Boil, roast or eat raw: how to cook vegetables properly

Boil, fry or eat raw: how to cook vegetables properly

In each case, a different approach is needed.

Thermal processing of vegetables can significantly affect their properties. But is it bad? In what form are they most useful? Should they be boiled, fried or eaten raw? Let’s find out together with the expert on healthy eating Anna Glumova.

Why can not exclude vegetables from the diet?

Vegetables and herbs are necessary in the diet for three main reasons:

• they are rich in vitamins and minerals;
• they contain enzymes;
• they are considered the best source of fiber.

Some vitamins are lost when heated and some are retained. At the same time, heat treatment destroys the cell membranes of foods, releasing vitamins and minerals that are not available in raw form. Enzymes, on the other hand, disintegrate completely when heated. Therefore, the ideal diet is, first of all, a balanced one: vegetables and herbs should occupy about half of the plate and be presented both in raw and cooked form.

Water-soluble vitamins, particularly vitamin C, are most affected by high temperatures. The leader in vitamin C content is tomato: in 100 g a little less than a third of the daily allowance. However, tomatoes are usually eaten raw, so there is nothing to worry about.

How is it healthier to cook vegetables?

As for greens, this is one of the most useful products, if we talk about the content of vitamins and minerals. However, it also has the most dense cell membranes, which the body is practically unable to break down. So how to get the full benefit of greens? This is where heat treatment will help: it is not necessary to boil greens, it is enough to throw them for a minute on a heated pan. A well-known example is spinach poached in butter.

Another way to extract vitamins and minerals from greens is to grind them in a blender. The famous pesto sauce (chopped greens with nuts and olive oil) allows you to absorb all the nutrients, also thanks to the combination with fats. Since fat-soluble vitamins are absorbed when consumed with fatty foods such as nuts and oil. Vegetable oil with greens chopped in a blender can also be used as a salad dressing.

However, some vegetables, such as beets, in raw form are quite aggressive on the gastrointestinal tract. They are recommended to be boiled or baked.

To preserve the useful properties of vegetables when cooking, you should not heat them above 100 degrees. Choose braising, baking or steaming. Reduce the time of heat treatment and try to cook for one time: each next heating reduces the amount of vitamins.