Is this against the rules?
- Thread starter Xassy
- Start date
Nut_Brown_Hare
Did it!
I think that as long as you aren't consuming massive amounts then you're probably ok, I would say it's no more abuse than making a cake out of cous cous and there are recipes for those all over the place.
I make a similar meal but use wholemeal breadcrumbs (shop bought - Dr Oetker) and I know that a chicken breast is easily covered by about 14g of those (2.5 syns) so I can't think a little bit of cous cous is doing any harm? By the way, cut a little pocket in the chicken & add a spoonful of Philadelphia Light Garlic & Herbs (2.5 syns for 28g but I don't use this much) before dipping it in egg & rolling it in the couscous for an extra yummy dinner
. I stab the chicken with cocktail sticks to stop it from falling open.
Mmm... hungry now
I make a similar meal but use wholemeal breadcrumbs (shop bought - Dr Oetker) and I know that a chicken breast is easily covered by about 14g of those (2.5 syns) so I can't think a little bit of cous cous is doing any harm? By the way, cut a little pocket in the chicken & add a spoonful of Philadelphia Light Garlic & Herbs (2.5 syns for 28g but I don't use this much) before dipping it in egg & rolling it in the couscous for an extra yummy dinner
. I stab the chicken with cocktail sticks to stop it from falling open.Mmm... hungry now
jaylou
Gold Member
Nooo,don't panic. It's a bit of an old SW thing that when you use foods for which they are not meant to be used then it's a no-no. By that I mean cous cous in a cake or chick pea nuts or lasagne crisps.
Basically "cheats".
Not my words but those of some SW consultants.
I personally don't use any of these things but some do. If your weight loss doesn't suffer then it's fine.
Cous cous is perfectly fine when used as cous cous
Basically "cheats".
Not my words but those of some SW consultants.
I personally don't use any of these things but some do. If your weight loss doesn't suffer then it's fine.
Cous cous is perfectly fine when used as cous cous
MadameLaMinx
Gold Member
I do the "syn-free kfc" recipe using cous-cous instead of bread. Makes a lovely breadcrumby coating. The official line in the book is "if it is ground up, or used as flour, then it has a syn value" - plain cooked cous-cous however is free on green and EE so coating some chicken in it would mean it would still be free as part of an EE meal.
time2bslim
Just doing it this time
If you grind the couscous down into a flour then you have to syn it - or buy ground couscous - then it's synned.
The age old dispute that you shouldn't use couscous in cakes - really depends on IF you want to try it - syn the cake as if it's free on green and EE or 1.5 syns per 28g on red - and see if you put weight on by eating a couscous cake?
I made the christmas mincemeat couscous cake last week - 12 syns on red and 6 syns on ee and green - it was lovely. Quite a few of the members at my group also make couscous cakes to fill them up in the week and they have all lost weight. Maybe their weight loss would be larger if they didn't make couscous cakes?
It's what you are happy with basically.
Like lasagne chips - I'll make them occasionally syn the lasagne sheets IF on red and bobs your uncle.
I made banana and custard the other day - my custard curdled and so I liquidised the banana and posted it as a 'free' pud which was delicious - then someone said it wasn't FREE because I liquidised the banana! I tend to think that we have to live a little.
The age old dispute that you shouldn't use couscous in cakes - really depends on IF you want to try it - syn the cake as if it's free on green and EE or 1.5 syns per 28g on red - and see if you put weight on by eating a couscous cake?
I made the christmas mincemeat couscous cake last week - 12 syns on red and 6 syns on ee and green - it was lovely. Quite a few of the members at my group also make couscous cakes to fill them up in the week and they have all lost weight. Maybe their weight loss would be larger if they didn't make couscous cakes?
It's what you are happy with basically.
Like lasagne chips - I'll make them occasionally syn the lasagne sheets IF on red and bobs your uncle.
I made banana and custard the other day - my custard curdled and so I liquidised the banana and posted it as a 'free' pud which was delicious - then someone said it wasn't FREE because I liquidised the banana! I tend to think that we have to live a little.
jaylou
Gold Member
I quite agree, we do have to live a little but I don't think you'll ever see an official SW recipe using cous cous as breadcrumbs or in a cake.
I'm with you on the banana issue - I've just mashed one banana onto some ryvita, I should syn that banana at 4.5 syns, but as it's just one I don't. I'd never ever make a smoothie though - that's another story.
We do need to live a little but we also need to be aware that if our losses are slower than we'd like, there are things that we can change.
I'm with you on the banana issue - I've just mashed one banana onto some ryvita, I should syn that banana at 4.5 syns, but as it's just one I don't. I'd never ever make a smoothie though - that's another story.
We do need to live a little but we also need to be aware that if our losses are slower than we'd like, there are things that we can change.
funcurls
Never gets tired of SW!
I don't see why you can't! Afterall, you could have chicken breast accompanied by a portion of couscous and veg/salad so why does it matter if the couscous is 'stuck to' the chicken? Unless you were having a big portion of extra couscous/rice/potatoes, it may be a bit much then! BTW, how do you do this? Just dip the chicken in the egg, coat with cooked couscous and put in the oven? Do you spray it with Frylight/season before baking it?x
funcurls
Never gets tired of SW!
Hi Jay, good points made there!! How are you doing hun?X
funcurls
Never gets tired of SW!
I'm okay thanks my dear
You'll get there!! Not long to go I see, but slowly but surely you'll do it!X
MadameLaMinx
Gold Member
The way I see it with the cous-cous on chicken thing is as funcurls said - it isnt being modified in any way, it is being used as cous cous, it just happens to be surrounding the food rather than accompanying it. As it is a free food, even if you had extra cous-cous with it, as long as you stuck to the whole "eat till you are satisfied" guideline and still had your 1/3 superfree, then it is not breaking any rules.
Cake, well I havent made a cous-cous cake so cant comment about how it affects weight loss, but that is NOT using it as it is intended to be used, it is acting as a flour substitute, and would be used as an additional snack rather than as part of a main meal. So you probably wouldnt lose as well if you ate this in addition as a snack/dessert.
Cake, well I havent made a cous-cous cake so cant comment about how it affects weight loss, but that is NOT using it as it is intended to be used, it is acting as a flour substitute, and would be used as an additional snack rather than as part of a main meal. So you probably wouldnt lose as well if you ate this in addition as a snack/dessert.
jaylou
Gold Member
I'd be interested to see how much cous cous is used to coat a chicken breast - how much weight it is vs extra calories (dare I say it!).
I just think it could be one of these things that easily adds extra calories to a meal without adding the satiety of eating that food.
Just a thought...
I just think it could be one of these things that easily adds extra calories to a meal without adding the satiety of eating that food.
Just a thought...
BritMumInCanada
Gold Member
as long as it is used as part of a meal and is not used as substitute for flour in a bread or cake etc then it is free.
MadameLaMinx
Gold Member
I have this maybe once a week or a fortnight Jaylou - and if it has impeded my weightloss at all, it has not been enough to make a significant dent in it. Up until I got to about a stone from target, I regularly lost 3-4lb a week.
