If you have decided to follow a diet plan to lose weight, you then need to decide how best to prepare your meals. Even though you may be having fresh fruit and vegetables, you won't want to eat everything raw. There are several ways of cooking healthy food and you will be able to do so without having to make great changes from your usual cooking methods.
Baking is a good option for many foods in a diet plan. Wrap the food in foil to keep it moist and prevent drying out. The food will be tastier when you do that.
Boiling is fine for fish. Don't use butter or oil for marinades and make sauces using water as a base. If you are boiling vegetables, do them in cook bags to prevent contact with the water, which would remove a certain amount of the nutrients from the veges. As an alternative use a steamer which holds the food above the boiling water.
Grilling is satisfactory. Again wrap food in foil to retain the juices.
Microwaving works well for a number of foods. There are many utensils suitable for use in a microwave oven. A microwave proof lidded container with a table spoonful of water in the bottom is great for cooking vegetables.
Frying is not generally recommended for cooking healthy food, though if done using a small amount of olive oil or canola oil it will not disrupt the diet plan.
Some tips for cooking healthy food from celebrity chef Jamie Oliver;
- Learn some quick, good-for-you recipes
- Shop properly. Bypass the processed foods and go for fresh vegetables. He suggests making a salad with different lettuces and adding radish or carrot to give it crunch.
- Make your own dressing. His recipe; combine 3 parts olive oil with 1 part lemon juice or red wine vinegar, add a little salt and pepper, shake the mixture in a jar - and that's it.
A recipe for healthier French Fries
Slice potatoes thin and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper
Bake on a foil-covered cookie sheet at 425°F (220°C) toss every 15 mins.
After 45 minutes, turn oven up to 450°F (235°C) for 5 minutes until the chips are golden brown (don't let them burn.)
Serve with organic ketchup.
There are plenty of recipes available for cooking healthy food, just do a search on the internet for weight loss recipes and you will find a host of ideas you can use or adapt to suit, and you will soon work out the best ways of preparing healthy food.