Cooking Fats vs. Adding fat after cooking?

[socialjusticebutterfly]

I apologize if this is a thread that is already answered- I am new to this whole forum thing and don't often seek support from online communities.

Okay, here's the story: I noticed after my first Whole30 (and subsequent Whole16) I realized that I go down a slippery slope with nuts and dried fruit and bars and coconut. Nuts alone are okay, I can at least moderate them more appropriately. For my second Whole30, I would like to explore alternative fat sources such as olives, avocado, oils, etc. How do I know that I have enough fat in my meals if I don't add it at the end? In what situations is the cooking fat enough to count for the total fat in the meal? (I know curry is a good example of this). I eat a lot of simple meals with vegetables and some sort of ground meat, but I rarely add cooking fat.

Help! Thanks!

Kate

[ShannonM816]

The real test is, are your meals keeping you satisfied for 4-5 hours? If they are, great. If you're hungry two hours later, you need to look at the size of the meal in general, and if you're eating 1-2 palm-sized portions of protein and filling your plate with vegetables, then you probably need to add some more fat. If you're easily going 7-8 hours without getting hungry, you probably had a little too much of something in your meal and could cut back a bit.

In general, you're unlikely to overeat fat if you're having it as part of a meal, so don't be concerned you'll have too much. When you do cook in oils, a lot of times, part of the oil stays behind in the pan so it isn't consumed, so most of the time, you'll want to go ahead and add some fat in addition to what you've cooked in.

It's not really an exact science. Try different things and see what works for you. It's okay to add more than one kind of fat too -- roasted vegetables cooked in fat, plus some mayo to dip them in. A taco salad with olives and guacamole/avocado. A grilled chicken salad with bacon, ranch dressing, and chunks of avocado. A stir-fry with sunshine sauce and some cashews for a little crunch, plus a drizzle of sesame oil for the flavor. It's all okay, just pay attention to how you feel and then adjust future meals if you need to.

[socialjusticebutterfly]

Thanks for mentioning the sauces! I always forget that is an option and it can count as fat. This round, sauce might be the key to taking my Whole30 to the next level.