Reject the fattening New Year’s Eve meals for reunion. Do you know how many calories they contain?

During the New Year reunion, delicacies from land and sea are inevitable. During the New Year holidays, eating and drinking too much will make fat and belly grow along with the reunion, and if you are not careful, you will develop a bloated belly. Nutritionists point out that reunion dinners and a series of gatherings are inevitable during the Chinese New Year. At least one should know how many calories one eats so that one can take precautions in advance and avoid gaining "reunion fat".

During the New Year holidays, families gather together and eat a lot of meat and fish. If you are not careful, you will consume too many calories and let the fat flow out to reunite. (Photography by Huang Zilun)

Jin Meilin, a nutritionist at the Linsen Branch of Taipei City United Hospital, said that traditional New Year dishes are oily and high in calories, such as pig's feet, Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, fried fish, fried chicken, Dongbo meat, lion's head, etc., plus the hot pot that is a must for gathering around the fire, the calories in one meal may exceed a thousand calories. In addition, during the Chinese New Year, the living room table is always filled with melon seeds, candies, nougat, pistachios, senbei and other pastry snacks. After eating and drinking so much, it is not difficult to gain a lot of weight after the New Year. And this year's annual holiday is as long as 9 days, so it may be common to gain 2 or 3 kilograms.

Xue Anli, a nutritionist at Yonghe Gengshen Hospital, pointed out that families gather together on New Year's Eve and the table is filled with sumptuous New Year's dishes. Many dishes that represent auspiciousness, such as long-term dishes, radish cakes, and Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, are indispensable every year. However, if people eat delicacies from land and sea without restraint, they will often have gastrointestinal problems before the New Year's Eve, or their weight will suddenly increase. Based on this, a calorie analysis of traditional New Year dishes is provided, allowing people to enjoy the delicious New Year dishes while staying healthy.

★ Fried rice cake: Fried rice cake symbolizes rising year by year. 150 grams (5 pieces) of fried rice cake has about 620 calories. It is recommended to steam or boil the fried rice cake instead, which can reduce the calories to 360 calories, a reduction of 42%.

★ Braised mustard greens with scallops: Mustard greens symbolize peace and longevity. A 500-gram plate of mustard greens contains about 330 calories. It is recommended to add a thin starch when cooking to avoid stewing the greens which will trap fat and salt in them.

★ Fried radish cake: The radish cake symbolizes good luck. 100 grams (4 pieces) of radish cake has about 230 calories. It is recommended to change the fried radish cake to steamed radish cake (139 calories), which can reduce calories by 39%.

★ Dumplings: Dumplings symbolize wealth and fortune. 120 grams (10 pieces) of dumplings have about 280 calories. It is recommended to choose white vinegar or light soy sauce as dipping sauce for the dumplings to reduce salt intake.

★ Braised fish: Braised fish symbolizes abundance every year. 300 grams (one serving) of braised fish contains about 470 calories. It is recommended to change to steamed fish (160 calories), which can reduce calories by 66%.

Nutritionist Jin Meilin further suggested that during the New Year holidays, many people like to drink soda or concentrated fruit juice to eliminate the greasy feeling and quench their thirst after eating a lot of greasy meat and fish. However, carbonated drinks such as cola and sarsaparilla may contain more than 150 calories in a bottle of 350c.c. In fact, you can choose fresh fruit tea, freshly squeezed juice, or sugar-free green tea, fat-reducing tea, etc. instead.