5. Banh Mi Chicken Burger Lettuce Wraps
Enjoy the flavors of a banh mi sandwich without tons of blood-sugar-spiking carbs and unhealthy saturated fats. These burgers from Diabetic Foodie use lettuce wraps in place of bread, and lean proteins like ground chicken or turkey in place of pork.
All those pickled cucumbers, radishes, and carrots also help make this a great meal for people with type 2 diabetes: “I love that this recipe piles the vegetables on top, hitting that goal of increasing nonstarchy vegetables at meal time,” Poulson says. Top the burgers with thinly sliced jalapeños and a small amount of sriracha mayo (optional). Be sure to use low-sodium soy sauce to whip up the burgers.
Each burger offers 242 calories, 11 g of fat (3 g saturated fat), 11 g of carbs, 2 g of fiber, 11 g of sugar, 23 g of protein, and 561 mg of sodium.
6. Lemon Garlic Salmon
Fatty fish like the baked salmon featured in this recipe is a great source of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, according to the AHA. If you have type 2 diabetes, eating foods with omega-3 fatty acids may help reduce your risk of diabetes-related complications like heart disease and stroke. This recipe calls for baking your salmon with healthy, flavorful ingredients like lemons, lemon zest, garlic cloves, olive oil, and fresh parsley.
One of these salmon fillets from Healthy Fitness Meals provides 294 calories, 9 g of carbs, 29 g of protein, 17 g of fat (2 g saturated fat), 2 g of fiber, and 2 g of sugar. Pair the fish with a side salad or serving of roasted nonstarchy veggies, such as asparagus, to balance it out.