Nutritionists and advocates of healthy eating argue that it is much healthier to eat vegetables raw. However, not all of them can be consumed in this way, in addition, in some diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, raw vegetables are also contraindicated. In this case, the food can be cooked before use. However, it is important to do this correctly, otherwise they can lose almost all vitamins, because high temperatures destroy nutrients.
Secrets of preserving vitamins during cooking
For cooking vegetables, use only ceramic or enamel cookware. A pan made of iron will contribute to the destruction of vitamins, since metals, when heated, can provoke the decomposition of some biologically active substances.
The entire cooking process must necessarily take place under a tightly closed opaque lid. It protects vegetables from the penetration of oxygen and light, which during cooking also lead to the destruction of minerals and vitamins. Ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, is especially sensitive to them.
To preserve as much of the nutrients as possible, it is important to cook the vegetables whole, preferably in the skins. Especially such as potatoes, carrots, zucchini. By the way, the peel of the latter also contains a lot of vitamins, so cutting it off is not recommended in any case.
It is important to add vegetables to already boiling water. In this case, the amount of ascorbic acid, for example, will be reduced by only 7%, and not 35%. At the same time, there should not be very much liquid - it is enough to exceed the level of products by 1 cm. If you have to cook vegetables that require long cooking, for example, beets, you can immediately pour a little more liquid.
After the vegetables are in the pot, the heat should be reduced to a minimum, as the water should not boil. The high temperature of the liquid will provoke a rapid decomposition of biologically active substances.
During cooking, you do not need to check the readiness of vegetables every now and then. First, this will require lifting the lid. Secondly, punctures and cuts will also contribute to the loss of valuable vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.
Vegetables should be cooked until slightly softened. Boiled potatoes, for example, can be safely thrown away or used for high-calorie salads, since such a product no longer carries any nutritional value. Just fill your stomach.
So that it does not happen that some vegetables are boiled and others are not boiled, they should be chosen about the same size. Also, you should not mix different types during cooking, since each type of product is cooked for a certain time.
It is better to salt vegetables after they have been removed from the water. While the food has not yet cooled down, the salt will easily dissolve and be absorbed into them.
Cooking time for some vegetables
In order not to check every now and then the readiness of vegetables during cooking, you should know how long it takes to soften them. Naturally, the cooking time depends a lot on the size and variety of a particular vegetable. However, on average, broccoli, for example, is cooked for 7 minutes, fresh Brussels sprouts - 5-8 minutes, and cauliflower inflorescences - no more than 10 minutes.
To cook medium-sized young potatoes, 15 minutes is enough, and for old ones - 20. Cook carrots for about the same - no more than 25 minutes. Spinach and asparagus will cook in 5 minutes, while medium beets will take about an hour to cook.
