Cooking your own meals will help you save money, but most importantly your health! In today’s fast paced society, many busy professionals choose a take-out supper rather than preparing a healthy home cooked meal. Take out, as well as processed and pre-packaged foods are loaded with sodium, fat, extra calories and preservatives, and will help you gain weight.
Nutritionists agree planning your meals a day in advance will help you lose more weight. Planning ahead also ensures you use up refrigerated items before they go bad, saving you money and time in the kitchen.
Enjoy these tips for healthier eating, cooking and grocery shopping.
Fat Busters:
- Choose ground chicken or turkey as an alternative to ground beef, or do half and half, it’s a great way to try new flavor and cut back on some fat in your favorite meat dishes.
- When cooking vegetables try steaming instead of frying or sautéing. This will reduce the amount of fat you use, plus because of the high heat it will cut down the cooking time.
- To make burgers try substituting some of the meat with grated carrot or zucchini. This will reduce the fat and will add a new flavor to foods.
- For baked goods (such as muffins) instead of using all the oil and butter, try substituting a bit of applesauce in the recipe. It will add a lot of moisture and a tangy flavor to your baking.
- For homemade salad dressings use a ratio of 2 parts oil to 1 part vinegar instead of the traditional 3: 1. This will cut down the amount of fat in the dressing.
Flavor Tips:
- Do not overcook your food. Overcooking food tends to make it dry and it will lose its flavor.
- Add flavor enhancers like fresh herbs at the end of cooking, this will keep their freshness and flavor at its peak.
- Try seasoning food with vinegar and fresh citrus juice. This will keep the sodium low and it brings out the flavor while giving a fresh taste. Add at the end of cooking to maximize freshness.
- Don’t peel fruits and vegetables. The peel contains a lot of nutrients as well as fiber. Buy organic produce whenever possible and use the peels!
- Instead of boiling potatoes or vegetables roast them. They won’t lose all the nutrients in the cooking water and the roasted flavor is nice.
- When steaming veggies, add some lemon, herbs or garlic to the water to give a nice aroma and flavor.
General Tips:
- The most important thing in cooking is variety. Pick up one new item every trip to the grocery store. This will give you a chance to become exposed to lots of fun new healthy things.
- If you are busy and on the go, pick one day a week to plan meals. Then write your shopping list and make a plan of attack. This gives you the chance to plan your week’s meals to ensure you always have a chance to eat well.
- Freeze things in portions. Weather it be chicken breasts, stew meat, or anything else it gives you the chance to pick out just the right amount, and it will thaw faster as well.
- When cooking food make sure it is cut up to be the same size, this insures equal cooking time for everything.
- It is worth your time and efforts to make a couple of trips to the market a week. This gives you access to the freshest ingredients and may spark new ideas.
- Make sure to wash your fruits and veggies well before eating. Just think, they’ve been growing in the dirt, then were handled and shipped, who knows what you would be eating!!
Weight loss requires hard work, dedication and healthy meal ideas! Be sure to use these tips to help you create healthier meals at home. Planning and preparing your own food is healthier, more nutritious and will save you money.
Rachelle asks blog readers:
Do you have a healthy cooking tip to share? What do you do to improve flavor and cut back on fat in your favorite home cooked meals?
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