We have come to a point where we want quick meals over the day be it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Earlier, people enjoyed cooking, and some cook even as a hobby. But the busy schedules of people and the lack of ability to cook have made them wander around in search of quick alternatives, 2-minute noodles, or the best- food delivery apps.
But if you ever decide to cook we are here to highlight a few ways how you can make your food more nutritious easily without any extra ingredients or special utensils. It is important that while cooking we retain the nutritive value of the food else what's the use of eating food if it is only filled with calories without any vitamins, healthy fats, and other important nutrients.
According to The New York Times, the three R's for nutrient preservation are: reduce the amount of water used in cooking, reduce the cooking time and reduce the surface area of the food that is exposed.
Make sure to use less water like using pressure cookers and methods like steaming and microwaving since they are least destructive of nutrients. You can steam the frozen vegetables.
It is always advisable to cook food in preheated pans since this tips may help destroy the destructive enzymes that are inactivated by heat. You can also cook in preheated oven or in boiling water.
Cut the food or vegetables into bigger pieces since it as per US NIH, the smaller the pieces food is cut into, the greater the chances of losing nutrients.
Cut your fruits and vegetables just before you need to cook or eat them. Use lemon or vinegar in salad dressings to inhibit enzyme action.
Never cook green vegetables with baking soda since it destroys thiamin and vitamin C.
Cook potatoes without peeling the skin and if possible without even cutting it. Avoid frying the potatoes since it leads to loss of vitamin C and increases in fat calories. Deep-fat frying also destroys vitamin E in vegetable oils.
Avoid cooking with iron utensils since they can destroy vitamin C but they can also add nutritious iron to the food, especially if the food is acidic. You can use utensils made of glass, stainless steel, aluminum, or enamel or lined with a nonstick coating since it has no effect on the nutritive value of the food.
Avoid roasting the meat for too long since it results in the loss of more thiamin.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)