WHAT ARE THE BEST, HEALTHIEST VEGETABLES? THE ONES THAT YOU’LL ACTUALLY EAT, EXPERTS SAY

Raw or cooked? Blanched, sauteed or roasted? How you prepare vegetables matters less than choosing ones you want to eat, nutritionists say

In Carlene Thomas' experience, two types of people ask her advice as a dietitian about the healthiest way to prepare vegetables.

Those looking to improve their diet are curious about how different cooking methods affect nutritional content. Others wonder how best to work more vegetables into their diet in general.

The simplest version of her answer to both groups is: the best vegetables are the ones you actually want to eat.

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"A lot of people engage in aspirational vegetable shopping" without actually using them, says Thomas, who is from the US state of Virginia. In that case, "it doesn't matter how you cook them, because if they're going in the trash, they're not in your body".

That said, research shows different cooking methods do affect the nutritional content of produce, but they are not as simple as raw vs. steamed vs. roasted.

Are raw vegetables healthier than cooked?

Not always. Prolonged exposure to high heat degrades many nutrients. But cooking not only softens the cellular walls in vegetables, making them easier to digest, it also changes their structure to increase what is called bioavailability - the body's ability to absorb the vegetables' nutrients, Thomas says.

The result is often more nutritious than raw food. Cooked tomatoes, for instance, release more of the cancer-fighting antioxidant lycopene than raw, she says, and cooked carrots have more betacarotene that can be absorbed and turned into vitamin A.

Roasting pumpkins, carrots and sweet potatoes boosts carotenoids - rich pigments that are antioxidants known to combat inflammation in the body.

Which cooking methods are the healthiest?

Generally, the shorter the cooking time, the more nutrients are preserved. Partly because they take relatively little time, steaming and microwaving are considered the most nutritious methods (also because they require no fat to cook), says Amber Pankonin, a dietitian in Nebraska.

A close second is blanching - tossing vegetables into boiling water for a minute or two before quickly cooling them to stop the cooking process - but be careful not to leave them in the water long. Boiling vegetables, besides easily turning them to mush, runs the risk of losing water-soluble nutrients including vitamin C, B1 and folate.

"It's leaching into the water, and you're tossing out the water," Thomas says. "There goes all of the nutrients that you were hoping for."

Is there no accounting for taste?

Even dietitians say there is no problem using a small amount of fat. Besides making vegetables more flavourful, a little cooking oil helps fat-soluble vitamins absorb in the body, says Pankonin.

That means more vitamin A from squash, carrots and sweet potatoes, more vitamin D from mushrooms, more vitamin E from bell peppers, leafy greens and asparagus and more vitamin K from greens, broccoli and onions.

For sauteing, Pankonin recommends starting over medium heat with a tablespoon of oil, though it depends on the pan. Use enough oil so that the vegetables do not stick, but not so much that it pools.

For roasting, you is likely to need double the oil per pound of vegetables. Despite the longer cooking time, roasting will still maintain some nutrients and will boost the flavour with the caramelisation of natural sugars.

"Flavour is king," Pankonin says. "I would much rather see people roasting their vegetables and enjoying them, versus dealing with the mushy vegetables they've boiled and boiled."

Try your hand at two recipes below:

Amber Pankonin's sauteed green beans with lemon, garlic and shallots

Serves: four

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 12 oz/340 grams trimmed fresh green beans

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

• 1 tbsp minced shallot

• 1 tsp minced garlic

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

• Kosher salt and black pepper

Method

Blanch green beans by placing in boiling water for one minute, drain and place in an iced water bath. In a saute pan, add the oil over medium-high and cook the shallots for 30 to 45 seconds. Add the beans and cook for two to three minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one to two minutes until the beans are tender. Season to taste with lemon juice, Kosher salt and black pepper.

Carlene Thomas' twice-baked harissa sweet potatoes

Serves: six

Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 large sweet potatoes

• 1 1/2 tsp brown sugar

• 1 tbsp butter, melted

• 2 tsp harissa

• Salt and pepper, to taste

• 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil

Method

Wash potatoes and prick them with a fork. In the oven, preheated to 375F/190C, bake for 45 minutes or until you can pierce the potatoes easily with a fork. Remove and allow to cool slightly before cutting off the top third lengthwise. Scoop out the flesh using a large spoon (leave enough on the base so the skin holds its shape) and reserve bases.

In a stand mixer with whisk attachment, add the potato flesh, brown sugar, harissa, salt and pepper. Whip until fluffy. Scoop into the reserved potato skins and use a fork to create peaks.

Place potatoes on a baking sheet and brush skins with olive oil. Bake at 350F/190C for 25 minutes. Broil on high to brown if desired. Top with additional salt and harissa.

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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.

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2025-02-06T08:22:21Z