Due to dietary requirements, diabetics cannot eat anything they want. They need to watch the kinds of food they eat and their portion size because it can have significant effects on their blood sugar levels.
That’s why it can be somewhat difficult for them to come up with side dish recipes that would not only be nutritional but would also stabilize their blood sugar levels. However, there are many side dishes out there that can accomplish this rather easily.
In this article, we’ll be looking at a few diabetic side dishes and the effects that they can have on diabetics.
Here are some of the dishes we’ll be looking at.
- BBQ Corn
- Quick Cucumber Kimchi
- Balsamic-Roasted Mushrooms with Parmesan
- Easy Steamed Zucchini
BBQ Corn
For this recipe, you’d need corn that still has some of its outer husks presents, a quart of beer, and a lot of ice cubes — perhaps 1 bag would be enough.
To start, you’d need to dump the corn in an ice chest. Pour the ice and beer over the corn, and close the lid. Soak it this way for around eight hours or overnight.
In the morning, take out the corn, and put it in a smoker. If you don’t have one, you can use a grill as well. If you’re using a smoker, preheat it to 250 degrees F ( 120 degrees C), cook it for like two hours, and turn it every twenty minutes or so. Remember that all of this should be done with the corn still covered by husks.
Once it’s done, you can serve it and eat it by just peeling back the husks and using them as a handle.
Quick Cucumber Kimchi
The Kimchi is Korea’s national dish, and for good reason too. It’s plant-based, low in bad cholesterol, and will do wonders for your health, especially if prepared well.
However, this Kimchi won’t be like the regular kind, since it’s not made with slowly fermented cabbage and pungent garlic. Instead, it’s made with pickled cucumber and just a bit of garlic. There are a lot of other kimchi dishes that aren’t made with cabbage, however, this one is easier to prepare and is generally more beneficial to people with type 2 diabetes.
To prepare this dish, you’d need 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 2 pickling cucumbers or other small cucumbers, 2 scallions, white and light green parts only, finely chopped, 1 1/4-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon Korean chile powder, 2 teaspoons sugar, and half a teaspoon of fish sauce.
Some of the ingredients here, like fish sauce and Korean chile powder can only be found in Asian markets, so don’t be too surprised if you don’t find them around you. Please, do try to find Korean fish sauce exactly, and don’t use substitutes like Thai fish sauce. If you can’t find Korean fish sauce, then don’t use fish sauce at all.
To start, you’d have to cut the cucumbers in half and then cut them crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick half-moons. Then, you’d place them in a bowl and mix them thoroughly with salt. Afterwards, let it stand at room temperature for around 30 minutes.
While the cucumber rests in the bowl, combine the ginger, vinegar, chile powder, sugar and fish sauce and scallions in a nonreactive bowl.
Afterwards, drain the cucumber, and then mix it with the vinegar mixture. Then cover and refrigerate for twelve to twenty four hours before serving.
Balsamic-Roasted Mushrooms with Parmesan
This side dish can be enjoyed alone or can be used as a side dish with steak. It’s also really nutritional too, as it’s vegetarian, low in sodium, high in fibre, soy-free, nut-free and diabetes appropriate.
To make this dish, you’d need 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon of dried marjoram, ½ teaspoon of ground pepper, ¼ teaspoon of salt, 1 pound of thickly pound mushrooms, 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Once you’ve got all your ingredients together, the first thing you need to do is preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
After that, you’ll have to stir the marjoram, pepper, salt, and oil together in a large bowl. Once you’re done stirring, coat the mushroom with the liquid, and transfer the mushrooms to a baking sheet. Roast the mushrooms for about 12 minutes, and remove them from the oven.
After it’s out of the oven, drizzle it with vinegar. Sprinkle parmesan on it, and continue roasting until the cheese is melted, which should take around five minutes. Once it’s done, you can serve it either hot or cool.
Easy Steamed Zucchini
This side dish is extremely easy to prepare. All you need to make is two pounds of Zucchini sliced a quarter of an inch thick.
To steam the zucchini, all you have to do is boil one inch of water in a large saucepan that’s fitted with a steamer basket. Once that is done add the zucchini and cover and steam until it’s very tender, which takes around 5 minutes.
Conclusion
There are many other diabetic side dishes you can make as a diabetic, but these aren’t only great for diabetics, they are also really easy to prepare and full of nutritional content.
If you’re diabetic and are struggling to form habits that will help you live a full and fruitful life, you should consider getting help from experts who have years of expertise in helping diabetics live their best lives.