Must Know Facts About Vegetables
Vegetables have been a part of us ever-since we have stepped on Earth. Being one of the first few items to be found by starving men in the early, these are till date our go to for a quick bite.
Vegans, vegetarians and even our meat lovers would agree that vegetables are surely a part of their diet somehow or the other. We drink them as juices and even use peels of a few as garnish and seasonings! We eat them raw, cooked, chilled, frozen, and in ever creative combinations with other food items reflecting every culture its own way.
However, we know too little for something we consume so often.
Cooked or Raw?
Veggies are generally low in calories and fat. To gain the most out of nature’s goodies, one needs to learn the right way to cook them.
It is a fact that certain vegetables when eaten raw will provide us with maximum benefits, however few of them can be as beneficial when cooked. Vegetables contain most of its nutrition in its skin and right beneath it. When peeled, we ought to deprive ourselves from all the goodness.
There is further attrition of the nutritional value while cooking where soluble vitamins are at great risk – especially when boiled. Therefore, opt for grilling, baking, sautéing the veggies instead of boiling to keep nutritive elements intact.
Is the vegetable ripe?
Choosing fruits and vegetables that are perfectly ripe can be a task. Especially for those that do not ripe once plucked. However, there are some tricks to turning those hard vegetables to soft ripe ones!
Avocados continue to ripen even after they’re picked. If you are stuck with an avocado which seems to be slightly stiff, keep it outside for a day and devour a fresh avocado toast the next morning. To avoid waiting, you can always learn tricks to pick the ripest of vegetables. Avocados with that brown color hinting beneath the green is the one that will mash into the creamiest guacamole.
Potatoes seem to look fine in every form. The disproportionate appearance makes it hard to differ from those that are ripe. However, a potato with green spots is surely not the best choice!
While carrots are loved crunchy, some can be too hard to chew that too with minimal taste. Therefore, to pick the right ones, go for that deep orange colored carrot — munch into the right amount of sweet!
Tomatoes are not the only “vegetables” that are actually fruits!
Tomatoes have been misunderstood as vegetables for as long as we can remember. Surprisingly, there are more such fruits that have been crawling under the vegetable section for quite a while. Eggplant, olives, peas, avocado, cucumber, pumpkin, capsicum and zucchini are amongst the list.
Although used in vegetarian recipes, these fruits have got us blindfolded. Despite these facts, they taste equally delicious! Vegetables are bulky and filling source of dietary fiber that carry a number of good qualities. They fight diseases such as cancer, stroke, cardiovascular diseases and other chronic ailments.
Have a portion everyday from Food Crowd’s vegetarian section. Organically produced vegetables are the way to a healthy and hearty life!