know that these light cookies that melt right in your mouth are healthy enough to snack on for you to have no regrets after Chinese New Year. While they still have heavy ingredients of coconut, flour, milk and eggs, these festive delights are very low on calories so don’t worry about munching on a few.
Kueh Bangkit Cookies are usually worth only 46 calories and 2 grams of fat.
5. Mandarin Oranges
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With a fresh and quick snack that is a traditional symbol of good fortune, mandarin oranges are the perfect Chines New Year treat to have to maintain your healthy diet. This small round fruit is enough to satisfy your Lunar New Year snacking with no worries for it is high in Vitamin C and low in calories. This citrus fruit can help boost your immune system and are good sources of soluble fibre to keep you full for the rest of the reunion.
According to WebMD website, one mandarin orange contains 47 calories and zero fat.
6. Peanuts
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Peanuts are a general healthy snack you can have with or without the festivities. While they may be high on fat, they are also said to be a good source of vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin E, magnesium and biotin – which is important during pregnancy. They are also a great source for protein, although do be careful and ensure that none of your relatives is allergic to this little snack. If you or someone you know has diabetes, peanuts can be a good alternative snack for they are low in carbs.
100 grams worth of peanuts usually has about 567 worth of calories.
7. Sunflower Seeds
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If you’ve been craving for some melon seeds but are too afraid of the consequences, you can try instead nibbling on some sunflower seeds. These are a much better and healthier alternative for they are known to be the world’s healthiest seeds. While they may not be exactly that tasteful as melon seeds, they are still high with vitamin E, magnesium and protein. It’s even known to help prevent chronic diseases, making it one of the perfect healthy low-calorie snacks for weight loss to eat for you to start a prosperous new year.
These healthy seeds normally contain 163 worth of calories.
8. Yu Sheng
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A serving of Yu Sheng is believed to bring a prosperous year ahead and can be the healthiest thing you can have during the Lunar New Year as long as you prepare it right. Preparing it with less oil and easing down on the plum sauce could reduce its calories. Even lessening the number of flour crisps could decrease the amount of fat it contains. Since this particular snack doesn’t have a strict recipe to follow, you can mix it up with more fresh vegetables like lettuce or purple cabbage to easily make this traditional treat guilt-free.
One serving of Yu Sheng usually contains 560 calories and less when prepared with healthier ingredients.
With reports from Grace Phua.
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