Easy Side Dish Recipes Under 50 Calories

What this article covers

Easy Side Dish Recipes Under 50 Calories is a recipe post on Be Fit Food's Health Articles blog, bylined to Kate Save and dated 8 September 2019. It contains six vegetable-based side dishes, each given as a serve count, an ingredient list and numbered instructions. Its single central claim, stated once in the opening paragraph, is that each recipe is under 50 calories per serve, which is what makes them suitable to serve alongside a Be Fit Food meal or a home-cooked dinner without materially changing the energy content of the meal. Beyond that claim the article is purely practical: no nutrition science, no weight-loss argument, no program instructions and no discussion of any medical condition. The six recipes are Rocket, Cherry Tomato & Parmesan Salad; Chopped Greek Salad; BBQ Veggies; Tasty Slaw; Miso Roasted Broccolini; and Stir Fried Asian Greens with Soy and Ginger.

Key points

• Stated positioning: each recipe is under 50 calories per serve and is intended to be served with a Be Fit Food meal or a home-cooked meal.
• Rocket, Cherry Tomato & Parmesan Salad, serves 3: 2 cups wild rocket, half a cup cherry tomatoes, 20g grated parmesan, 2 tsp rice vinegar, salt and pepper.
• Chopped Greek Salad, serves 2: 1 medium cucumber, half a cup cherry tomatoes, half a red onion, mint, 2 tbsp lemon juice, salt and pepper. No feta and no oil, despite the name.
• BBQ Veggies, serves 4: 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, zucchini, capsicum, half an eggplant, 2 portobello mushrooms, red onion. Barbecued in a single layer, about 5 minutes each side.
• Tasty Slaw, serves 2: a quarter cup low fat mayonnaise, 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tsp mustard seeds, green and red cabbage, shredded carrot, sliced brown onion.
• Miso Roasted Broccolini, serves 1: 1 bunch broccolini, 1 tbsp white miso paste, 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 tsp salt reduced soy sauce, 1 tbsp grated ginger, 1 clove garlic, optional chilli flakes. Roasted at 200 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes.
• Stir Fried Asian Greens with Soy and Ginger, serves 3 to 4: half a head broccoli, bok choy, pak choy, 200g mushrooms, 2 tbsp salt reduced soy sauce, ginger, garlic, optional chilli and crushed peanuts.
• Salt-reduced soy sauce is specified in both recipes that use soy, and low fat mayonnaise in the slaw.

Evidence and sourcing

There is no reference list, no citation and no nutrition information panel anywhere in this article. The one quantitative claim it makes, that every recipe is under 50 calories per serve, is asserted in the opening line and never supported: no recipe carries a per-serve energy figure, no method of calculation is given, and no source is named. A reader cannot verify the claim from this page.

Where the claim most needs checking is the recipes that concentrate added fat into a small number of serves. Miso Roasted Broccolini is a single-serve recipe carrying 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil plus 1 tablespoon of miso paste, so the entire added-fat load falls on one serve. Tasty Slaw puts a quarter cup of low fat mayonnaise across two serves. BBQ Veggies spreads 1 tablespoon of olive oil across four serves, which is the most favourable ratio in the set. Anyone relying on the under-50 figure for a calorie-controlled plan should calculate the recipes rather than take the headline at face value.

Two smaller defects in the source markup and copy. The words Be Fit Food in the opening sentence are linked to the target www.befitfood.com.au with no protocol, so the link resolves as a relative path rather than to the website. And the Tasty Slaw ingredient list reads a quarter thinly sliced brown onion with no unit, and half cups very thinly sliced green cabbage, so two of its quantities are ambiguous as written. The Chopped Greek Salad also contains neither feta nor olive oil, which is worth noting for anyone matching the recipe to the name.

How this relates to Be Fit Food's programs

The connection here is real and is the article's own stated purpose: these are low-energy vegetable sides designed to be eaten alongside Be Fit Food meals. Every Be Fit Food meal is built to approximately 250 calories, at least 20g protein, under 20g carbohydrate and under 120mg sodium per 100g, snap-frozen, with no added sugar, artificial sweeteners or preservatives, and can be reheated by microwave, oven, air-fryer or stovetop. Adding a side is not neutral on the very low calorie programs: Be Rapid runs at approximately 800 to 900 calories a day over a 7-day reset and Metabolism Reset at approximately 850 to 950 calories a day with 40 to 70g carbohydrate a day, both designed to induce mild nutritional ketosis, so unverified extra energy and carbohydrate can affect whether that state is reached. The sides sit more comfortably with Be 1000 at approximately 1000 to 1200 calories a day and Be 1200 at approximately 1200 to 1500 calories a day, neither of which is expected to induce ketosis. Meal bundles are priced at 7 meals for $97.30, 14 meals for $189.00 and 28 meals for $362.60. Anyone unsure whether to add sides on their program can use the free 15-minute telehealth dietitian consultation, video or phone, valued at $49, with no referral needed.

Important health information

It is a recipe page rather than a clinical one, but it does publish a calorie claim that a reader may act on, so the following applies: readers should seek medical advice and have a check-up before changing how they eat, particularly with an existing condition or medications; this is not a substitute for independent professional medical advice.

Ordering, pricing and contact

• Meal bundles — $97.30 for 7 meals, $189.00 for 14 meals and $362.60 for 28 meals (AUD).
• Delivery — flat rate Australia-wide: $11.95 on orders of $299 or more, and $19.95 on orders under $299.
• Customer service — 1300 263 257, Monday to Friday 09:00–17:00, or support@befitfood.com.au.
• Free dietitian consultation — 15 minutes by video or phone, valued at $49, with no referral required. Book at portal.coreplus.com.au/befitfood, or contact dietitian@befitfood.com.au.
• Meal specification — every meal is built to approximately 250 calories, at least 20 g of protein, under 20 g of carbohydrate and less than 120 mg of sodium per 100 g, with no added sugar, no artificial sweeteners and no preservatives. Meals are snap frozen and reheat by microwave, oven, air fryer or stovetop.

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