HEALTHY COOKING TIPS:

The importance of a healthy diet for longevity and health, so maintaining healthy life starts with healthy cooking, healthy eating etc. The following tips could help for healthy cooking.

LOW FAT COOKING TIPS:

• Use low fat yoghurt or skim milk as thickener for cream based recipes.
• Instead of oil use cooking sprays.
• Select lean meat cuts and trim the fat.
• Instead of frying, boil or bake.
• Instead of mayonnaise on sandwich, use low fat spreads such as sauce or ketchup.
• Use low fat milk instead of whole milk.
• Use non stick cookware while you cook so that you don’t have to use much oil.
• Use fat free chicken broth.
• Cook fish, eggs and chicken in small amount of water. The method of cooking is known as poaching.
• Use low fat cooking methods like steaming, baking, poaching, broiling, grilling or sautéing.
• Use olive oil for medium cooking or for salad dressings.
• To prevent excess oil absorption, remove and drain on kitchen napkins.

COOKING TIPS TO RETAIN NUTRIENTS:

• Steam or microwave vegetables instead of boiling them.
• Avoid using copper vessels. It destroys vitamin content.
• Avoid cooking at high temperatures; this may destroy some of the vitamins due to oxidation.
• Wash vegetables before you chop them but not after chopping them.
• Steaming is the good cooking technique; it retains more nutrients than boiling.
• Use boiled vegetable water and dhal water for soups and gravies.
• Instead of soaking vegetables, rinse quickly.
• Boil potatoes and beetroots with the skin.
• Instead of peeling the vegetables scrub them, as many nutrients are found in the skin.
• Try to boil vegetables as whole and then cut it will retain nutrients.
• Store vegetables in a refrigerator to retain vitamin content.
• Add pinch of salt and soak vegetables.
• While cooking do not strain starch water from rice.
• Do not soak fruits for more than 15 minutes in water.

LOW SODIUM COOKING TIPS:

• Limit amount of margarine and butter as they contain lot of salt.
• Use fresh or frozen vegetables, since canned vegetables contain salt.
• Limit intake of cheese as it contain salt, or use salt free cheese.
• Use lemon juice, vinegar or spices to reduce need for salt.
• Limit intake of salty processed meats.
• Reduce use of sauces because they contain salt in high amount.
• Limit intake of pickles as pickles contain lot of salt.
• Don’t add too much of salt to your food.

GENERAL HEALTHY COOKING TIPS:

• Use neat and clean tools for cutting, especially the knife and cutting table.
• Use very small amount of water while cooking.
• Avoid use of food colors as it raises serious health issues.
• Use less soda or baking powder as it irritates intestine.
• Keep the lids closed, especially in case of cooking green vegetables to preserve green color.
• Avoid foods that are typically sprayed with pesticides.
• Always cut as big pieces because they carry more vitamins.