The rice trap

They say that white rice is too much carbs. I've read that brown rice is a little better but still should be limited to about a cup/a cup and half per serving. I am assuming, and correct me if I'm wrong, that wild rice and risotto fall into the same categories as white rice. So brown rice is ok but not a very large amount, just as a side dish.

I'm having trouble with that. When I order Asian food that is the BEST part of my meal. There's nothing I love more than opening up that container of rice and finding that TONS of it has been packed in there so you're getting every but of your money worth. I love to drown it in duck sauce and just shovel it in by the spoon full. After about 5 minutes I'm totally full because it's a LOT of rice and it fills you up FAST, and yet, I keep going. It's almost as if it makes me full and hungrier at the same time. Or perhaps I eat the whole container because the thought enters my head that the soft, tenderness of the rice straight from the container will never retain that texture come the next day. The next day it will a good long zap in the microwave to get it soft enough to eat and even then you'll get some hard grains stuck in your teeth.

So the only way to curb my love for rice with my Asian meal is to not order it. So the other night I made the smart move of ordering my steamed chicken with mixed steamed vegetables (sauce on the side) by itself. NO combination platter.

Unfortunately, rice comes with everything. Combination, soup, dumplings... it really doesn't matter. That place is giving you rice and plenty of it.

Whatever you order you have to make a point to ask them NOT to send you ANY rice with your meal. "I would like no rice whatsover. Thank you." Because if even a morsel gets near me, I will eat a full container.

If you're saying to yourself, "you should have better self control," well to you I said "you should have better advice." Self control is a process and it has to be trained. In the early stages of dieting, it's better to ask for the restaurant NOT to send it then to tempt yourself. When you become used to your newer, healthier eating habits, then perhaps you can make better decisions.

Until then... no rice with this order please. Not even on the side.