Snacks, Seasonings, and Kitchen Things for a Low Sodium Life

Cooking Ingredients:

• Soom Tahini – The experts will tell you that you can’t make a “good” hummus without using Soom Tahini. I haven’t done too many experiments myself, but I can tell you that the first time I made hummus was not with Soom and it wasn’t great. Since then, I have used Soom and it turns out well every time! These two canisters will yield four 2-cup batches of hummus! Don’t forget your low sodium chickpeas to make a great hummus!
• Heinz Ketchup – Low sodium ketchup is essential to keep on hand. I like to make hashbrowns or breakfast potatoes and this ketchup is a lifesaver to add a hint of sodium and extra flavor to the meal. Like rice cakes, egg whites with a side of potatoes with ketchup was a staple when I was starting out. It was easy to make a week’s worth of meals in a short period of time and take some of the guess work out of one meal a day. This Heinz IS made with potassium chloride. Keep that in mind.
• Simple Truth Organic 50% Less Sodium and Sugar Ketchup – This is a great ketchup that is NOT made with potassium chloride from Kroger. Its 75mg of sodium per tablespoon. I have found that I can get away with using half a serving when I need ketchup.
• Toufayan Pita Pocket – When you’re missing sandwiches, or adding some carbs to your favorite salad… why not stuff it into a pita! At 50mg per pocket, this low sodium option is great for sandwiches or an addition to your favorite Mediterranean salad. This comes with three packages, but you are encouraged to for future use.
• Tumaro’s Low Carb Wraps – These 8″ low carb wraps have 180mg of sodium and are accessible through Amazon!
• Bonafide Provisions Vegetable Broth – This is the lowest sodium vegetable broth I have been able to find. Some organic broths can be low sodium, but this one wins them all. At 60mg per serving, its a great option when you’re making soups.
• Chickpeas / Garbanzo Beans – Chickpeas are a staple in Mediterranean diets, and vegetarian diets. It’s an easy protein to add into your life. It is also a key ingredients to hummus. I like to keep several cans of no salt added chickpeas in the pantry for when I need to whip up something quick.
• Yo Mama’s
  • This ketchup by Yo Mama’s comes in at 70mg of sodium per tablespoon.
  • Pizza Sauce – this pizza sauce comes in at 50mg per 1/4 cup.
  • Marinara Sauce – this marinara comes in at 50mg per 1/4 cup.

Seasonings:

• Daks Seasoning – Dak makes a wide variety of no salt seasonings. They are high quality. I use the Ranch seasoning over steamed vegetables and it is sooo good. You don’t miss the salt. They are on the pricier side. You can buy directly from Dak themselves, or get a seasoning pack through Amazon.
• Flavor Mate – Flavor Mate is similar to Dak, but slightly lesser quality in my opinion. It still packs a punch and adds a lot of flavor to your meals. This 5 pack is around $15, which is less expensive than Dak. This is a great flavor/ price compromise.
• Mrs Dash – You’ll find Mrs Dash Table Blend, no salt added, seasoning added to many low sodium recipes. Its easily accessible in many grocery stores and is the least expensive of all of the seasoning blends I recommend. However, you can tell because it is lesser quality.
• Cumin – Cumin is good on basically everything. Its essential for any Mexican food, hummus, beans.. you name it.
• Garlic and Onion – Any garlic powder and onion powder, measured with your heart, is crucial for seasoning any low sodium dish.
• Everything but Salt – If you miss your avocado toast (maybe that is just me), this really helps satisfy those needs. I also toss it on some steamed vegetables.
• Chili Powder
• Chili Seasoning – great for adding a hint of spice!

Snacks:

• Tortilla Chips – 55mg. These are great if you want to make some low sodium chili, guacamole, salsa, etc and have a dipping tool.
• Lays Lightly Salted – 65 mg. When you’re craving salt….. this hits the spot! But they are low sodium and are NOT seasoned with potassium chloride. They are seasoned enough to taste the saltiness of potato chips, but not enough to make a large dent in your daily sodium intake. They’re easy to measure out the portion and stay on target.
• Rice Cakes – When I was first low sodium, I lived on apple cinnamon rice cakes for my in-between meals snacks.
• Nut Mixes – As long as you get an unsalted nut mix, they’re no sodium. Its a great snack boost. Costco especially has individually packaged servings of snack mixes. I highly recommend those as a snack while you’re on the go, or even
• Dried Fruit – Fruits are low sodium, so for an on-the-go snack, dried fruits! I like dried fruits while I’m traveling or for a sweet late night treat.
• Barbeque Chips Lightly Salted- 75mg. These feel like an illegal treat. They do not taste any different to me than regular BBQ chips, but like the Lays Lightly Salted potato chips, they are not seasoned with potassium chloride and hit the spot every time. Be sure to portion out one serving before you get started though…. because it is easy to get carried away with these!
• Wheat Thins Hint of Salt – If you want the illusion of healthy snacks and want to stay low sodium, they will be beneficial for you. I keep a box in the cabinet and take a small baggie of them to work to have as a mid-morning snack.
• Ritz Lightly Salted Crackers – For that buttery snack you crave!
• Fritos – To add to your low sodium chili.
• Peanut Butter – This low sodium JIF peanut butter is likely lurking in your local grocery store, you just have to look hard! It has a small banner in the top left corner that says “low sodium” in a yellow color. It contains 85mg of sodium per serving. I often find myself using half a serving with some sliced apples or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
• Tortillas – Corn is the way to go, as it rarely has enough sodium to make you question if you should have it. I have also found a flour tortilla in my local grocery store for 180mg! Sometimes it is worth spending the extra time to flip every package over and inspect.
• Kind Bars – Kind has a few different low sodium options. The peanut butter dark chocolate is only 20mg per bar. Dark chocolate nuts with sea salt is 75mg per bar. Dark chocolate cherry is 20mg per bar. Almond and coconut is also 20mg per bar! Browse their other flavors to see what else may be surprisingly low sodium.
• Core Power Protein Shake – Sometimes with this low sodium life, I find that I am not getting all of the nutrients I need, like protein. Since I portion out my day into four 250mg meals, this protein shake helps reach my targets. At 260mg of sodium and 26g of protein, its a great addition to my routine. It helps that it tastes really good too! I keep them on auto shipments from Amazon, alternating between chocolate and vanilla.
• Body Armor Electrolytes – I enjoy hiking and I live in Texas, where even basic lawn maintenance is a sweat fest. For those days with a little extra exertion, I was worried about what kind of electrolyte drinks I could have that are not filled with sodium. This drink is mild in flavor and has only 40mg of sodium.

Kitchen Things:

• Lemon Juicer – Lemon juice is used in so many recipes! Of course fresh lemon juice is much better than store bought juice. This juicer makes it easy to get fresh juices.
• Food Processor – Any soups, sauces, hummus, even shredding cheese…. this 3 in 1 food processor has been great for low sodium. Adding this to my kitchen has really opened my low sodium options.
• Immersion Blender – For those soups and sauces, try this immersion blender. It is easier to clean than a food processor. It comes with almost 50,000 reviews.
• Food Scale – This food scale is a life saver. Instead of dirtying up a bunch of measuring cups or counting the quantity of items, I just toss things into a bowl until I reach the serving size! Its amazing. If you don’t already have one of these, you need one! This food scale is how I learned I was cutting out too many calories per day. I didn’t realize that 1/4 cup (28g) of shredded cheese is a packed 1/4 cup measuring cup. Since the addition of this scale, I find that half a serving of cheese (aka half the sodium!) is a perfect portion for me in most of my meals. I cannot recommend this enough.
• Tablespoons – Many ingredients and recipes require tablespoon increments. Instead of rotating the one tablespoon measuring spoon you have that came in a set, invest in a pack of 5 robust. It’ll preserve your set for long term use while you’re meal prepping. I got this set and they are holding up incredibly well.
• Can Organizer – One beauty of the low sodium vegetarian life is the creation of no salt added canned beans. I buy them in bulk now since not every grocery store around me sells them. Cans can get out of hand quickly. An organizer comes in handy in keeping your work space tidy.
• Food Prep Portion Containers – I find that one simple tool that helps me maintain low sodium is a portion container. I cook in large batches and then freeze some for later. By portioning out individual low sodium portions before storage, it allows me to easily grab and heat. All of the math and hard work is already completed. These containers are great for storing individual ingredients before they become a meal. I make large batches of my soups, sauces, and condiments and use these containers to portion them out and then freeze what I am not using immediately.
  • 1 cup – This size is good for a batch of hummus and other dips. They’re shallow and small enough to allow you to finish everything in the contain before it goes bad. A key component of low sodium is moderation, and this container helps set you up for future success in moderation.
  • 2 cup – This size is great for you to portion out enough sauce to last a few meals. I will freeze a soup or marinara in this size, thaw it, and toss with my favorite pasta. It will feed me and my boyfriend one dinner, plus an extra lunch or two in later days.
  • 4 cup – If you make a meal that is easily portioned into two cup servings, this 4 cup container will allow two meals to be stored at once, and then reheated later.
• Vegetable Chopper – If you’re in the kitchen just to eat and you don’t enjoy the process of cooking, why waste time chopping vegetables with a knife? Get straight to the end result with this chopper. You can quickly prepare salads, or just chop up your veggies to toss in your meal.
• Tortilla Press – When you want a low sodium flour tortilla and you can’t find them in the stores near you, make one! I roll mine out, but I hear a tortilla press makes the process much simpler. This one comes highly rated online.
• Under Cabinet Lighting – I find with all of the extra time I spend in my tiny kitchen doing math (low sodium life, am I right?!), I need extra lighting. I have a very bright overhead light, but these boosts of under cabinet lighting help me see and focus when reading so many labels. They attach by magnets. are rechargeable by USB-C, and are motion activated. Any time I am in the kitchen, they are working with me. I purchased two packages of them and have one under each cabinet, and two under the vent hood over the stove. I recharge once every two weeks.

Trader Joe’s:

• Tortillas – Wheat flour tortillas from Trader Joe’s are large, a great consistency, won’t crumble on you, and come it at 140mg! I’ve used them for quesadillas and wraps, so they’re good cooked or fresh! They also freeze well.
• Quinoa Cowboy Veggie Burger – if you’re missing your veggie burgers, this is an option. They are smaller than the typical black bean chipotle veggie burger, but they do come in low sodium at 310mg per patty.
• Organic Fusilli Corti Bucati Pasta (aka, swirly pasta) – while pasta is naturally low sodium, I like this one. It is single ingredient item and the texture is amazing. It is a nice corkscrew, which makes eating any pasta dish fun.
• Classic English Muffins – these 70mg English muffins make it an easy addition to your daily life. This product is freezable. I’ve used them for sandwiches, grilled cheese, put a little jelly on it for breakfast. Definitely a “win”.
• Garlic Naan Crackers – these soft crackers are 190mg per serving. They work well to dip into some low sodium hummus.
• Swiss Gruyere Shredded Cheese – this cheese makes an appearance in most of my recipes. It is 85mg of sodium per 1/4 cup (28g). It makes for a convenient option and freezes easily.