- Fiber is key for gut health and maybe even living longer, but most Americans don't eat enough.
- Soups, stews, stir fries and casseroles are all great meals for increasing fiber.
- A dietician shares her favorite dinner that is high in protein, but still a good source of fiber.
Fiber boosts gut health, slashes the risk of colon cancer, helps control hunger, and may even help people live longer. But despite its many benefits, most people struggle to get enough fiber in their diet, especially in diets that focus on increasing protein.
One great option to increase fiber consumption is to make a soup, stew or stir fry, Joanne Slavin, a professor in the department of food science and nutrition at the University of Minnesota and registered dietician, told Insider.
"When you're cooking vegetables or even cooking fruit. You're driving out water and increasing fiber," Slavin said.
These meals also can be easy to prepare during a hectic work week.
Here's one of Dr. Slavin's favorite easy, nutritious stews that's high in protein but still has fiber.
Slavin's "Can't miss" slow cooker stew
Ingredients:
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3 lbs beef stew meat
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3 large onions, cut into 1/8
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One 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
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2 cups beef broth
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1 teaspoon pepper
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One 1lb bag of ready-to-eat baby-cut carrots
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One 1lb bag of frozen cut green beans
To make the stew, Slavin said to mix all the ingredients except for the frozen green beans in a 5 quart slow cooker, cover, and cook on low heat for 8 hours. Then, add in the green beans and cook for an additional hour on low heat.
Slavin emphasizes creativity with the ingredients, encouraging people to add in some of their other favorite veggies for added nutrition.
The stew is packed with protein: One 3.5 ounce serving of beef has 26.1 grams of protein.
Veggies like onions, green beans, carrots, and diced tomatoes add fiber. Onions, green beans and tomatoes are also all a great source of the antioxidant Vitamin C. Carrots are an excellent source of Vitamin A.
If you'd like to increase the number of veggies in your stew and add even more fiber, other complementary vegetables include potatoes and peas.
One cup of green peas has over 8 grams of fiber, and one medium russet potato has about 4 grams of fiber.
You can also serve the stew with some hearty whole-wheat bread, which will add additional fiber.
The best part of this recipe, like other slow-cooker recipes, is that you can set it and forget it and then come home to a lovely, hearty meal.