Sauces are flavor boosters, but they can make or break meals caloriewise. Take a look at these popular taste enhancers and see how they may affect your diet and health.

ITALIAN TASTES

Pesto vs. white clam sauce vs. red clam sauce:

Pesto is made with basil, pine nuts, olive oil and Parmesan cheese, which is why a quarter-cup of the green paste has about 300 calories. Although pesto packs more of a calorie punch, its density means you use less of it on your pasta. Between the two clam sauces, red sauce (60 calories per half cup) is a better bet because its base is tomato, not butter and wine like white sauce (110 to 160 calories).

Fit tip: Use pesto recipes that cut down on oil and add spinach. Pureed vegetables are another way to thicken sauces. In restaurants, order sauces on the side.

Marinara vs. meat or Bolognese sauce vs. vegetable sauce:

Most red pasta sauces have added sugar, oil or other fat, but if used sparingly, they can all be OK. Meat sauce (130 to 170 calories per half cup) is the one you probably want to stay away from. Marinara and vegetable sauces have about 60 to 80 calories per half cup.

Fit tip: Look for sauces with 50 to 60 calories per half cup. Also, add vegetables to tomato sauces — you'll get more quantity for fewer calories and feel full longer.

Alfredo vs. marsala sauce:

Marsala wine sauce (160 to 180 calories per half cup), prepared with mushrooms and olive oil, is the better choice. Alfredo sauce's primary ingredients are cheese, heavy cream and butter, all of which can add up to 300 to 400 calories for a half cup.

Fit tip: Look for light versions of Alfredo that cut calories in half, and use less oil to keep marsala sauce light.

ASIAN TASTES

Coconut vs. curry vs. peanut sauces:

Coconut sauce (50 to 70 calories in 2 tablespoons) has slightly fewer calories. But the bulk of the fat in coconut is unhealthy saturated fat, whereas peanut sauce, even though it has more calories (80 in 2 tablespoons), is made from peanuts, which have healthier fat. Curry sauce can be high in calories (2 tablespoons, 120 calories).

Fit tip: Watch out for sodium in the curry. Make your own coconut sauce at home starting with a low-fat coconut milk.

Teriyaki vs. shoyu:

These may be excellent options caloriewise, but soy sauce (10 calories per tablespoon) packs 920 milligrams of sodium. Teriyaki is a smarter choice (1 tablespoon, 15 calories) — though still high in sodium at about 610 milligrams, it's not quite as high as shoyu.

Fit tip: The light versions of soy and teriyaki can save you almost half of the sodium.

CHINESE SAUCES

Sweet-and-sour vs. Peking vs. duck:

Sweet-and-sour sauce (40 calories for 2 tablespoons) is the lowest caloriewise. Peking or hoisin sauce has 70 calories for 2 tablespoons, and duck sauce has 60 calories for two tablespoons.

Fit tip: Look at what's under or mixed with the sauce. For example, when you order sweet-and-sour chicken at a restaurant, you may be looking at 800 calories for the meal. And Peking sauce comes served over mu-shu pork, bringing the total to 780 calories.

FRENCH FLAVOR

Hollandaise vs. bearnaise vs. bechamel:

A bechamel or white sauce has the fewest calories per ounce — about 60. Bechamel is cream or milk mixed into a white roux (butter and flour). Hollandaise (about 160 calories per ounce) is made with vinegar, egg yolks and butter, and flavored with lemon. Bearnaise (100 calories per ounce) is similar to hollandaise, with the addition of wine, tarragon and shallots.

Fit tip: Use broths, vegetables or vegetable purees as a base for sauces instead of cream and butter. A juicer is another way to create sauces and cut calories. Experiment with spices and fresh herbs. Try using cornstarch as a fat-free thickener. For hollandaise, begin with 1 percent milk, cornstarch and lemon juice, and reduce the quantity of butter and eggs.

BARBECUE SAUCE VS. STEAK SAUCE VS. KETCHUP

Steak sauce and ketchup have half the calories (15 per tablespoon) of barbecue sauce.

Fit tip: Watch out — it's easy to become a heavy user. If you dump a half cup of barbecue sauce on your burger and fries, you've just added 240 extra calories. Use a tablespoon to add sauces to your food. And instead of coating meat with sauce before you barbecue, use lots of seasonings, then spoon on the sauce sparingly.

GRAVY BATTLE

Brown vs. sausage vs. mushroom:

A half cup of typical brown gravy has only 30 calories. The problems start with "country-style" versions, made with high-calorie ingredients like oil and fat skimmed from cooking. Country-style sausage gravy (about 200 calories per half cup) has almost 10 times the calories of turkey gravy. Canned mushroom gravy has about 60 calories per half cup.

Fit tip: Remove the fat with a separator (a cup with a spout to pour the juices from the bottom and leave the fat on top). Order "au jus," which means the meat is cooked and served in its own juices. Avoid using bread or biscuits to mop up gravy.

SEAFOOD SAUCES

Tartar vs. cocktail:

Tartar sauce (74 calories per tablespoon) is made with mayonnaise, which has about 100 calories per tablespoon. Cocktail sauce (15 calories per tablespoon) is the clear winner.

Fit tip: Try making tartar sauce at home with reduced-fat or nonfat mayo.

Charles Stuart Platkin is a nutrition and public-health advocate. Write to info@thedietdetective.com.