[Definitive Guide] Easy and Delicious Meals for People with Diabetes Even When Suffering from Summer Fatigue: 7 Selected Recipes
The murderously hot summer has arrived.
The problem with summer is that your appetite drops due to the extreme heat.
However, you can't just stop eating.
You might think that some smooth somen noodles sound good, but your blood sugar levels won't allow for that.
So, this time, I would like to introduce some "easy and delicious dishes" that you can eat even when you have summer fatigue.
These are all dishes that have actually been on our family's table and that my daughter has asked for again and again.
🥵 In the hot summer, do you ever experience these things?
Daughter: "It's so hot, I have no appetite."
My daughter is always in a cool room, but when summer comes, she seems to feel sluggish all over.
Still, it's a problem if she doesn't eat.
Mom: "It's dinner time!"
Daughter: "...I have no appetite."
Deep down, I think, "Eat it anyway!" but I can't just shove it into her mouth.
Daughter: "I want to eat somen. I want to eat cold ramen!"
When my daughter made these impossible requests, I came up with these dishes to blow away the summer heat.
🥗 Because it's summer, let's blow away the heat! 7 easy and delicious meal ideas for people with diabetes
🍜 ① Low-carb cold ramen ~ Vegetable-packed version
▶ Boil only the noodles from instant ramen, top with plenty of vegetables, and serve it like cold ramen!
Make the soup yourself (using vinegar, soy sauce, artificial sweetener, sesame oil, etc.) to control salt and fat content.
If you are concerned about carbohydrates, I recommend halving the noodles or switching to low-carb noodles.
This is one of my daughter's favorite dishes.
Instead of somen, I serve it with fewer noodles and plenty of vegetables.
Ramen and somen that you shouldn't be able to eat. By being creative, she was satisfied.
🔸Note: Instant noodles can easily spike blood sugar, so it's best to eat the vegetables first.
🥓 ② Stamina boost! Atsuage (thick fried tofu) wrapped in meat
▶ Just wrap pork or chicken breast around atsuage and grill it!
It provides plenty of protein and is very satisfying.
Season with soy sauce, mirin, water, and doubanjiang (chili bean paste).
It's spicy and delicious even in the summer.
In our house, we haven't used sugar since we started managing diabetes.
We use artificial sweeteners when necessary, but for this dish, mirin brings out enough sweetness on its own.
🔸Recommended point: Even on days when you don't feel like eating rice, this alone provides a perfect nutritional balance!
🥦③ No fire required! 3 types of cold summer ohitashi (blanched vegetables)
▶ Easily prepare green beans, broccoli, cabbage, etc., using frozen vegetables!
Try seasoning with ponzu + sesame oil, or plum + bonito flakes to keep it interesting.
Just microwave the frozen vegetables.
Soaking them in water to cool them down turns them into a quick summer side dish.
🔸Note: When you have no appetite, try combining them with acidic or aromatic vegetables.
🥒④ Spicy cold dish! Cucumber and ham salad
▶ Just julienne the cucumber and ham, and toss them in a spicy, sweet and savory sauce!
Sauce: mirin, soy sauce, a small amount of artificial sweetener, water, and doubanjiang (chili bean paste).
A classic summer menu item that is cold and easy to eat.
I used to make it as a sweeter Chinese-style salad, but I don't like using too much artificial sweetener.
So, I use a small amount of sweetener and add spiciness with doubanjiang instead.
Even my daughter, who doesn't like spicy food, was very satisfied with this.
🔸Note: If you are concerned about the salt or additives in ham, you can substitute it with boiled chicken or chicken tenderloin!
🧊🥬⑤ Easy, delicious, and cool! Cold tofu topped with plenty of summer vegetables
▶ Just top tofu with your favorite summer vegetables like okra, myoga ginger, shiso leaves, and tomatoes!
The flavor can be freely arranged with ponzu, sesame, plum paste, etc.
Add natto to further increase the protein content!
I just want to get them to eat vegetables!
Tofu alone isn't very satisfying.
In those cases, I serve it topped with all kinds of vegetables.
🔸Recommended point: It doesn't require fire, is cold, and goes down easily, making it great for fighting summer fatigue.
🥣⑥ For blood sugar management! Tokoroten (agar noodles) and cucumber cold side dish
▶ Add cucumber to tokoroten for extra texture!
Besides vinegar and soy sauce, plum paste or sesame oil + shiso are also recommended.
Since tokoroten is seaweed, it is gentle on blood sugar levels.
It is an ingredient you can eat with peace of mind.
Plus, it has a soft texture.
By adding cucumber, you can also get dietary fiber, so it's killing two birds with one stone.
It makes frequent appearances at our dinner table.
🔸Note: It is very low in sugar but not very filling, so it is effective to eat it at the 'beginning' of the meal!
🍹⑦ Drinkable Vegetables! How to Use Tomato Juice to Stay Free from Summer Fatigue
▶ Enjoy unsalted, unsweetened tomato juice as is, or make a chilled soup style with ice and lemon!
The lycopene and potassium also help with antioxidant support and blood pressure management.
Tomato juice appears at dinner every day.
I choose 100% tomato juice with no added salt.
This is gentle on blood sugar, and by continuing to drink it, it seems to have had the effect of suppressing my blood sugar levels. (Currently, post-meal blood sugar is 115 mg/dL)
🔸Note: If you find it hard to drink, try changing the flavor with lemon or Tabasco to make it easier and more delicious to continue!
🐢Summary📝
As someone who manages the kitchen, I would prefer not to use the stove if I can help it.
However, there is the reality that I must find a way to get them to eat.
That is why I came up with these dishes.
They are gentle on blood sugar, delicious, and as simple as possible.
These are dishes made with the hope that we can somehow get through this summer.