Eat Shrink And Be Merry

Earlier this year, during taping of an episode (called Macho Nacho Dip) of our Food Network TV show,  I made a shocking discovery about salsa and just remembered to share it with you. Did you know that jarred, store-bought salsa is one of the most sodium-dense products at the store? Like, I mean, REALLY REALLY loaded with the stuff? A measly two-tablespoon serving (yeah, right) of the most popular brand (not to name names, but it starts with “Tost” and ends with “itos”) contains 250 mg sodium. That means if I consume 1/2 cup salsa (not unrealistic in one sitting), I’d be scarfing back 1000 mg sodium, almost half my daily allotment (and that doesn’t count the salt in the nacho chips I’m using as a vehicle to transport the addictive, salty stuff to my mouth!). Think that’s bad? Get a load of this: I found an organic salsa in the “health” food aisle that contains, brace yourself, 500 mg sodium in that same two-tablespoon serving! How’s that even possible? Half a cup of the organic stuff will set you back 2000 mg sodium and that’s just your nightime snack! My blood-pressure’s goin’ through the roof just writing about it! That’s why I’m using exclamation marks after every sentence!

The moral of the story is to read the label. There are some really delicious, lower-sodium brands to choose from, including my absolute favorite, a US brand called Green Mountain Gringo which I found at a gourmet store here in Waterloo, Ontario (90 mg sodium per 2 TBSP). You can visit their website at www.greenmountaingringo.com to find out more. Warning: Their medium salsa is HOT and their hot salsa is SERIOUSLY LIP-SCORCHING HOT!