What Does a Meal with 10 Grams of Added Sugar Look Like?
A registered dietitian rounded up 10 delicious recipes that meet the latest dietary guidelines — including desserts.
Matt Armendariz
The Department of Health and Human Services' latest dietary guidelines recommend having no more than 10 grams of added sugar at each meal. However, because foods like barbecue sauce and ketchup contain hidden added sugars, it can be difficult to know what a meal with 10 grams of added sugar looks like.
Here are 10 recipes that meet the recommended 10 grams of added sugar — including some desserts — so you can gauge what’s in your next meal.
Renee Comet, 2016, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved
If you’re craving better-for-you homemade baked goods at breakfast, try these banana oat muffins. Each one has 7 grams of added sugar. Pair yours with a mug of coffee or tea — if you happen to stir a 3/4 teaspoon of granulated sugar into your cup, it will bring your total for this meal to 10 grams of added sugar.
This pancakes recipe contains 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar, giving each serving 3 grams of added sugar. If you pour a teaspoon of 100% maple syrup on your individual stack, it gives this meal another 5 grams of added sugar.
The 2 tablespoons of brown sugar in this cozy hot cereal recipe gives each bowl 7 grams of added sugar. Adding a half teaspoon of 100% maple syrup will bring the total to 10 grams of added sugar for the meal.
Renee Comet
Barbecue sauce gives these satisfying vegetarian sandwiches 10 grams of added sugar. To keep your meal below the recommended maximum, cook the jackfruit without the optional 1 to 2 tablespoons of additional brown sugar.
Lisa Shin , Lisa Shin Photography, Inc.
With ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, these crowd-pleasing sandwiches each have 5 grams of added sugar. If you serve yours on a whole wheat bun, it will give the meal a few more grams of added sugar (the exact amount depends on the brand).
The pork in this salad is glazed with hoisin sauce, which gives each serving at least 2 grams of added sugar. If you brush on additional hoisin, the amount of added sugar will climb higher. Fortunately, however, your dessert gets its sweetness from bananas and dates, contributing no added sugar whatsoever.
Many savory dinner recipes, including the veggie-packed casserole above, don’t contain any added sugar. If you add something sweet to the plate, such as these Puffed Millet and Brown Rice Treats, each meal will have 10 grams of added sugar.
The dressing on this crunchy cabbage and apple salad contains a small amount of brown sugar for balance, and it contributes 3 grams of added sugar to the dish. A small whole-grain dinner roll can add about 2 more grams. Serve yours with Food Network Kitchen's Crunchy Peanut Butter Thins, which have 5 grams of added sugar, and you’ve just hit your limit for this meal.
This all-in-one chicken dish gets 8 grams of added sugar from its teriyaki sauce. Pair it with poached pears that have no added sugar to stay below the 10-gram guideline.
This dressing for this quinoa and grapefruit salad contains 2 tablespoons of honey, giving this salmon dinner 3 grams of added sugar. If you complete your meal with homemade ice cream that's sweetened with low-sugar strawberry preserves, the total added sugar is around 6 grams.
