Soul food is the traditional cuisine of African Americans ( 1 ).

有时简称简单地称为“南方食品”，灵魂食品被非洲裔美国人在南部到20世纪中期的伟大迁徙期间离开南方的北方。

饭菜范围从米饭和豆类，煎鸡肉和胶林蔬菜的简单家庭晚餐，火腿蔬菜与蜜饯山块装载彩色薯类，闷热的猪排，疙瘩，黑眼豌豆，通心拿和奶酪，玉米面包，甘薯馅饼和桃子皮匠。

Soul food is an integral part of Black food culture and often evokes strong feelings of home, family, and togetherness.

This article explains the basics of soul food, explores whether it’s healthy, and provides simple tips to boost the nutrition of soul food dishes.

fresh okra, beans, tomatoes, corn, squash, and lentils on platters Share on Pinterest
Nadine Greeff / stocky团结

The Southern diet, which is often associated with soul food, containsorgan meats, processed meats, eggs, fried foods, added fats, and sweetened beverages.

This eating pattern is tied to an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, cancer, stroke, and mental decline ( 2 , 3 ).

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), African Americans ages 18–49 are twice as likely to die from heart disease as white Americans. Black Americans ages 35–54 also have a 50% higher likelihood of high blood pressure than white Americans ( 4 ).

虽然社会和经济差异在这些不成比例的疾病率中发挥着重要作用，但膳食选择也可能有所贡献。

However, this doesn’t mean that all soul food is unhealthy. Nutrient-rich dishes andleafy green vegetables也是灵魂食物的钉书钉。

summary

Many items commonly associated with soul food are linked to an increased risk of several illnesses, including heart disease. Yet, soul food can be made much healthier by emphasizing the tradition’s nutritious dishes.

Soul food embodies numerous legacies, traditions, and practices passed down from generation to generation.

Creating a healthier soul food plate does not mean abandoning this rich heritage.

事实上，对食谱和烹饪方法进行了微小的修改，可能有助于提高菜肴的营养型材，同时保持风味，丰富和文化传统。

选择更多植物的食物

Traditional African diets are plant-based and included a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, such as leafy greens,okra, watermelon, whole grains, and black-eyed peas ( 5 ,6).

In traditional societies, meat — when consumed at all — was eaten in very small quantities and often as a seasoning (7).

包含大量植物食品的饮食与更温和的体重和疾病风险降低有关（ 5 ).

此外，在吃叶绿饰和十字花植物蔬菜等人的人的荟萃分析，如胶林蔬菜，羽衣甘蓝, turnip greens, and cabbage, indicated a 15.8% reduced risk of heart disease, compared with a control group ( 8 ).

提高摄入植物食品的提示

  • Make sure half of your plate comprises non-starchy vegetables, such as greens,eggplant,秋葵,胡萝卜,西红柿,黄瓜,萝卜。
  • Swap out meat for legumes, nuts, or seeds as your main protein source. Examples of these plant foods include lentils, beans, peanuts, and black-eyed peas.
  • 通过享食根和块茎，如红薯，taro, plantain, and pumpkin.
  • 在原料蔬菜，坚果和种子上的小吃而不是高脂肪，高糖选项，如薯条和饼干。
  • Aim for at least two colorful plant-based foods on each plate — for example, collard greens and roasted pumpkin or an apple with a handful of nuts.

Favor whole grains

美国农业部（USDA）建议人们占他们吃的至少一半谷物全谷类( 9 ).

Whole grains are the entire grain, including the bran, germ, and endosperm. They may play a role in weight management, gut health, and the prevention of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even colorectal, pancreatic, and stomach cancers (10).

全谷物的例子有全麦,布朗rice, oats,sorghum，小米，fonio和大麦。

Some soul food entrées like macaroni and cheese, cornbread, and rice dishes are made from refined grains, which have had their nutrient-dense bran and germ removed during processing and are thus not as nutritious as their whole grain counterparts.

享受更多全谷物的提示

  • Replace refined grains with their whole grain counterparts. For example, choose whole wheat flour instead of white flour or whole grain cornmeal instead of degerminated.
  • Use brown rice, sorghum,millet，或fonio代替白米。
  • When baking, swap refined flour with whole grain flours liketeff，全小麦和高粱面粉。
  • Choose packaged foods in which whole grains are the first or second item on the ingredient list.

Season with veggies, herbs, and spices

除了含有火腿的高钠加工肉类外，灵魂食物常常使用经验丰富的盐，大蒜盐和Cajun调味料。这些食品和香料有助于您消耗的总量。

Excessive sodium intake is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, and premature death (11, 12 ).

Evidence suggests that African Americans are more sensitive to the blood-pressure-lowering effects of decreased salt intake. Reducing your dietary sodium intake may result in a 4–8 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure — the top number on a reading ( 11 ).

用洋葱，大蒜和芹菜等芳香蔬菜调味食物，以及草药和香料，不仅减少了钠含量，还可以提高抗氧化含量和风味（ 13 ).

提示更换盐

  • Experiment with bold, low sodium spices, such as Ethiopian berbere or Tunisian harissa.
  • Use herbs and spices instead of salt. Add fresh herbs toward the end of cooking and dry herbs at the start.
  • Buy fresh, frozen, or salt-free canned vegetables, or rinse high sodium canned vegetables before using.
  • Avoid salting your meal at the table, especially before tasting it.
  • Make your own seasoning blend by mixing:
    • 2 tablespoons (14 grams) ofblack pepper
    • 1汤匙（5.5克）的Cayenne Pepper
    • 1汤匙（7克）paprika
    • 1 tablespoon (6 grams) of onion powder
    • 1 tablespoon (10 grams) of garlic powder
    • 1 ground bay leaf

Change your cooking methods

烹饪方法影响膳食和疾病风险的营养成分。

绝经后妇女助理的观察研究fried foods像炸鸡，炸鱼和油炸土豆，具有更高的全因和心脏相关死亡率的风险（ 14 ).

高热烹饪方法，如油炸，烘焙，烘烤和烧烤，可能会引入丙烯酰胺杂环胺（HCA）和多环芳烃（PAH）等化学品（15, 16 , 17 ).

HCA和PAHS与增加有关risk of cancer. They may also increase diabetes risk ( 17 , 18 ).

煮沸和炖菜是烹饪肉类，谷物和蔬菜的健康替代品，它们可能导致维生素C，叶黄素和β胡萝卜素等营养素丧失（ 19 ).

If you opt for boiling or stewing, you can still glean some of the lost nutrients by adding the nutrient-rich liquid — or potlikker — into other dishes.

健康烹饪方法的提示

  • 修剪任何可见的脂肪，并在进食前删除任何烧焦的食物。
  • When cooking starchy foods, aim for a golden brown color rather than a dark brown color or heavily crisped exterior.
  • Marinate meats incitrus fruitsor juices, vinegar, or onions, herbs, and spices.
  • Steam, sauté, stir-fry, or blanch vegetables instead of frying them.
  • If you stew vegetables, use the nutrient-rich, leftover potlikker as a gravy or dipping sauce for cornbread. You can also incorporate this liquid into other dishes.
  • Precook meats in the microwave and finish them on the grill.
  • 通过烤箱油炸或使用空气油炸锅来挖掘深炸锅和重新创造喜爱的食谱。
  • 如果您必须深炸食物，请选择具有高烟点的油，如油菜，花生或avocado oil.

保持健康的互换

Modifying recipes by substituting healthier ingredients for high fat, high calorie, high sodium options is an effective way to honor family traditions without giving up on flavor.

Simple swap ideas

  • Choose heart-healthy oils like olive, peanut, or canola oils instead of solid fats, such as lard, which are high insaturated fat.
  • 选择减少脂肪奶酪，减少脂肪或非脂肪，而不是全脂奶酪和牛奶。
  • In greens and other dishes, replace high sodium, high fat meats like ham hocks with smoked, skinless turkey breast.
  • Ditch the marshmallows or brown sugar on yams for cinnamon, vanilla, or a splash of orange juice.
  • Marinate meats and poultry in herbs and spices instead of smothering them in gravy.
  • Lighten mayonnaiseby mixing half of it with plain nonfat Greek yogurt.
  • Substitute lard or butter in baked desserts with fruit purées like applesauce.

食物深入交织在一起与庆祝，家庭，情感，遗产和身份交织在一起。

On occasion, give yourself permission to enjoy your favorite dishes.

In situations with multiple favorite dishes, watch your portion sizes. A good rule of thumb is to make non-starchy veggies half of your plate, starches a quarter of your plate, and protein sources the last quarter of your plate.

summary

您可以通过青睐营养丰富的菜肴来增加灵魂食品的营养含量，交换健康的食物，选择除油炸，削减盐等烹饪方法，以及吃更多的全谷物和植物食品。

If you’re interested in diversifying your soul food plate, check out this recipe booklet 来自国家卫生研究院（NIH）。它包括素食炖菜，鸡汤，闷热的蔬菜，玉米面包，甘薯馅饼，通心面和奶酪等心健康食谱等。

summary

存在富裕的大多数灵魂食物的富含营养素的版本。查看上面的一些链接，以便在热量和糖中的Zesty，美味的菜肴开始。

Traditional African American cuisine, also called soul food, embodies numerous cultural legacies and is known for being rich and flavorful.

While certain soul food items are high in fat, sodium, and added sugar, numerous other dishes are packed with nutrient-dense foods like leafy greens andlegumes. Thus, it’s easy to make a nourishing soul food plate by focusing on certain dishes over others.

Furthermore, adjusting yourcooking methodsand making ingredient swaps can make your favorite soul food dishes all the healthier.