How to cook Healthly Food
1. Use non-stick pan so that you do not have to use much oil.
2. When sauteing, use a small amount of chicken broth or wine instead of butter/Oil.
3. Measure the amount of oil first before pouring it out of the bottle. So that you are able to moderate the amount of oil used.
4. When making broth, chill the broth first sot ath the fat will rise to the top and you can remove it before using.
5. When cooking vegetables/fruits, do not peel off the skins and cook them as whole.. This will keep the nutrients.
6. Vitamin C in vegetable is destroyed quickly in cooking. So when cooking your vegetables in the smallest amount of water possible and for a short amount of time.
7. Spice your food well. ALways taste the food first and adjust the spices to meet the taste.
8. When cooking a dish with both vegetables and meat, reduce the amount of meat by 1/3 and increase the amount of vegetable by 1/3.
9. Thicken the gravies with milk or broth blended in the blender with flour. Make sure that you cook long enough to remove the raw flour taste.
10. Use Olive oil for cooking It add taste to the dish and is healthier.
Cooking tips for Deep Frying
1. Choose Oil carefully. Choose oil that do not break down at deep fry temperatures, example Peanut oil, sunflower oil, and canola oils. Canola Oil is preferred as it is low in saturated fat and has high burning point and does not affect the flavour of the food. Peanut oil and corn oil are also good choice. Do not use sesame oil and olive oil as it does not have high smoking point.
2. Choose a deep very heavy skillet to fry with. Add oil to the cold pan, leaving a space at the top of the pan for at least two inches. These allow a safety margin when the oil bubbles up as the food is added.
3. Make the food is dry before frying. Letting it sit on paper towels or coating it in flour or bread crumbs. Let the coated food sit on a wire rack for 20-30 minutes for it to dry and set. This will help to reduce splattering.
4. The food that you going to deep dry should be kept at room temperature before frying. It will lessening the chance of splattering and will not reduce the temperature in the oil by too much when you put in. If the food is in a sauce, use a slotted spoon to let it drain before adding to the wok. If it is batter-coated, make sure all the excess batter has dripped off before placing it in the hot oil.
5. Begin heating the oil over the medium high heat. The oil must reach a good temperature to brown the exterior of the food quickly while cooking it. You can use a wooden chopstick to check the oil if you do not have a thermometer.
6. Avoid putting too much food to the wok for deep fry. Carefully add the foods, leaving a lot of space around each piece so that it will be cooked evenly. Adding too much food at once will cause the temperature to drop and it will absorb the fat. The food will turn out to be greasy and soggy.
7. Regulate the heat if necessary to keep the temperature. When the food has turned browned, it is done. Remove it and put onto paper towel to drain.
8. Fried food can keep in 200 degree oven until all the food is fried
9. Do not reuse the cooking oil. The oil has been break down from the heat and undesirable compounds like trans fats have been formed. Discard the oil after it has cooled down.
10. If you want to reduce the amount of fats when deep fry, the temperature must be kept up. Food that is cooked at too low temperature will lead to greasy food. Instead of using the deep fat fryer, use a wok instead as less oil are been used.
How to wash Vegetable
Vegetable contain dirts and residual pesticide. For the benefit of your family's health, you need to get rid of them completely. Below are a few tips in washing the vegetables.
1. Soaking in Lightly salted water.
This method is suitable for flowering vegetables . For example: Broccoli and Cauliflower. The vegetable is cut into small florets and soak them in water. Sprinkle salt and let them soak for about 10 minutes. Lastly rinse them several times with clean water.
2. Thorough soaking
This method is suitable for leafy vegetable. For example: Spinach , Bok Choy , Choy Sum. Prepare a large amount of water and submerge the whole vegetables in it for about 10 minutes. Rinse them 2-3 times with clean water. Tear the leaf apart.
3. Peeling and Rinsing
This method is usually used for tubers and melons. Examples are Carrot, potato, Sweet potatoes , pumpkin and Wintermelon .
Peel the vegetable with a knife and rinse thoroughly. For Lotus root, rinse off any muds in the holes with water.
