Vegetables are a valuable source of many nutrients. They are rich in fiber, they contain a number of vitamins and minerals. Not all vegetables can be consumed raw, so they are cooked - boiled, fried, stewed, baked. However, are the beneficial properties of vegetables preserved after such cooking, for example, boiling?
Why boiled vegetables are useful
It is widely believed that after cooking, the vitamin content of vegetables drops sharply. However, this is not always the case, for example, if you cook vegetables for too long and with a strong boil. And the benefits of boiled vegetables are undeniable.
Firstly, as a result of cooking, the cell walls of vegetables soften, which leads to better absorption of nutrients by the body. For example, when eating raw broccoli or spinach, a person assimilates no more than 2-3% of carotenoids, and if he eats the same product after cooking, the assimilation of carotenoids will increase to 30%. Cooked carrots contain about 3 times more antioxidants than raw carrots. Many raw vegetables contain strontium, which displaces calcium and magnesium from the body. During heat treatment, the strontium content decreases sharply.
The same goes for tomatoes. A slight decrease in the concentration of vitamins after heat treatment is more than compensated for by the increased absorption of lycopene, a substance that gives tomatoes a red color. But lycopene has a pronounced antioxidant effect. Therefore, it is advisable to regularly consume boiled or stewed carrots and tomatoes as a prevention of cancer and a number of other serious diseases. Boiled beets are very useful; when boiling this root vegetable, the beneficial properties do not disappear at all.
In addition, some people, especially those suffering from diseases of the digestive system, are contraindicated in the coarse fiber contained in raw vegetables. It is poorly absorbed and digested. After heat treatment (cooking), this problem disappears.
Finally, young children who have not yet fully adjusted the work of all body systems can be harmful to raw vegetables. Therefore, it is better to give them boiled vegetables.
How to minimize the loss of vitamins when cooking vegetables
There are a few simple yet effective guidelines for reducing vitamin loss from cooking. Above all, try to cook vegetables immediately after you have peeled them. If for some reason you cannot do this, put the peeled vegetables in a container of cold water.
When the water boils, reduce the heat so that the boil is barely noticeable and cover the pot with a lid. Better yet, steam the vegetables. With this method of cooking, the loss of vitamins will be minimal.
