| Vegetables add colour, taste, texture and bulk to | | | | flavour and nutrients. Trial and error will be your |
| our daily diet. There are dozens of different | | | | guide with microwaving as there are plenty of |
| vegetables that can be prepared in literally | | | | variables involved. However, a few guidelines will |
| hundreds of ways. So what's best? | | | | help...The more food you put into the oven, the |
| There is no best. The thing to do is to eat your | | | | longer it will take to cook. Underestimate your |
| vegetables, lots of them, everyday in a wide | | | | cooking time rather than overestimate. |
| variety of ways and stop worrying about the | | | | Undercooked food can be cooked some more. |
| preparation methods. Variety is the key... | | | | Over-cooked food is ruined. Food straight from |
| Raw | | | | the fridge will take longer to cook than that at |
| Many vegetables taste fabulous just the way | | | | room temperature. All food continues to cook |
| they are straight out of the garden. Lettuce, | | | | after it has been removed from the microwave |
| tomato, celery, cabbage, onion, radish, carrot are | | | | oven. It is part of the cooking process and should |
| obvious choices here. But they are just as likely | | | | be taken into account to prevent over-cooking. |
| to find themselves next to chopped up broccoli, | | | | Stir Fry |
| cauliflower, peas, beans and zucchini on a starter | | | | Very rapid method of quick frying vegetables, |
| platter with dips. Wash 'em, chop 'em and eat 'em. | | | | meat (optional) and sauces in one pan to make a |
| Oh, yeah, you could also make a salad! | | | | meal. Primarily associated with Asian cooking. The |
| Steamed | | | | key to doing this well is preparation. All items to |
| Steaming heats the vegetable and softens it's | | | | be cooked should be chopped to a size that will |
| texture. It's gentler than boiling and allows the | | | | allow them to cook quickly in the wok. It is also |
| vegetable to maintain it's colour if not overdone. | | | | important that the wok is heated to a high, |
| Use a stainless steel steamer that will fit into | | | | consistent temperature throughout. Vegetables |
| most good size sauce pans. Make sure you use a | | | | maintain their colour and crispness with this sort |
| pan with a tight fitting lid. There should be enough | | | | of cooking (if not overdone). |
| water to just touch the bottom of the steamer. | | | | Baking |
| Water should be simmering the whole time the | | | | Brilliant! Especially for those 'root' vegetables like |
| vegetables are being cooked. | | | | potatoes, turnip, carrot and beetroot. Chop into |
| Boiling | | | | similar size pieces, brush lightly with olive oil and |
| Boiling vegetables is really going out of fashion, but | | | | put in a hot oven to roast. Size of the pieces will |
| it's a legitimate preparation method! The big | | | | determine the cooking time but expect at least |
| concern is loss of nutrients. All cooking methods | | | | 40 minutes. Outside is chewy, inside is moist and |
| result in the loss of some goodness from the | | | | fluffy. Dress with sour cream and chives. Yum! |
| vegetables. If boiling, try to find a way to use the | | | | Barbeque |
| water the vegetables have been boiled in (i.e. to | | | | Does anything scream summer like the word |
| make a gravy or sauce) to bring those nutrients | | | | barbeque? Love a barbeque. This is primarily open |
| back to the table. Vegetables should be barely | | | | flame cooking, so could apply to a campfire as |
| covered with water. Bring the water to a boil | | | | well. Cooking outside just changes everything |
| (covered) then slow to a simmer until vegetables | | | | about food. You'll need foil, fire and fresh veggies. |
| are tender. | | | | Grease your foil, chop your veggies and put the |
| Microwave | | | | closed packages on the grill. Be adventurous, it's |
| Very popular for vegetables as it retains colour, | | | | really hard to mess this up! |