Healthy Food Swaps for Your Next Summer Cookout

The Fourth of July may be behind us, but cookout season is still in full force. What better way to gather with family and friends than to fire up the grill and enjoy a few cookout classics like corn on the cob, hot dogs, and kebabs?

Plus, there’s even research that suggests grilling increases the nutrient content of most veggies, particularly their vitamin K and vitamin E content (which an estimated 90 percent of Americans don’t consume enough of, by the way). And since only about 10 percent of Americans meet the current recommended intake of fruits and vegetables, grilling can be a delicious way to incorporate more plant foods into your diet.

At Optimal Health & Wellness, we love summer cookouts as much as everyone else. We’re huge proponents of spending time outdoors in nature (with the right sunscreen, of course), and enjoying a summer cookout is no exception! However, what we aren’t crazy about are the harmful ingredients, chemicals, and potential carcinogens found in some of the most well-known cookout foods. Added sugars, oils, preservatives, and charred, overcooked meats are not things we should be indulging in for optimal health and well-being.

Let’s look at a few healthy food swaps so you can reap the health benefits of grilling, sunshine, and spending time in nature without compromising your health.

Unhealthy vs Healthy Barbecue Ideas

Traditional cookout items like Oscar Mayer Wieners, Vlasic Kosher Dill Pickles, Heinz Ketchup, Extra Value Beef Patties, and Lay’s Potato Chips are cost-effective and easy to find at most big-box supermarkets, which are just a couple of reasons why they’re so popular. However, these products and many other conventional foods are loaded with artificial food dyes, added sugars, and synthetic preservatives. In many cases, they’re also ultra-processed, containing five or more ingredients and little to no nutrition.

Oscar Mayer Wieners, for example, is just one popular cookout food that’s ultra-processed and low in nutrition. According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG) — which gave Oscar Mayer Wieners a 9 out of 10 rating in terms of nutrition, ingredient, and processing concerns (with one being the least concerning and 10 being the most), just one hot dog link contains:

13 grams of total fat.

4 grams of saturated fat.

45 milligrams of cholesterol.

520 milligrams of sodium.

Oscar Mayer Wieners also contain corn syrup (linked to high blood pressure, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and obesity) and sodium nitrite. Sodium nitrites give hot dogs their pink color and salty flavor, but they’re also used as preservatives. Nitrites can form nitrosamines in our bodies when we consume them, which may increase the risk of developing cancer.

Instead, try these healthier food swaps for it your next summer cookout: Applegate Uncured Beef Hot Dog, Organic Valley Organic Uncured Beef Hot Dogs, Organic Valley Organic Uncured Turkey Hot Dogs

Other Healthy Food Swaps for Your Next Summer Cookout

Another example of a classic cookout item is Heinz Tomato Ketchup. This particular product, according to the EWG, contains 180 milligrams of sodium, added sugars like corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup, and “natural flavoring”: a mystery ingredient that’s usually far from natural.

For these reasons, the EWG gives Heinz Tomato Ketchup a food score of 7 out of 10. Our preferred picks are Annie’s Organic Ketchup, Primal Kitchen Organic and Unsweetened Ketchup, and 365 by Whole Foods Market Organic Tomato Ketchup. Annie’s Organic Ketchup does contain cane sugar, but we like that it doesn’t use high fructose corn syrup or other artificial sweeteners like dextrose. Check out our Instagram post to learn more about our preferred sweeteners.

EWG food scores for other popular cookout classics include:

Blue Bunny Sweet Freedom Ice Cream Bars: 8 out of 10.

Extra Value Beef Patties: 7 out of 10.

Oscar Mayer Uncured Wieners: 7 out of 10.

Hellmann’s Low-Fat Mayonnaise Dressing: 6 out of 10.

Kraft Singles American Cheese: 6 out of 10.

Vlasic Kosher Dill Pickles: 5 out of 10.

Popsicle Fruit Ice Pops: 5 out of 10.

Lay’s Thick Cut Barbecue Potato Chips: 5 out of 10.

Instead, try these healthier food swaps for your next summer cookout:

Ice cream and popsicles: Frutero Real Fruit Ice Cream Bars, Goodpop Ice Pops, and 365 Everyday Value Strawberry Fruit Bars.

Beef and veggie burger patties: Marketside Ground Beef Patties and Actual Veggies Black Bean Veggie Burger Patties.

Condiments: Chosen Foods Classic Mayo, Chosen Foods Vegan Mayo, and 365 Everyday Value Organic Mild Cheddar Cheese.

Snacks: Cleveland Kitchen Classic Dill Pickles and Good Health Avocado Oil Kettle Chips.

We also recommend making your favorite cookout foods and snacks from scratch whenever possible. This includes popsicles, burger patties, potato salad, coleslaw, and mayonnaise. You can even grill fruits and veggies like cauliflower steaks, avocado, watermelon, and peaches!

Tips to Safely Grill Meat This Summer

Some argue that grilling meat eliminates excess fat, and this can be true. However, it’s also true that high-heat cooking (such as grilling and frying) can produce carcinogens in meat: harmful compounds that may increase the risk of cancer.

The fat and other juices from beef, fish, poultry, and pork can drip down when grilling over an open flame, producing smoke that contains polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These are cancer-causing chemicals that stick to the surface of meats after they form, meaning we ingest them when we consume grilled meat.

Charring, burning, or overcooking beef, pork, fish, and poultry is another potential safety concern, as grilling meats at high temperatures increases the amount of heterocyclic amines (HCAs) found in cooked meats. Like PAHs, HCAs are chemicals that may increase the risk of cancer over time — and they’re most common in charred or well-done meats.

Fortunately, there are several steps you can take while grilling to reduce your risk of exposure to PAHs and HCAs:

Marinate meats in onion, garlic, and lemon juice before grilling, or add rosemary or Thai spices to the meat before cooking it.

Cook with indirect heat whenever possible (and when not possible, frequently turn the meat over to reduce your carcinogen exposure).

Place coals near the side of the grill and cook meat in the center.

Before serving meat, remove any charred, overcooked, or “blackened” parts.

Serve grilled meats with lots of fruits and veggies, as these foods contain cancer-fighting compounds that help to counteract exposure to carcinogens like PAHs and HCAs.

Where to Go From Here

Occasional exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, heterocyclic amines, and other chemicals in foods probably won’t harm your health in the short term, but researchers are learning more and more about the long-term dangers of ultra-processed foods (e.g. traditional hot dogs), added sugars (e.g. high fructose corn syrup), and preservatives in foods (e.g. “natural flavors”).

As a general guide, please refer to the EWG’s list of 12 food chemicals to avoid. And to protect yourself and your family from potentially toxic chemicals in foods, keep these healthy food swaps in mind for your next cookout; we know you won’t regret it!

Ready to achieve optimal health and wellness? Book a free 15-minute consultation to discuss your wellness goals with our team!

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