Feb

Easy Low Fat Home Cooking Techniques

Learn some low fat cooking techniques for healthy living

Roast

To roast means to cook meat or vegetables in the oven in an uncovered pan at very high heat (to roast quickly) or at low heat (to marry the juices with herbs and spices). Roasting intensifies food flavors. Try rubbing olive oil on asparagus and spring onions, fresh herbs, lemon zest and salt and roast at high temperature in an oven for 15 minutes.

Grill

To grill means to cook food on burning charcoal or over an open fire. Grilling imparts a smoky flavor for the food. Almost any vegetable can be grilled using a perforated basket.

Marinate

To marinate means to tender, flavor and season food with a mixture of spices, herbs and acid form of food (vinegar, wine or citrus juices). You can add oil if you please. Marination is a great way to experiment with different flavors. For an Asian dish, you can try adding soy, ginger and garlic. For Italian style of cooking, you can add tomatoes with herbs. Vinaigrettes also make great marinades.

Braise

To braise means to brown meat or vegetables with minimal amount of fat first, then cover and cook in an oven (for stove top cooking) with a small amount of liquid. This technique tenderizes sturdy vegetables before they can be sautéed in just a little olive oil or butter. Less fat is used as braising does not involve use of much fat for the cooking process.

Steam

To steam means to cook food in a container over boiling water or in a perforated basket. The water can be scented with herbs or spices to impart flavor. Steaming is an excellent no-fat way to prepare veggies because of the fast, moist, high heat cooking process. It is also a good substitute for the microwave when reheating certain foods.

Saute

To sauté means cook food in some form of fat in a shallow pan. Pieces should be of the same size for even cooking. Try to steam most vegetables before sautéing them in just a little olive oil or butter. Less fat is used because its not relied upon for the cooking process.

Poach

To poach means to cook food on the stove top in a gently simmering (not boiling) liquid such as stock. Add herbs and spices to the liquid to impart flavor. For e.g. Add bay leaf or whole peppercorns for aroma. Eggs and fish are usually poached. You can toss some vegetables in the liquid as well and smear it on crusty bread.