Following online cooking tutorials? Here are some ingredients you should avoid to prep a healthier meal

The lockdown has made us all channel our inner chef. And with no househelp around, we are left with no option but to cook for ourselves.

As not all of us know how to cook, we rely on online tutorials. Though yes, these online tutorials have turned us into a decent chef but often these recipes turn out to be a bit unhealthier and laden with calories.

If you are a newbie cook, here is some help for you. Here we bring to you 10 easy swaps that will make your foods healthy and low in calories.

With no cake deliver shops open, we all have baked at least once or more during this lockdown for various celebrations. While baking you must have realised, the amount of vegetable oil that goes into it (it's too much).

To make your cake healthier, use ripe or overripe bananas instead of oil/butter. One cup butter has around 1628 calories and 116 grams of saturated fat. While one cup of mashed bananas has just 200 calories and less than half a gram of saturated fats. Bananas are also rich in potassium, fibre and B vitamins.

We all feel our food cannot taste good without salt, but that's not true. Foods don't need to be salted excessively to taste good. You can use a mix of fresh herbs and citrus juice to provide your food with some flavour without the added risk of sodium.

We all consume too much-hidden sugar on a daily basis. Thus, it’s best to cut down on sugar while we are cooking on our own. While baking, just like the oil, a lot of sugar is also used.

You can use vanilla extract instead of sugar to cut back on calories. One cup of sugar has 774 calories, so you can use half a cup of sugar and half a teaspoon of vanilla extract, this will cut down calories by half.

Likewise, you can also use honey or cinnamon in place of sugar to make your cakes healthier.

Avocados are a terrific source of monounsaturated fat, which is good for the heart. Monounsaturated fat helps in lowering the cholesterol and triglyceride levels and also reduces your risk of type 2 diabetes.

Avocados make for a terrific substitute for artery-clogging and high-calorie mayonnaise. Next time instead of mayonnaise, mash some avocado on your salads.

While bread crumbs can pack extra sodium, you can use rolled oats seasoned with thyme and rosemary for a healthier swap. We promise you won't be skimping on flavour at all.

Choosing sweet potato in place of potato adds that extra dose of fibre, vitamin C, A and B6. Plus sweet potato helps you cut back on 20 carbohydrates per cup. White potatoes are healthy too but making a swap with sweet potato alternatively while cooking can make your meal healthier.

The market bought tomato sauce is full of sugar, sodium and preservatives. So next time when you are making a pizza at home, either make some tomato sauce at home or just use some sliced tomatoes. The texture will not be the same but the flavour will be more vibrant and fresh.

White rice is processed and thus white. White rice is stripped away of its essential nutrients like fibre. So if you are a rice lover and can't do without it even for a single day, opt for brown rice. Brown rich is full of nutrition and good for weight loss too.

While making soups and stews, coconut milk serves as the best substitute for heavy cream. Don't go by the word coconut, it doesn't taste sweet.

Using hard-boiled eggs instead of fried eggs does not only cut calories but also eliminates the intake of saturated fats. Hard-boiled eggs can be stored in the fridge as they make for a quick protein-packed snack, which required minimal effort.