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How
to cook to get the most out of your vegetables
Aug 21, 08
Suzanne Havala Hobbs
You know the mantra: Eat more
fruits and vegetables.
But I’m often asked whether there’s more nutritional
value when they’re cooked or raw. Fresh or frozen? How
about canned?
The answer varies, and it depends on many factors. And, considering
the big picture, it also may not matter very much.
Even before they’re picked, the same varieties of fruits
and vegetables can differ in their nutritional makeup depending
upon where they are grown – the quality of the soil
and other growing conditions.
Whether or not they’re picked at the peak of ripeness,
time in transit from field to store, and the length of time
the foods sits on the shelf before you buy and eat it also
makes a difference.
Foods that have less-than-optimal growing and handling conditions
can lose nutritional value before you even make the decision
about eating them raw or cooked.
To complicate things even further, cooking or processing can
have different effects on different nutrients in the same
foods.
For example, some research suggests that when carrots are
cooked, the body has access to more of their health-supporting
carotenoids, beneficial chemicals that give carrots their
orange color.
At the same time, though, cooking may decrease the amount
of polyphenols – another beneficial plant chemical –
in carrots.
There are many other similar examples where a cooking or processing
technique can have both advantages and disadvantages.
For example, breaking down a fruit or vegetable by mashing
or pureeing it can make certain nutrients more available,
but may also diminish the benefits from dietary fiber in the
food.
Plus, if the nutritional content of a fruit or vegetable is
diminished by cooking, the effect can vary by the method of
cooking used.
For example, boiling a vegetable can cause substantial nutrient
loss if nutrients leach into the cooking water. Water-soluble
vitamins such as the B vitamins and vitamin C may also be
destroyed by heat. So, the longer the food is boiled, the
more nutritional value may be lost.
Steaming in the smallest amount of water for the shortest
time possible can help minimize nutrient loss. If nutrients
do leach into the cooking water, using that water to make
soup or mixing it into another food can be one way to save
at least some of the vitamins and minerals.
There are many other ways to maximize the nutritional value
of the fruits and vegetables you eat, too. For example:
* Buy foods that are in season and grown locally. They’re
more likely to have been picked at peak ripeness and less
likely to have lost nutritional value in transit to the store
or your kitchen. Frozen is as good as fresh.
* Conserve nutrients when you can. If you cook, use a variety
of quick-cooking methods that require minimal added fluids.
Steam, sauté, stir-fry or cook in a microwave oven,
for example. Cook vegetables until they are tender but not
mushy.
* Leave the peels on produce grown organically – cucumbers,
carrots, apples – to get the benefits of the added fiber.
* Diversify your choices. Fresh and frozen are better for
you than canned, but canned is much better than no vegetables
at all. Eating a variety of cooked, raw, mashed, whole, fresh,
frozen and canned fruits and vegetables can help you get a
wide range of nutrients in a number of tasty forms.
The bottom line: Eat more fruits and vegetables. Eating them
in different forms can help ensure you get the widest possible
range of nutrients.
And if the variety encourages you to eat more of them more
often, all the better.
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