How to make delicious, healthy sauce for dinner!

Dinner is extra good when served with a tasty sauce. Ready-made sauces from the store can contain lots of salt and sugar, and the butter or cream-based sauces are rich in fat and calories adding challenges to the weight-loss.

Sauce can easily add a bunch of calories to the table. Yet the lack of it may lower the overall taste of your delicious dinner. The solution? Make healthy sauce for dinner yourself!

Many types of sauce

Most of us prefer different types of sauce to the different types of food. Sour cream-, mayonnaise- or soya-based sauces are good for fish, whilst red meat call for bearnaise or perhaps pepper sauce. Pasta dishes can be lifted heavily by a good, tasty tomato sauce of some kind. The common denominator of them all is the fact that they are often quite high in energy. In addition, we tend to put a lot of it simply because the taste is so good. Calories sneak in that way, hidden in a delicious sauce of some kind that makes it harder to lose weight.

Try one of our suggestions for healthy sauce! You will find two sauces for fish, two for meat and two for pasta. Bon appétit!

Healthy sauce for fish

Fish should be on your menu at least two to three times a week. Fish contains a lot of healthy fat and omega 3 fatty acids, beneficial for the heart and vascular system. You also get plenty of proteins, vitamin D, vitamin B12, iodine and selenium when eating enough fish. Make healthy sauce to the fish dish to make it even more tempting.

#1: herb sauce

Good for salmon and trout, especially when wooked with tons of vegetables. The recipe holds for two portions.

You need:

• ½ dl water
• ½ dice of fish broth
• 1 ½ dl lean Crème Fraîche
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pepper
• 1 ½ tbsp chopped dill
• 1 tbsp chopped chives

How to do it:

Bring water to the boil and add the broth. Stir until dissolved. Add Crème Fraîche and stir until the sauce is nice and even. Add salt and pepper when the sauce is boiling, take it off the heat, and eventually add dill and chives. Voilà! Healthy sauce that taste delicious.

#2: Pesto

Pesto is absolutely wonderfull with cod. Use homemade pesto as healthy sauce and you will have the tastiest meal. Remember that the oil makes it high in energy, so limit the amount you put onto your food. Pesto is rich in taste, so you won’t need much for a great taste. The recipe holds for one glass of pesto.

You need:

• 1 pot of fresh basil
• 60 g roasted pine nuts
• 60 g parmesan
• 1 garlic clove
• 1-1 ½ dl olive oil
• Salt and pepper

How to do it:

Roast your pine nuts in a dry frying pan at medium heat. Mix pine nuts, basil, garlic and parmesan in a blender to get an even mass. Add oil until you get the right consistency and add salt and pepper of your taste. Store in fridge.

Healthy sauce for meat

Many meat dishes are dry and lame without sauce. Luckily, there are countless of alternatives for healthy sauce for both red and lean meat.

#1: Rich vegetable sauce for lean meat

This sauce goes well with both chicken, pork and fish. It is based on vegetables and herbs, which gives it lots of nutrition and little fat and calories. The recipe is equivalent to about 5 dl of sauce.

You need:

• 1 carrot
• 1 small celeriac
• 1 parsnip
• 1 turnip
• 1 red pepper
• Fresh oregano, basil and thyme
• Salt and pepper

How to do it:

Peel carrot, celeriac, parsnip and turnip and cut into smaller pieces. Cook them until softened. Cleanse the pepper free of seeds and grill in the oven for 5 minutes. Add pepper, vegetables and herbs into a blender until it gets a smooth consistence. Add salt and pepper of your taste. You may make the sauce thinner by adding vegetable broth if desired.

#2: Red wine sauce

A good red wine sauce can lift any meat dish. Homemade, healthy sauce can be enjoyed with the best conscious, and let you save those added calories.

You need:

• 5 dl red wine
• 2 shallots
• 5 dl broth
• 2 tbsp flour
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp freshly ground pepper

How to do it:

Peel shallots and chop it finely. Put shallots and wine in a casserole and let it boil until it has gotten a thick marmalade consistency. Add half of the broth and boil the other half in. Make a cold thickening of 5 tbsp cold broth and 2 tbsp flour and add into the boiling sauce. Let it boil for 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper of your taste.

Healthy sauce for pasta

Pasta is rich in carbohydrates. Luckily, you can make tasty and healthy sauce to most pasta dishes. Actually, you can even get high amounts of vitamins and antioxidants into sauces suitable for the pasta world!

#1: ecological pasta sauce

Nutritional biologist Lise von Krogh developed this health beneficial pasta sauce. She claims it’s a sauce to revel in as it brings you vegetables and vitamins. The level of tomato and garlic gives you antioxidants, vitamin C and potassium, in addition to the healthy fatty acids from the olive oil. The recipe holds for two portions.

You need:

• 500 g chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 dried chili or 1/3 tsp chili powder
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 pinch of salt
• Honey or sugar if desired

How to do it:

Heat olive oil to medium heat in a casserole or frying pan with a thick bottom. Add garlic and let it cook until softened. Add tomatoes, chili, bay and salt, and bring to the boil. Let your sauce boil gently for about half an hour. Remove the bay and use a blender to get the sauce smooth and even. Add honey or sugar of your taste if you desire or add more chili for a stronger feel.

#2: Creamy cauliflower sauce

A delicious, healthy sauce to any pasta dish. It holds both healthy fatty acids from the oil, antioxidants from garlic and protein, C vitamin and fiber from the cauliflower. Try it on your next pasta meal!

You need:

• 3 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 dl plant-based milk (oat, soya or almond)
• ½ cauliflower (about 300 g)
• 1 tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp salt

How to do it:

Fry garlic on medium heat. Make sure not to burn it. Add plant milk and cauliflower and let it boil for about 3 minutes. Add onion powder and salt before running it all through the blender for a smooth and even sauce. Try topping it with fresh thyme and freshly grounded pepper mix for extra taste.

• See also: Why you should eat less saturated fat