Anyone can buy a frozen dinner and pop it in the microwave. In fact, they even have the luxury of buying packaged meals that taste like they were cooked at home or in a restaurant but are stable on a shelf for at least a year. In spite of today’s modern convenience, nothing really beats having healthy meals delivered to your doorstep and digging in.
Canned foods and other processed packaged entrees are considered unhealthy for a reason. Often they contain excess salt to compensate for lower-quality ingredients, while the cooking process might break apart nutrients that are present in food that has not undergone pressure canning. There is no reason to settle for inferior quality when personal health is the most important commodity that all people possess.
A healthy meal means several things. It always starts with great ingredients. As an example, not every head of lettuce is the same. The cheap stuff is grown quickly with chemicals. It has limited nutrients, and what nutrients there are tend to break down as the product sits on the shelf. A better head of lettuce not only looks more appetizing, it often contains more nutrition. It might have been washed better so there are fewer chemical residues.
Preparation is the second most important step. Vegetables in particular are known to have contaminants such as pesticide or too much nitrogen. Aside from selecting quality ingredients, they should also be vigorously washed or peeled before cooking. Meat should always be handled carefully.
Cooking is about personal taste, although the way food is cooked also contributes a lot to quality. Food that is overcooked tends to lose vitamins, while some foods are dangerous to under cook. Vegetables are in the realm where most can be eaten raw, but a little cooking makes them softer and more palatable. Since less cooking increases their vitamin content, methods such as stir frying have become popular over the years.
The right cooking method optimizes all the health and safety benefits. Continuing to use stir frying as an example, a lot of ingredients such as animal products are often cooked separately and then set to the side before cooking the vegetables. Once the vegetables have started to soften in the skillet, other ingredients are added in the order of their need for further cooking. Planning of this nature makes for better food.
Food should be both delicious and very healthy. Some people do not know how to prepare food that is both nutritious and great-tasting. Until cooking skills are learned in person, consider having healthy meals delivered.
