Today, more and more people strive to eat healthy foods. Healthy eating has become fashionable and there are undoubtedly only positive aspects to it. For those who have already matured the desire to eat healthy, as well as for those who consider cooking healthy food too complicated process and therefore disdains it, this article was written. In it, we will try to answer two basic questions: what is healthy food and what methods of preparing healthy food are there?

What is healthy eating?

With the help of a healthy diet, we ensure the growth and normal development of the body, contribute to its strengthening and prevent various diseases. Perfect food- This is a person's diet, taking into account the characteristics of his body, lifestyle, occupation. Right food becomes an indispensable weapon in the fight against metabolic diseases. By combining it with exercise, we reduce the risk of chronic diseases and physical disorders.

The main rules of preparation

There are many healthy ways to prepare food, and modern kitchen appliances makes cooking even simpler, while maintaining the value of the products. Before talking about cooking methods, let's first clarify what the basic concepts include. healthy cooking food:

• The first rule is that cooking can only be healthy when what you are going to cook from is healthy in itself... Food should be easily digestible and enriched with vital energy. The food must be fresh. Remember that 3-4 hours after cooking, any food loses its energy and is not able to benefit a person.
• Second important rule – it is the cleanliness of the kitchen and dishes... If you cook in mud, the food will become unhealthy. negative properties and even healthy foods will not be of any benefit to those who eat them.
• The mood for cooking should be good.... Feel as if it is not you who are preparing the food, but the pure energy that is flowing through you is doing it. Think only good things during this magical process. When cooking for someone, think about the person's well-being and mentally wish him happiness. Energy is extremely important. The taste of your dish will depend on it by 50%.

Cooking methods

Of all the cooking methods, of which there are quite a few - boiling in water, steaming, stewing, frying, baking, drying, drying, pickling, pickling, pickling, etc. - the most useful are boiling in water and steam, stewing, baking , drying, fermentation. The rest of the cooking methods have their drawbacks. For example, when frying, you have to use a lot of oil, as a result of which many favorite crispy crust forms on the product, but it is this crust that makes the dish harmful. When salting and pickling, a large amount of salt is used, the dangers of which have been written enough about. Fruits and berries are best stored in the freezer as they making jam requires a lot of sugar, which also does not benefit our body.

Let's take a look at some of the healthiest cooking methods:

Cooking on open fire

You don't need to use oil for this. This method is perfect for frying cutlets, thin slices of pork or fish, anything that has time to quickly fry. For dressing, you can use soy sauce or rice vinegar. The advantage of this method is quick cooking and the opportunity to get tasty and low-fat food.

Convection oven

Cooking method using hot air that circulates around food placed on the wire rack. with this method of cooking, food retains vitamins and nutrients, and, what is important, does not burn. The food turns out to be low-fat, because all fat released by food flows into a special section of the airfryer. When using an airfryer, it is important not to overexpose food - the darker the food, the more harmful it is. Most of all the airfryer is suitable for frying fatty meat and juicy vegetables (eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes).

Steam cooking

This is probably the healthiest way of cooking. When steamed, the food retains its nutritional value, vitamins and minerals. This method does not require fat at all. During the cooking process, hot steam covers all the ingredients. This technique is ideal for cooking fish, mushrooms, vegetables, minced meat, rice, puddings, soufflés, seafood dishes, eggs, potatoes. Steamed food is recommended for people with diseases of the digestive system, cardiovascular system, as well as those who want to lose weight. This food is also recommended for children, pregnant women and the elderly.

The advantage of a double boiler is also that the food in it does not dry out or burn. It can be used to reheat or defrost food.

The downside of the steamer is that not everyone loves the taste of such food. The dishes turn out to be less tasty, but rather lean in taste. To improve the taste of a dish, you can sprinkle it with soy sauce or lemon juice, and use aromatic herbs.

Boiling in water

One of the main culinary processes... The method of cooking food in boiling water is especially useful. The food becomes unusually tender, nourishes the water with its aroma and taste.

Wrapping

A method that combines steaming and baking. Good way cook chicken or fish. To do this, wrap the food in foil and bake it in the oven.

Juicers

For real cooking natural juice use juicers. Freshly squeezed juices contain many useful substances and vitamins, they are also distinguished by a high concentration of biologically active substances, which are quickly absorbed by the body and begin to actively participate in the metabolic process.

Cooking is not only an art but also a pleasure. When food is cooked well, it tastes better and looks more attractive. However, thermal processing of foods often leads to a decrease in their nutritional value. While we recommend eating as much raw food as possible (as long as it does not harm your health), we are aware that this is not for everyone. Hence it follows that it is necessary to find a balance between taste and nutritional value.

Cooking changes structure food products, contributing to their translation into a form better absorbed by the body. However, in some cases, cooking can change the properties of the product so much that it becomes a potential carcinogen. For example, overcooked oils are chemically disturbed, as a result of which they become harmful, in particular for the cardiovascular system (see chapter "Heart and blood circulation",).

Some ways culinary processing and cooking are the best at retaining the nutritional value and water content of foods. Vitamin C and all B vitamins are water-soluble and are easily destroyed by intense heat treatment.

Steam treatment

Steam cooking is one of the most effective ways preservation nutrients... Bring a small amount of water to a boil and place food (usually vegetables or fish) in a double boiler over boiling water. The food will be ready in just a few minutes. Dense vegetables like carrots and broccoli are steamed for about five minutes, while spinach can be cooked in just a minute. After steam processing, vegetables retain their shape, color, fibrous structure and do not lose nutritional value.

For cooking steam fish ten minutes is enough, and this method allows you to save not only the "good" fats for which fish are famous, but also water-soluble vitamins of group B. The fish can be steamed over boiling water, to which ginger is added, lemon juice or aromatic herbs is an excellent way to improve its taste.

Boiled food

Cooking food, especially vegetables, by boiling - The best way to deprive it of not only attractiveness, but also the lion's share of nutrients. It is said that if carrots are boiled for more than ten minutes, then most of the vitamin C goes into the water. Well, then it is more useful to drink this water, and throw away the carrots!

Remember how twice two: when cooking vegetables, about 40% of B vitamins and 70% of vitamin C are destroyed. more water in a saucepan, the greater the loss of vitamins. The situation is aggravated if the vegetables are cut into small pieces, since the surface of contact with water and thermal factor increases, and this leads to further loss of nutrients.

Cooking methods

In many countries, it is customary to add salt to the water when cooking vegetables. This is completely useless: the diet of most people is already oversaturated with salt. Salt not only disturbs the balance of sodium and water in the body, but also the normal rhythm of the heart muscle. All fruits and vegetables already contain sodium, and only need additional salt taste buds blunted excess consumption alcohol and sugar (see page 109 for more information on the effects of salt on heart muscle). So, if you are already cooking food, then try to do it faster and use as much as possible less water... It is healthier to steam food.

BOTH DEEP AND SURFACE ROASTING IMPROVES THE TASTE AND APPEARANCE OF THE FOOD, HOWEVER THE PRODUCT OBTAINED HAS POTENTIAL HARM.

fried food

Both deep and shallow frying enhances the flavor and appearance of food, but the resulting product is fraught with potential harm... Although the cooking process takes a short time, the excess temperature destroys nutrients and damages the heat-sensitive lipids found, for example, in oily fish and a bird. Cooking oils used for frying have a so-called "smoke point": the temperature at which the oil burns. Each type of oil is characterized by its own "smoke point" - at the highest temperature, extra-virgin olive oil burns.

Frying food creates a lot of free radicals. This is the name of the atoms that have a damaging effect on the body - they contribute to the occurrence of cancer, cardiovascular disease(see "arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis") and premature aging. The damaging effects of free radicals can be neutralized by consuming foods rich in antioxidants (see The Great Five). However, antioxidants are easily damaged by the high temperatures inherent in the frying process. Overcooked or even slightly burnt food is potentially carcinogenic. Even the smoke from fried food can be dangerous - cooks who often cook fried food are more at risk of lung cancer or laryngeal cancer than their counterparts. Both water-soluble (B and C) and fat-soluble (D, A, K and E) vitamins are lost in both types of frying. For example, when frying meat or chicken, the content of B vitamins is reduced by 30%.

Browning with stirring

Although toasting food while stirring in a wok * (* deep frying pan with two ear-shaped handles, commonly used in Chinese cuisine) is considered more in a healthy way cooking versus deep frying, however, it is also frying. With it, both the loss of nutrients and the chemical modification of fats are possible.

However, this method consumes much less oil, and the cooking process, thanks to the even distribution of the heat in the wok, is also significantly accelerated. In addition, constant mixing can significantly reduce harm.

When the oil in the wok has warmed up, add one tablespoon of water and one tablespoon to it soy sauce... This prevents the oil from burning and the resulting steam will help better cooking food. Better yet, steam the food a little, and then “bring” it to the desired condition in the wok.

Microwave cooking

At this way When cooking, the required temperature is created by the water molecules contained in the food, which, under the influence of radiation, begin to move. Waves bounce off the walls of the oven and penetrate the food. Nutritional properties vegetables remain very high, which is one of the advantages of this method. And yet, for their greater preservation, it is preferable to steam vegetables.

One of the main problems with this cooking method is the choice of food. The so-called "ready meals" intended for cooking in microwave oven contain harmful sugar, salt and often hydrogenated fats. In addition, microwave radiation makes these substances more susceptible to certain molecular changes, which can lead to the formation of harmful free radicals.

Stews and soups

Cooking food by stewing requires a long boil over low heat. With stews, casseroles and soups, along with cooked foods, we also consume the liquid in which the food is prepared, which contains valuable nutrients that have passed into the water.

The advantage of stew is slow cooking, at temperatures below boiling point. It follows from this that the process of destruction of vitamins and inorganic substances, which accelerates with increasing temperature, is much slower. In addition, they are better absorbed protein foods, since when stewing, the fibers degenerate and are digested more easily.

Some fruits, during the stewing process, even acquire beneficial features... For example, in prunes this cooking method releases enzymes. Stews increase their natural sweetness and are best consumed with a little unsweetened bioyogurt.

Other cooking methods

Baking

Cooking meat, poultry and vegetables in various ovens and braziers has long been widely used in Western countries, and has not lost its popularity until now. At the same time, if the oven is not too overheated, the fat content of the food remains at its original level. However, burning fats acquire potential carcinogenic properties... A toasty crust is formed mainly due to carbohydrates, which undergo changes due to high temperatures.

When baking food in the oven, there is an inevitable loss of some water-soluble vitamins, in particular, vitamin C and complex B. As a rule, the content of B vitamins decreases by 25%, however, as the temperature rises, the process of destruction of vitamins is aggravated.

Grill

In the summer, many people like to grill kebabs or cook food on a metal grate over coals. Usually, meat and fish are fried in this way. Most people prefer to let the food burn slightly outside. However, it should be remembered that burnt food is potentially carcinogenic - by direct contact with the walls of the throat and the digestive tract, cells can be damaged, resulting in the accumulation of free radicals.

To reduce the harm from grilled food, try to keep the temperature of the coals as high as possible. They should be red-hot, but in no case should they glow. Do not fry meat on direct fire, especially when using various kindling sources - this can form various chemicals that are hazardous to health in the crust. Due to the very high frying temperature, grilled food is often overcooked on the outside but damp on the inside. To avoid this, we recommend that you first bake the meat or fish a little in the oven, and only then grill it.

Raw food

V raw foods the content of beneficial nutrients is maximized. Of course, we do not suggest that you eat raw meat or gnaw grains of cereals, however fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds must be eaten every day. Raw foods contain their own digestive enzymes, thereby reducing the stress on the pancreas. Raw foods are high in fiber, which helps eliminate toxins and excess cholesterol from the body.

If you are used to eating " finished products", Then we urge you to spare no time and pay more attention to healthy eating... On page 130 ff, you will find recipes for delicious and healthy meals. Most of them take very little time to cook - a matter of minutes - but the benefits cannot be overestimated.

Soaking food to be grilled in olive oil (rich in vitamin E) slightly protects against the damaging effects of free radicals generated.

Most foods need to be cooked to improve flavor and digestibility, and the choice of processing depends on your intentions. Heat treatment gives the products a pleasant taste, texture and appearance; its duration is determined by your idea of ​​the optimal taste of the dish you intend to receive.

Let's take a closer look at the basic methods of preparing food.

Cooking.

Cooking is one of the most common heat treatment methods; involves heating a product in a liquid or by means of water vapor. The cooking time depends on the temperature of the heating medium and the properties of the product. The higher the cooking temperature, the faster product comes to readiness. You can cook food in liquid in open and closed containers; cooking in an open container takes place at a temperature of 98 to 100 0 С, and in a hermetically sealed - at temperatures above 110 0 С.

Cooking in the main way. The product is completely immersed in the liquid and must remain covered during the entire cooking process; with prolonged cooking, excessive evaporation occurs, in which case you just need to add hot liquid, otherwise some part of the product may be uncooked or dried out.

When cooking most products, it is necessary to remove the resulting foam (and fat) from the surface of the liquid, both during the first boil and throughout the entire cooking process. The foam should be removed from the surface of the liquid with a spoon, and not with a slotted spoon, since the slotted spoon removes foam less thoroughly. If foam forms on the sides of the pot, remove it with a soft, damp cloth. If this is not done in a timely manner, then the liquid in which the product is cooked and, consequently, the dish being prepared, will be spoiled. If you are going to add various vegetables, seasonings, spices and herbs to the boiled product, then put them in the pan after the first removal of the foam, otherwise a dirty coating will stick to them.

The intensity of the boil during cooking depends on the quality and density of the product. For example, tender meats or poultry are cooked over low heat, with a low boil. But tough meats should be cooked with a more intense boil, but in no case boiling - this only leads to uneven cooking, and the surface of the product bursts and becomes fibrous; in extreme situations, your meat may just fall apart.

To preserve the taste of fresh meat or poultry, they are placed in boiling water, this helps to "seal" the surface of the product and preserve its taste inside. But only if you don't boil the broth! As you remember, when boiling broths, we need to extract the maximum flavor and extractive substances from bones and meat, so we fill the broth products with cold water.

Root vegetables and cereals are usually placed in cold water for cooking. The pasta is dipped in boiling water with the addition of olive oil so that they do not stick together. And if you are going to boil green vegetables, then they should be placed in boiling salted water immediately after it boils and then brought to a boil again as quickly as possible; this will help keep them green color and will reduce the loss of valuable vitamins.

But the term "boiled" as applied to fish is wrong! The fish is never boiled, as the movement of the boiling liquid destroys its delicate flesh. The fish should be cooked by steaming or simmering.

Do not forget that the time required for cooking the product must be controlled in order to stop the process in time when the product is ready. If this moment is missed, then the product will be overcooked, may burst and even fall apart.

Steaming Is the method heat treatment product when it is heated by the steam generated from the boiling liquid under pressure. At home, we use modern steamers for steam cooking or a deep container with holes, which we place in a saucepan with boiling liquid (avoiding contact with it) and cover with a lid. In this case, the steam pressure rises only at the edges of our home steamer, but this is enough for most dishes. The advantage of this method of heat treatment is to preserve the beneficial qualities of the products, and the disadvantages include the inability to preserve the juices released during cooking, as well as possible changes in the taste and aroma of the prepared dish. When steaming, herbs, spices, and other seasonings can be added to the boiling liquid to flavor the resulting steam.

You can steam fish, meat, poultry, vegetables, and even puddings (just remember to cover the puddings with plastic wrap to avoid contact with condensation).

Water bath indirectly refers to cooking, but this method of heat treatment is indispensable when it comes to making sauces or creams, which include whole eggs or egg yolks, or if you need to melt chocolate or soaked gelatin. Water bath arrange as follows: fill a large container with water, bring it to a low boil, install a smaller container on top (without holes), which contains the ingredients necessary for cooking in a water bath. Do not cover the container with a lid. The heat treatment temperature is not higher than 90 0 С and can be adjusted downward in accordance with your requirements for a water bath.

Lowering (stitching).

This cooking method is closely related to cooking. The product is processed in a liquid that is kept as close to the boiling point as possible, but without discernible movement in it. As a rule, the temperature during pooping is kept around 93-95 0 C. Water, broth, broth, wine, milk (pure or in diluted form) or the processed product's own juice can be used as a liquid for priming the main product. The choice of broth for a particular product is determined by the conditions of the recipe or the degree of compatibility.

Stitching most suitable for delicate products for which long-term aggressive heat treatment... This method is widely used for cooking fish, poultry, game, some types of giblets, eggs, fruits, dumplings, soufflés, dumplings.

There are 2 close types of allowances:

• TO When the product is completely immersed in liquid and the cooking process is identical to cooking, but takes place at lower temperatures and without liquid movement. For this type of simmering, choose the most delicate foods, and use broth or some aromatic broth as a liquid. This will add flavor that may be lacking in the product itself.
• When "shallow letting" is made of small pieces of fish, meat, poultry or game that are denser in texture. With this method, the product is placed on a greased butter frying pan, covered with oiled paper or a tight lid to avoid drying out and discoloration of its surface and put in a moderately preheated oven (about 190 0 C), where it is allowed to own juice until ready. The resulting simmering liquid can be used as an accompanying sauce for the finished dish.

Frying.

This type of main heat treatment of products with direct contact with fat or without fat at a temperature that ensures the formation of a specific crust on their surface.

There are such types of frying products:

• small frying;
• deep frying;
• stir frying;
• roasting in the oven;
• poeing;
• milling;
• roasting on the open m on fire.

I will tell you in detail each of the methods of frying food.

Shallow roasting. Shallow frying means frying in a pan in a small amount of fat at a temperature from 140 0 С to 150 0 С. vegetable oil or pure animal fat. Shallow frying is an excellent way to cook premium cuts of meat, poultry, game, fish fillets, small and medium whole fish, eggs, some ready-made semi-finished products (cutlets, sausages), as well as root vegetables and vegetables. This cooking method is often used as one of the stages in the preparation of various dishes.

If you are going to fry large enough foods in this way, it is better to use a shallow wide skillet or a deep-bottomed saucepan. A heavy, deep wok with curled edges is more suitable for products that are quick stir fry.

When frying with low fat, it is important to keep the following points in mind:

• the fat must be hot enough to quickly seal and brown the outer surface of the pieces of food to be fried;
• the size of the pan should be selected taking into account the upcoming volume of food: the bottom of the pan should be practically covered with fried pieces. Open areas of fat quickly overheat, begin to burn and smoke, this will inevitably lead to spoilage of the product that you are frying.if necessary, if the pieces to be fried are thick, the heating of the pan should be reduced or set aside so that the products are fried more slowly until cooked and at the same time do not burn outside and do not remain moist inside;
• small pieces need to be fried at a constantly high temperature, while turning often and quickly;
• sediment and juices left in the pan after frying products (not deboned in breading) are recommended to be used for cooking an accompanimentwaiting sauces for the finished dish.

Deep frying. In this method of frying, the food is exposed to temperature, being completely immersed in fat. We know this method as the deep-frying method. The roasting temperature ranges from 160 0 С to 195 0 С (depending on the type of fried product, its size and thickness of the pieces), the process goes very quickly due to the penetration of heat from all sides at the same time. Fat for deep fat should be taken 4-6 times more than a portion of the product immersed in it at a time.

Better varieties of meat, poultry, some types of fish, vegetables (including potatoes), some fruits, ready-made semi-finished products and dough products are suitable for deep frying. Some foods are first sprinkled with seasoning, flour, egg, or breadcrumbs before being deep-fried. Deep frying fat must be hot enough to instantly seal the outside of the food. Otherwise, the fat will be absorbed into the food, and the juices from it will seep into the deep fat. All products that were fried in a large number fat, before serving, they need to be thoroughly dried on a well-absorbent material (paper kitchen towels are excellent for this purpose).

Because the temperature of the boiling fat is very high, use extreme caution when working with deep fat fryers!

Stir fry– asian way frying food. We know him as a stir-fry ( English - stir-fry). Frying is done quickly, at high temperature and stirring continuously. For this method of frying, a special wok pan is used, which, due to its shape, heats up all during frying and requires little oil for frying. First heat the wok pan without oil, pour it later; as a result, the surface of the pan is hotter than the oil and the food does not stick to the surface of the pan.

Meat, poultry, seafood, vegetables and some types of noodles are great for frying with this method. Products for stir frying should be cut into small pieces and placed in the wok at intervals, depending on their hardness and density. In no case should the pan be overloaded with food, otherwise they will be stewed and not fried. Stir-roasted dishes must be cooked just before serving to maintain their crisp texture and health benefits.

Roasting in the oven means heat treatment of the product under the influence of uniform dry heat and takes place at a temperature from 150 0 С to 290 0 С. It is great if your oven has a combined heating and grill levels. It is necessary to ensure an even distribution of heat; for this, pieces of the product are placed over the baking sheet so that they do not come into contact with it (for example, on a heat-resistant grid or a spit). This method is suitable for roasting prime cuts of meat, poultry or game; less often - some types of fish and vegetables. The main condition for the suitability of any piece of meat for roasting in the oven is that it should be covered with a thick layer of fat, and there should be some of it inside the piece. If the piece of meat that you have chosen for roasting in the oven is low-fat, then it must be stuffed with pieces of bacon and covered with strips of fat on top to protect the meat from unnecessary drying out. Vegetables should be greased with vegetable oil or sealed in an omentum (a thin fold of fat that encloses the peritoneum of a meat carcass). The meat should be placed in a well-heated oven and during cooking it should be regularly watered with the juice and fat generated from frying. But if, when frying in the oven, you cover meat or poultry, or wrap it in foil, then you will not achieve the necessary qualities of the roast and gravy, and the surface of the products will not acquire the required color and crust. Take care of good ventilation of the oven and room when using this roasting method - without adequate ventilation, the smoke from burning fat will ruin not only the product, but also your mood.

Poeing Is a method of roasting in the oven, when the product is placed in a pan (or baking sheet) greased with natural fat, butter or vegetable oil. The pan is covered with a lid to preserve the juices and aromas of the product and add seasonings, vegetable or herbal roots to the stir-fry. But no liquid is added to the fried product, otherwise the frying process will become more like milling (frying in liquid). However, when poeling, it is allowed to add a small amount of fortified wine to the roast in the subsequent stages of preparation. Suitable for such frying tender pieces meat, poultry, game, some offal.

In general, the roasting process should take place at a slightly higher temperature than open roasting of the same pieces. The process must be accompanied by watering the resulting fats and juices, this will give the product the desired color and glaze. If you fry large pieces meat, then at the end of cooking, the lid can be removed from the pan so that a beautiful crust forms on the product.

Milling - the method of roasting in the oven, when the product is immersed in a container with liquid (should not be confused with stewing, when the product is cooked in a small amount of slightly boiling liquid). Milling takes a long time, this method is suitable for tough pieces of meat or poultry; can also be milled hard varieties fish and some types of dense vegetables.

For meat and poultry, the process usually begins with pre-frying the product in a pan to seal the surface and add flavor. Then pieces of the prepared product are laid out on a layer of roots and herbs (if the recipe suggests them) and poured with liquid. Broths, wines, marinades, sauces, or combinations thereof are used as liquids. The fish is not previously sealed in a frying pan, and it is recommended to use broths or wine as a liquid, not sauces.

The shearing fluid should never cover the entire food, ⅔ of its volume is sufficient. The heat treatment itself should take place slowly and evenly, the pieces can sometimes be turned over and poured over with the liquid in which they are cut. The size of the crockery should be such that it can freely accommodate the food and liquid. To prevent unwanted evaporation, the container is covered with a tight lid. The liquid remaining after milling must be used as a sauce for the finished dish.

Roasting over an open fire a very popular cooking method. The product is processed with heat directed to the product from below, and its source can be coal or wood. The fuel used for roasting over an open fire should be selected so that it has a beneficial effect on the taste of the food to be roasted. When choosing a product for roasting over an open fire, take into account its texture so that it does not fall apart during heat treatment. You can fry food over fire on a spit, wire rack or skewers; if you are frying on a wire rack, do not forget to grease it with oil and heat it over heat. If necessary, regularly grease the food to be fried with the vegetable oil, fat or marinade in which it was cooked. It is advisable to move the product with spatulas, and in no case pierce it with a knife or fork, otherwise all the juice will flow out of them.

Quenching. In this cooking method, the food is exposed to heat by being placed in minimal amount liquid or sauce. After stewing, the product and the liquid in which it was stewed are served together. In many cases, the food itself is sufficient to make the gravy thick, but sometimes the liquid can be refilled.

You can stew the dish both on the surface of the stove and in the oven. The extinguishing temperature is chosen appropriately for the volume of the product and the time required for its preparation.

It is very important to choose the proportion of liquid and main product for extinguishing. The stew dish should not be too large, but comfortable enough to hold all the ingredients. The dishes in which the dish is stewed are closed with a tight-fitting lid - this minimizes evaporation of the liquid and makes richer taste and the aroma of the product.

Braising is suitable for slow cooking of tough meat or poultry, which must first be cut into small pieces. Fish inexpensive varieties or coarse, it is also recommended to stew with the addition of a fragrant liquid. But vegetables are best stewed on their own; they usually give off enough juices and do not dry out or burn, especially if the stew dish is covered with a tight-fitting lid and is in the oven.

Baking (baking)- the last of the main methods of cooking. During baking, the product is exposed to convection dry heat in the oven. The degree of dryness of the heat can change due to the steam rising from the food being cooked during the baking process; in some cases, especially when baking special varieties bread, steam is specially added to achieve better result... The baking temperature is selected in accordance with the recipe for cooking the dish and its volume.

Baking is most often used for the preparation of flour and pastries, a variety of casseroles and pasta dishes (such as lasagna). A household kitchen oven is fine for regular baking, but should be monitored carefully. The temperature in a household oven is difficult to keep under precise control because different parts oven, there is a big difference in heating.

That's all there is to it about the basic cooking methods. I hope this article will be useful to you, despite the fact that it turned out to be quite lengthy; well, that's what it is about theory, everything is based on it!

I wish you success in mastering the basic cooking methods. In all recipes, we will definitely use these methods or their combinations.

I will also be glad to receive feedback on your cooking experience based on the materials of my article.

From the point of view of dietary, medical nutrition, boiling is one of best practices cooking. And yet ... he's not unambiguously good! And the point is not only that, say, fish with this method often falls apart, and vegetables become watery, lose crunchiness, rich color and taste.

“The cooked food is perfectly digestible,” says Ekaterina Belova, nutritionist, chief physician of the Center for Personal Dietetics “Nutrition Palette”. - This means that you will get the maximum calories with them. For a long time and carefully, draining the first broth, boil the meat - right. Firstly, extractive substances that irritate the gastric mucosa will go into the water. Secondly, as a result of this heat treatment, the bonds between amino acids are destroyed, and it becomes easier for the body to disassemble the protein into its constituent “building blocks” and take everything it needs from it.

But pasta, on the contrary, it is better to cook until aldente, vegetables until crisp, and not turn cereals into gruel: then they will be digested longer, providing a feeling of satiety. "

There is one more important point... During boiling, the broth will transfer soluble vitamins, in particular group B, which are found in many cereals. From this point of view, cereals are best cooked the traditional way, allowing them to swell in a small amount of water, so that later the broth is not drained.

Cooking method: baking

Ideal for large, dense foods and busy housewives: put chicken, coarsely chopped vegetables or casserole in the oven and you can forget about them for a while.

Meat or poultry can be baked on a wire shelf with a drip tray to make the product more dietary. You can simmer the dish for a long time under the lid at a low temperature. “This method of cooking is akin to what our great-grandmothers used when they sent a pot of porridge into the stove overnight,” says Ekaterina Belova. "I would call him the healthiest."

At the same time, baking increases glycemic index(GI) products. The most obvious example is potatoes: boiled GI - 70, baked - 95. And this is not surprising: with this method of cooking, it turns almost into a puree, is very easy to digest and quickly raises blood sugar levels.

If, when baking, you hide the dish not under the foil or lid, but in a special sleeve, clearly follow the instructions on the material label. “A sleeve is a film, plastic,” recalls Ekaterina Belova. - If the temperature is too high for it, this material can give into food harmful substances... If the packaging says "up to 180 ° C", do not heat the oven any more. "

Cooking method: steamed

This cooking method has obvious disadvantages and undeniable advantages. The food turns out to be juicy, non-nutritious (we cook without oil), healthy (vitamins and trace elements are well preserved), it does not burn. But not everyone likes the steamed one. And not all. Steamed soufflés, fish (besides, it will not fall apart), vegetables turn out very tasty - their color will also remain saturated. But it is risky to make large, dense pieces of meat or vegetables in this way - they will not be steamed evenly. In the case of meat, this is also dangerous for health.

Cooking method: grilled

By the way, food also burns in the grill pan, due to this, an appetizing mesh is formed on the surface of the pieces. " But the sticking surface is generally very small.

Cooking method: frying

The traditional view is cooking in a frying pan in oil. And in this case, this processing method is really not good. “And it's not just that fried meat, potatoes and other vegetables absorb oil, and you get an additional portion of fat with such a dish,” says Ekaterina Belova. - In the process of strong heating, the oil begins to smoke, the food burns, and carcinogenic substances hazardous to health are formed in it. When you cook for a large company and fry in one portion of butter piece by piece, cutlet after cutlet, the poisonous effect also accumulates. And vegetable oil changes its structure and turns into almost hydrogenated margarine, which can raise the level of bad cholesterol in the body. "

But you can fry in another way! For example, simply sprinkle meat or vegetables in a hot skillet. Cook something (say an omelet) in water, covered. Better yet, in a wok. This frying pan has steep walls that cause food to slide down all the time, to the area of ​​maximum heat. Products for such frying (it is called stir-fry) are cut into small pieces, they quickly set, covered with a crust, which helps to preserve useful substances. Stir-fry oil is traditionally taken quite a lot, about a tablespoon per serving. But you can cook almost without it. And if you do decide to use it, take refined one. “Of course, there are no useful substances in it,” comments Ekaterina Belova. “But it won't smoke at high temperatures either, which means it won't add anything harmful.”

Cooking method: stewing

We slightly sprinkled the product in a hot frying pan, transferred it to a saucepan, added a little water and simmer over low heat. Stewing - whether you choose this cooking method for meat, poultry or vegetables - has some advantages. On the one hand, you cook without oil (and even if you add a little, it's okay). On the other hand, as a result of steaming, the product is covered appetizing crust, which retains useful substances inside it. "The stew is perfectly digestible," says Ekaterina Belova. "And vegetables retain fiber, potassium, vitamins B and A. Only vitamin C will die, but it is capricious and will collapse during any heat treatment."

The methods of culinary processing of products can be divided into several groups.

By stages of preparation:
preliminary
basic
final

By way of exposure:
thermal
mechanical
chemical

In turn, in each of the groups, appropriate subgroups can be distinguished, in which related processing methods should be combined, aimed at achieving any similar result, for example, beating and carbating, included in mechanical processing methods, serve to soften the product in the pre-processing stage. One and the same processing technique can be in one or another group: for example, singeing (a type of heat treatment) is included in the pretreatment stage, and vice versa, flaming, performed on final stage cooking, is also included in the group of thermal processing of products. Separately, it is worth dwelling on the chemical method of processing. It includes those processing methods that are wholly or predominantly based on chemical and biological processes, such as salting or pickling. This observation must be made because chemical reactions also occur with thermal cooking methods. In addition, some cooking methods are complex, for example, beating over a fire (mechanical and thermal). It should also be noted that some types of culinary processing of products can be both basic and preliminary, it all depends on what is obtained at the end of the operation. For example, pickling can be a preliminary operation (marinating a kebab), and a main operation (pickling mushrooms), which results in a ready-to-eat product.

You can also divide into main and auxiliary operations.

By stages of preparation

Preliminary processing
Food pre-processing is a very important step that is often overlooked. This stage is recognized as especially important in Japanese cuisine and Chinese cuisine. In a general way almost all products require washing. Also, almost all food can be crushed. If we take certain types products, then in preprocessing, in particular, includes:
for meat: removal of fasciae, tendons, cutting of brands, beating, carbating, breading, pickling
for fish: gutting, cleaning, cutting fins, removing bones, gills, stuffing.
for poultry: singing, gutting, removing skin, joints
for fruits and vegetables: cleaning, removal of seeds, eyes.
for cereals: rinsing, sorting, soaking.
for flour: sifting, drying.

Basic processing
Basic processing is that stage of product processing, after which the product becomes an independent dish ready to eat. The end of the main processing of the product should be considered the end of the preparation of the intended dish. So, for example, if the result of cooking should be mashed potatoes, then obtaining unmilled boiled potatoes, despite the fact that they are edible, cannot be considered the end of the main processing. Since all basic treatment methods can be identified by the method of exposure, see below.

Final processing
The final processing of a product can serve different purposes. These include:
improving palatability, imparting flavors, so-called. "Bringing to taste" - adding spices, sauces, flambying
improving the appearance of the product - decoration, flaming, applying glaze
portioning
elimination of the identified drawbacks of the dish
removal of bones and auxiliary materials (threads, hairpins, panadas).

By way of exposure

Types of machining
soaking: immersing the product in water or some kind of solution, usually with the aim of swelling the product and further shortening the cooking time (beans, cereals). However, it can also be used for other purposes, for example, to peel chickpeas (lamb peas) or neutralize unpleasant odors (soaking potatoes in a baking soda solution

Kneading: not so much the process of mixing the components as such, so much getting a product with new properties: kneading dough, sourdough, etc.
grinding, including using mechanical devices. Grinding, in addition to cutting with a knife itself, should include the preparation of minced meat and mashed potatoes

Carbovanie - applying shallow cuts on the surface of a piece of meat in order to soften.

Liirovanie - thickening of the product (dish). Can be produced with flour, eggs and other foods.

Drying - used for products intended for frying, as well as after washing and before peeling vegetables and fruits

Clarification (pulling) - clarification of the broth in order to give it a pleasant color. As a rule, it is produced by using an egg and meat draft.

Straining - removing excess moisture from the product. For example, straining cottage cheese

Beating - beating, as a rule, meat or poultry, with a wooden smooth or metal hammer. It is used to soften the product or even to obtain a meat souffle mass (kololaki)

Breading - application to the surface of the product edible cover(Panada), which helps to retain moisture in the dish. It can be different, ranging from crackers to flour.

Evisceration - removal of entrails from fish, poultry, animals

Sifting - flour, in order to give a uniform structure and remove impurities.

Straining is the reverse process of straining, used to remove unwanted solids from a liquid.

Rolling out - for dough

Filling is the introduction of small particles of another product into the product. As a rule, this is the introduction of fat (spig) with a scaling needle inside lean meat... The type of stuffing can be attributed to the introduction of liquids into the product through a syringe.

Heat treatment types
blanching - short-term scalding, or extremely short (1 minute) cooking of the product. It is used for fast cooking products, for easier peeling of the product from the skin, for canning and, finally, for the destruction of harmful bacteria.

Boiling (cooking) is one of the most common types of heat treatment. It consists in the fact that the product is completely immersed in hot (boiling) water (or other liquid).

Drying - drying the product at a low (natural) temperature, for quite a long time.

Grating is the coating of a product while cooking with another product. The latter melts during heat treatment and creates a crust. Typical example- grating with cheese. Examples of egg cooking are ice or brizol.

Frying (frying) is another of the most common types of heat treatment. During frying, the product adheres to the dishes, on which there is a thin layer of hot fat. It is also necessary to distinguish deep-fat frying (the product is completely immersed in fat) and oil vapor, when the product is cooked due to the oil cloud formed around the product in the oven.

Freezing - used for making ice cream and slices, as well as for long-term storage products. You can also highlight the need to use this technique for making dumplings

Baking - heat treatment of a product in an oven, oven, where the same temperature is created on all sides of the product. Also, baking in ash should be highlighted - one of the most ancient methods of cooking.

Coloring - giving the finished (usually baked) product a beautiful color.

Smoking is the preparation of a product using hot (warm) smoke. Distinguish between hot and cold smoking.

Frying is one type of frying, as a rule, an auxiliary procedure aimed at creating a crust on the product.

Roasting (grilling) - one of the most ancient culinary techniques, consists in processing the product with open fire until cooked. Shish kebab, for example, is not baked or fried, but is fired.

Singing is the removal of feathers on a bird.

Cooling - used for making jellied meat, creams, jellies. Very slow cooling, as a culinary technique, is used to prepare daily cabbage soup.

Baking - heat treatment of a product in a dish without fat or with the smallest amount of it. A typical example is pancakes. This culinary technique should not be confused with baking. Strictly speaking, pies are not baked in the oven, but baked.

Sauteing is a method of processing, which consists in boiling vegetables and (or) flour over moderate heat, in a small amount of water, in order to completely soften the product.

Poaching - cooking eggs without direct contact with the dishes

Putting on - a short stewing or boiling in a small amount of liquid.

Calcining - mandatory step preparing oil for frying. As a result, the oil is purified from harmful impurities, brightens and burns less.

Yarn - frying in a large amount of oil (the product is semi-submerged) in a heavy dish.

Dissolving - first, dissolving solid fat(butter), that is, bringing it to a liquid state, sugar to syrup, etc. Secondly, opening finely chopped onions and even scales small fish in the broth, as a result of which the onion or scales completely dissolve.

Drying - drying of food, usually when more high temperatures than natural.

Simmering - as a type of very long, slow stewing at relatively low temperatures or with slow cooling. Also, the term is used for slow cooling already ready meal.

Braising is a medium procedure between roasting and boiling. In contrast to these methods, heat treatment is always carried out under a lid, in the presence of water (other liquid) and fat. Braising is always a continuation of the roasting or boiling procedure.

Flambing is the ignition of alcoholic beverages on the surface of a finished dish. It is used both as a procedure that improves the taste of a dish, and as a procedure through which a beautiful external effect is achieved. (the dish is served burning).

Types of chemical treatment
gelling: the introduction of gelling agents into the liquid, such as gelatin or agar-agar. It is used to obtain jellied, jelly, etc.

Candying - sprinkling sugar on fruits, berries

Pickling is a canning procedure, according to the amount of used table salt medium, between salting and peeing. Fermented foods are especially rich in vitamins and beneficial bacteria (salts from 4 to 8%)

Marinating is a canning procedure in which a dish is preserved by storing it in an acidic environment. In addition, pickling is a preliminary procedure for soaking a product in an acidic environment in order to improve its taste and soften fabrics. There is also dry pickling.

Soaking is a canning procedure in which, with the same cooking principle with pickling and pickling, the least amount of salt is used and sugar is added (salt 2.5-3%)

Salting is a canning procedure in which a dish is preserved by being in a salty environment. (salt from 8 to 30%), while salting must be distinguished as preparing a new dish ( salted cucumbers) or as a means of preserving the product (corned beef, labardan).