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 right, as well as for those who consider cooking healthy food too difficult and therefore disdain it, this article has been 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. The 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 of healthy food preparation include:

• 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 do any good 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 it is the pure energy that is flowing through you. 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, salting, 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 food 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 preparation and the ability to get tasty and low-fat food.

Convection oven

Cooking method using hot air that circulates around the food placed on the wire shelf. with this method of cooking, food retains vitamins and nutrients, and, what is important, does not burn. The food is 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, of cardio-vascular 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. but heat treatment products often lead to a decrease in their nutritional value. Although we recommend eating as much raw food as possible (as long as it is healthy), 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 the 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 are 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 are an excellent way to improve her taste.

Boiled food

Cooking food, especially vegetables, by boiling is the best way to deprive it not only of its attractiveness, but also of the lion's share of its 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 two times two: when cooking vegetables, about 40% of B vitamins and 70% of vitamin C are destroyed. The more water in the pan, 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 disturbs not only 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 the taste buds, dull, need additional salt 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 ROAST IMPROVES THE TASTE AND APPEARANCE OF THE FOOD, HOWEVER THE PRODUCT IS POTENTIAL HAZARD.

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 thermosensitive 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" - with the most high temperature burns out olive oil"Extra-virgin".

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 food that is fried can be dangerous - chefs 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 while stirring

Although toasting food while stirring in a wok * (* deep frying pan with two ear-shaped handles, usually eaten in chinese cuisine) is considered a healthier cooking method than 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 will prevent the oil from burning and the resulting steam will help you cook better. 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. The nutritional properties of vegetables remain very high, which is one of the advantages of this method. And yet, for their greater safety, it is preferable to steam vegetables.

One of the main problems with this cooking method is the choice of food. 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 simmering requires prolonged simmering. In 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 the 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 even acquire useful properties during the stewing process. 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 to this day. 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 have 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 - direct contact with the walls of the throat and the digestive tract can damage cells, 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 advise you to 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 few 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 the free radicals generated.

Healthy eating is fashionable and very healthy. Find out what are the healthiest cooking methods.

After people began to massively consume semi-finished products and get involved in fast food, doctors seriously started talking about the need healthy eating. The American Heart Society recommends throw out the frying pan, and completely eliminate fried foods from your diet. This is not only a high-calorie food, but it is also dangerous food, as it contains a large amount of trans fats and carcinogens.

Fish broth with root vegetables and leeks

Boiling

This is the simplest and affordable way cooking. Boiled vegetables, meat and fish well absorbed by the body. In addition, when cooking is not necessary in the application of oil, which makes the food less high-calorie.

When cooking meat or fish, the first broth must be poured, since it will contain the maximum amount of toxic and harmful substances that may be contained in such products.

Vegetables are recommended to be cooked in a minimum amount of water and with the lid closed. to keep more vitamins and minerals in them. It is advisable to cook vegetables until half cooked. This will preserve their nutritional value and will not increase them.

Steamed vegetables

Steam cooking

Steam cooking keeps maximum nutrients in meat and fish. This makes the products juicy and low in calories, since you don't need to use oil. The only drawback of this preparation is the bland taste of the food. However, you can easily deal with this by adding a little lemon juice, garlic, and herbs to your food.

Grilled steaks with citrus dressing and corn salad

Grilling

Grilling food, as in the previous cases, does not contain oil, and the maximum of useful components is preserved in it. However, the quality of such food will directly depend on the type of grill on which the cooking is carried out. Nutritionists prefer electric and air grills, since in this case there is no need to use a liquid for ignition, which emits harmful vapors and hazardous chemical compositions.

Keep in mind that cooking meat over an open fire is dangerous enough as it may not be cooked through and you run the risk of contracting an infectious disease.

Questions From Readers

18 October 2013, 17:25 My name is Ekaterina (female) Activity level light yoga 3 times a week 1 hour. Weight 60 Height 162 I do not eat anything sweet, I like baked, boiled, fried. I had heartburn from frequent drinking of kefir. The ideal weight is 53, I used to eat everything until the doctors prescribed hormonal ones, because of which my weight became 67, I stopped drinking hormonal ones and dropped to 60. My desires: there is everything, but to reduce the weight to 53kg. Stay at this weight all the time. What do I need to do for this, and help me create a diet for each day.

Baked chicken with vegetables

Baking

Baking is one of the easiest and healthiest types of cooking. Baking does not require much attention: you can put meat and vegetables in the oven, set desired temperature, timer, and go go about your business.

Losing weight should understand that for them baking is not the best way cooking. For example, meat (even lean meat) contains a large amount of hidden fat, which is released during this cooking method.

It is best to bake root vegetables. In the oven, they retain their entire structure. And the sugars contained in the caramelize, which will give the dish a good taste. Just do not use a roasting sleeve. The plastic from which it is made releases toxic products at high temperatures. Foil is considered safer.

Homemade dumplings in a dry frying pan

Dry frying in a skillet

Teflon pans make it possible to fry food without oil. However, as it turned out, such dishes can be hazardous to health. So, over time, Teflon breaks down, releasing carcinogenic substances. Moreover, the more scratches on the frying pan, the more harmful substances will penetrate into the food during cooking.

Bamboo steamer

How to cook in a bamboo steamer and why is a bamboo steamer so good?

if you love asian cuisine, a bamboo steamer is a must for you. Loose rice that has retained not only the structure of each grain, but also the aroma of real rice dish, airy Thai dumplings from thin dough, steamed vegetables with spicy sauce - all this is perfectly cooked in a bamboo Chinese steamer.

The bamboo steamer is the most sustainable steamer. Cooking in a bamboo steamer is very simple: pour water into a large saucepan or small saucepan, bring it to a boil, and place the bamboo steamer on top. Cover and cook the vegetables for 8 minutes. Scatter radishes, broccolini, and carrots around and steam until tender, about 5 minutes.

Pour in lemon juice, miso, garlic, ginger, honey and Sesame oil in a small bowl. Whisk constantly and add olive oil gradually. Whisk. You will succeed excellent seasoning for steamed vegetables.

It has long been known that both quality and taste features, and the benefits of food depend on the cooking technology. If speak about culinary masterpieces, then from the hands of the master, of course. However, the need to eat every day for people of other professions forces them to independently choose products, recipes and methods of preparation.

When preparing the same product in different ways, not only the taste, but also its properties can change.

In order to figure out which method is more useful and at the same time does not take away the taste of the product, you need to consider each type of preparation. There are four main types that we use on a daily basis: frying, boiling, stewing and baking.

Frying. Fried foods are considered one of the most harmful, because they contain the largest amount of fat. Keeping it to a minimum - perhaps removing it altogether - is problematic. Naturally fried meat contains very little wholesome. Fried foods have their own flavor characteristics, some people cannot refuse fried potatoes crispy, but between daily fried foods and sometimes favorite foods, there is a big difference... And it's not just about beautiful figure but also about health.

Cooking. When cooking products, the taste of the products is correspondingly completely different. However, do not forget that, for example, when cooking meat, oil is added to its own fat during frying, and only natural fat remains during cooking, which can also be reduced in broth or soup by changing the water. The most useful type, or rather a subspecies of cooking, is steam cooking. The products are placed in a net above the water in a closed container and processed with steam. Such products are as useful as possible, but they do not have such a bright taste.

Quenching. Braising can magically turn tough foods into soft foods when, during cooking, moist heat penetrates, for example, meat and softens connective tissue. Part of the product juices goes into the broth, which makes its taste especially bright.

Baking. Baking is often the most in a suitable way cooking and is often used by those who try to limit the amount of fried food in their diet. Roasting is a special kind, since baked fish or meat in sauce, not to mention desserts, can leave few people indifferent. Of course, fats are also used when baking, but it is much easier to do without them by simply using baking parchment or foil.

Barbecue and grill are worth mentioning in additional ways. Without the use of fat, amazingly tasty and, most importantly, healthy food comes out. Crispy crust and special smell! The only problem is the ability to purchase and use the grill on weekdays.

Also, it should be noted that many families began to cook in the microwave. It is really quick and convenient, but the impact on health should play a big role. Semi-finished products created for the microwave oven, with the preservatives, fats and sugars they contain, cannot be called useful for our body.

Everyone chooses for himself which method is preferable for him, but do not forget about the health, which is under regular pressure from our own actions.

COOKING FOOD COOKING FOOD. Healthy food contains the nutrients necessary for the body in the required quantities and the correct ratio, possesses pleasant taste and attractive appearance. The ability to cook such food to eat culinary arts based on scientific foundations of rational nutrition(cm.). Mastering this art requires a fairly good taste, knowledge of technical techniques and methods of cooking, correct assessment of all the features, advantages and disadvantages of various food products, skillful selection of recipes for their manufacture.
Techniques and methods of cooking include primary and thermal processing of products. Primary processing includes: washing and cleaning products, removing inedible parts, thawing, slicing, grinding, giving the product the desired shape. Heat treatment consists in frying or boiling. Products are boiled in liquid or steamed. During normal cooking, significant amounts of liquid (water, broth, milk, etc.) are used. Cooking the product in own juice or with the addition of small amounts of liquid (when the liquid only partially covers the product) in cooking it is called simmering. Stewing is the simmering of the product with the addition of roots and seasonings. For the manufacture of soups and broths, ordinary cooking is used; most often they allow products with sufficient softness (fish, meat poultry, vegetables); stew meat products and vegetables. Mostly fish, minced meat products and some vegetables are steamed. Steam cooking requires special devices in the form of a metal stand, net or box, where food is placed and placed in a bowl over boiling water so that the food does not come into contact with the liquid (see. ).
Frying, depending on the amount of fat used, is divided into regular (if the amount of fat does not exceed 5-10% of the weight of the product) and frying in deep fried(see), in which the product is immersed in a large amount of fat. In normal frying, the product is placed in a pan or baking sheet preheated with fat, heated until a crispy golden or brown crust is formed, turned over to the other side and brought to readiness or, if necessary, placed in the oven for final frying. Baking of dough products and baking of vegetable, cereal dishes and some products from meat, fish, etc. is carried out directly in the oven, where the crust forms evenly on the upper and lower surfaces of the product. For deep fat, use dishes with a thick bottom. The fat placed in this dish is strongly heated, and then the fried foods (most often pies, donuts, brushwood, potatoes) are immersed in it. It is necessary to lay in small portions so as not to lower the temperature of the heated fat. You can also fry food over hot charcoal or over an electric stove using radiant heat. In this case, minimal amount fat, but special devices are needed in the form of a metal lattice, a skewer (skewer), etc. At home, this method of frying is used less often than others and almost exclusively for frying kebabs.
The choice of the method of heat treatment depends on the characteristics of the product. Almost all products of plant and animal origin can be boiled, but not all acquire the best taste with this method. So, waterfowl poultry - geese, ducks, all game, fish such as navaga, smelt, crucian carp, bream, carp, carp, and vegetables such as eggplant, boiled, are much less tasty than fried. The difference in flavor is so undeniable that these foods are rarely used in soups. For the same reasons, the number of recipes for lamb and pork soups is limited; they are mainly used for cooking cabbage soup and borscht. Determining the method of heat treatment meat products, the structure of meat tissues, their tenderness and the ability to quickly soften should be taken into account. It is also necessary to take into account that age-related changes worsen the quality of meat, make it tougher, rougher (see. , ). In fish products, age-related changes and structural features of the structure of tissues are not so significant. These products, as a rule, soften under the influence of heat treatment much faster than meat products. Not suitable for roasting without pre-cooking cabbage (white cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, etc.), as it quickly loses moisture and becomes dry and tasteless.
Choosing a recipe. Each product has its own characteristics. Therefore, not only the method of heat treatment, but also the set of additional products, seasonings, spices included in the cooking recipe must fully comply with these features. It is impossible, without prejudice to the taste of the finished food, to arbitrarily replace one spice or seasoning with another, or to completely exclude them from the recipe. In cooking, everything is built on subtle taste sensations, here the smallest amounts of spices, the lightest odors and temperature fluctuations matter. For example, a few grains of salt can spoil the taste of ice cream. A speck of garlic that is indistinguishable to the eye can spoil the taste big cake, and cooled soup tastes just as bad as hot compote. If the hostess doesn't have everyone necessary products, spices, seasonings specified in the recipe, it is more advisable to choose another recipe and follow it exactly. At the same time, recipes should not be carried out mechanically, since they cannot always take into account all the features of the products from which dishes are prepared in each case. Repeated tasting of the food during its preparation is necessary to make amendments that improve its taste. This tasting and correcting food in the course of its preparation is an essential part of the culinary art. Professional chefs call this “tweaking”.
A general guideline when refueling dishes and using spices and seasonings can be the assertion of culinary specialists that, the better, thinner taste and the smell of the product, the less seasoning it needs and the easier the recipe for its preparation can be. On the contrary, products of not so high taste and aroma values ​​require more complex culinary processing and the addition of various seasonings. An example is boiling sturgeon, pike or cod: boiled sturgeon can be cooked without spices and roots, but in order to cook well boiled pike or cod, a complex set of seasonings should be used.
Saving labor and time. Cooking food, especially lunch, is one of the most time consuming household chores. To simplify and accelerate it would mean in many ways to facilitate the work of a housewife. But this can only be done by correct organization food, avoiding impairment of nutritional value, taste and appearance food. For 1959 - 1965, it is envisaged to more than double the output of public catering enterprises, to significantly expand their network and reduce prices for these products. Leave of meals at home will be widespread.
Depending on the family composition, age, occupation and health status of family members, you can greatly facilitate the work of preparing food by using public catering... In some families there is a reasonable tradition of dining in a canteen or restaurant in holidays thus freeing the housewife from her difficult daily duties. Lunches brought from the canteen can be seasoned at home to suit the individual tastes and needs of each family. For example, here's how you can fill a lunch from the dining room, which includes cabbage soup, meat patties and compote. In the process of heating, you can add ready-made sauce("Spicy", "tomato", "Kuban", "Moscow", etc.), sliced ​​and lightly fried fresh tomatoes and finely chopped parsley or dill. If in ready-made cabbage soup there is already a tomato, then they can be additionally seasoned with sour cream. The taste of the cutlets will improve if, after heating, put a piece of butter on each of them or pour sour cream before the end of heating (1 - 2 tablespoons for 6 cutlets) or a mixture of flour, ground with butter and diluted broth (1 tablespoon of butter, 1 tablespoon flour, 1/2 cup broth), or, finally, tomato puree, lightly fried with chopped onions. Compote seasoned with lemon juice or table grape wine will become much tastier and more nutritious.
To make your meal easier, you can combine a ready-to-eat canteen meal, such as soup, with homemade meals. The industry produces a variety of semi-finished products, canned food and concentrates. Cooking food from semi-finished products takes 10 - 15 minutes and allows you to cook delicious and nutritious dish... The so-called. lunch canned food - cabbage soup, borscht, beetroot and second meat dishes with vegetable, cereal and pasta side dishes. After heating, these dishes are completely ready to use. For the preparation of soups and main courses, you can use ordinary meat and canned fish- "stewed meat", "fried meat", the so-called. natural canned fish, etc. Several minutes are spent on the preparation of soup, porridge, noodles, jelly and other dishes from concentrates. But these products cannot completely replace fresh vegetables, meat and fish and are not intended for daily meals at home, but for travel, trips, etc. fresh, non-canned products that do not require prolonged heat and labor-intensive primary processing.
You can quickly prepare a meal, for example, from dairy products. Milk soup with vegetables, cereals, pasta and milk porridge is ready in 20 - 25 minutes. Within a few minutes, you can cook scrambled eggs, omelet. All fresh and especially early vegetables require the shortest cooking time. Boiling, frying, stewing potatoes, cabbage, carrots, zucchini, eggplant, cauliflower, green beans lasts 20-30 minutes. To the food fast food include pasta- noodles, noodles, pasta, cereal dishes - casseroles, cutlets, semolina, rice, hercules and artek cereals. Without any culinary processing, they use the so-called. dry breakfasts - ready-to-eat products of special processing of grains of corn, wheat and rice - "corn flakes", "wheat flakes", " puffed wheat"," Puffed rice "," popcorn". Within 5 - 10 minutes, you can prepare the second course of sausages and wieners. Very little time and labor is spent on preparing a fish first or second course, if a ready-made dish is used for it. fish fillet... Meat cutlets, meatballs, soups with meatballs are ready quickly, since minced meat products do not need to be cooked or fried for a long time.
It is important to speed up and facilitate work to properly organize a workplace in the kitchen, use the most suitable and convenient equipment and carry out work in a reasonable sequence.
This is the sequence in which you should prepare a dinner, the menu of which includes common dishes home table: meat soup with vegetables, meat cutlets with fried potatoes and cranberry jelly.
1) Wash the meat, put on a board, separate the pulp for cutlets; put the pulp in a bowl, put in a cool place; put the rest of the meat with bones in a saucepan, pour cold water and put on fire.
2) Rinse the potatoes without peeling them, add water and cook.
3) Sort out and wash the berries, knead them with a wooden crush, squeeze out the juice, pour the remaining mass with hot water and put on the fire.
4) Skim off the foam from the broth, drain the water from the potatoes, peel the potatoes and put them in a cool place.
5) Strain the cranberry broth, add sugar, put on fire, season with diluted potato flour, bring to a boil, remove from heat, pour in the previously squeezed juice, put in the cold.
6) Wash, peel and chop the vegetables (lightly fry the roots and chopped onions), dip them in broth, soak white bread in milk or water.
7) Pass the meat with white bread, onions through a meat grinder, season the minced meat, cut the cutlets and roll them in breadcrumbs, put them on a board.
8) Cut boiled potatoes into slices, heat 2 frying pans with fat, put on one cutlet, on the second potato.
Cooking lunch every day, the whole thing, is a difficult job for busy woman... Cooking at least one dish for 2 days greatly facilitates this work, but for this it is necessary to have a refrigerator, cellar or glacier on the farm to ensure the preservation of the good quality of food.
Unfilled strained meat or mushroom broth stored in the refrigerator for 2 - 3 days, remains fresh (it only needs to be boiled daily) and is the basis for a variety of soups: vegetable, cereal, with pasta, etc. Boiled meat is also well stored in a cool place and can be used for cooking many food. It is heated in broth and served with a vegetable garnish, cut into slices, rolled in breadcrumbs and fried, poured with sauce and baked, used as a filling for pies, pancakes, potato zraz, casseroles of pasta, rice, used in salads and vinaigrette. But it would be a mistake to think that any food can be prepared 2 days in advance or in advance. Many products so abruptly lose their nutritional and taste qualities in the process of not only long-term, but also the very short-term storage that their preparation for future use is impractical. Everything vegetable first and second courses lose a significant part of vitamins when reheated and stored; the taste is greatly deteriorated during the shortest storage of fried portioned chunks meat (steaks, escalops, etc.), meat cutlets. The least susceptible to loss of nutritional and taste during storage are pasta, cereals, casseroles, puddings, broths from meat, poultry, dried mushrooms, dishes from boiled and fried fish, boiled meat, chicken, chickens.
You should learn how to use the leftovers correctly. From stale, dried bread, you can make croutons, from the rest of the lunch boiled potatoes make a vinaigrette, etc. Do not pour out the decoctions in which the peeled vegetables were cooked; there are many nutrients in these broths, they can be used to cook soups. It is also advisable to prepare in advance for the future use of a kind of semi-finished products that can be used for quick preparation of meals: cooked pre-cooked millet, rice or semolina served hot for breakfast, and the leftovers are used to prepare cereal cutlets for lunch or dinner; yeast or soda can be added to the dough left over from pancakes and, having made it softer, can be used for pancakes; from the leftovers boiled meat prepare a salad with vegetables; use cold meat cutlets for sandwiches, for filling special dumplings - sorcerers and potato zraz, etc.
Disadvantages and advantages individual products and dishes from them. Nutritionists with good reason claim that many diseases (not to mention excessive obesity, unhealthy) arise from the excessive use of certain foods in the diet (see. Nutrition). Excess fats, gastronomic products, confectionery, meat, eggs are harmful. A meal in which these products occupy a limited (but sufficient) space is not only significantly cheaper, but also healthier. The source of fat can be butter, and margarine, and vegetable oil... High-grade proteins contains meat of both the first and second grades; cottage cheese is also quite rich in these valuable nutrients. Not only tangerines (vitamin C) are vitamins, but also fresh carrots(vitamins A, PP and C) and sauerkraut (vitamin C). A large number of well-digestible carbohydrates are also contained in expensive sweets and regular cranberry jelly. In terms of nutritional value, the beef dish is not inferior to the partridge dish, and the flounder dish is not inferior to sturgeon. The taste of any food, both expensive and cheap, largely depends on the ability to cook it. Anyone who wants to rationally spend money on family meals must master at least basic knowledge of cooking. Of course, no amount of culinary art can make up for the lack of nutrition. the required amount proteins, fats, carbohydrates, mineral salts and vitamins. You can painlessly replace expensive meat with cheaper ones, but you cannot replace varied dishes use only millet porridge or fried potatoes; the savings will be striking, but the lack of essential nutrients in the diet will affect health.
Soups occupy a significant place in the family's diet. These dishes are good for filling, contain a variety of nutrients and are usually inexpensive. Experienced housewives believe that meat soups are most beneficial, since boiled meat served with a side dish is quite suitable for a second course. In order for the second dish, meat or fish, to be satisfying and inexpensive enough, you need to serve more side dishes with it. The cutlet with potato shores may not be satisfying enough, but if served with it, in addition, a little stewed beet or carrots, salad from sauerkraut, then the second course will become more satisfying. The side dish increases the volume of the meal, making it healthier, tastier and more varied. Meat cutlet, served with porridge, or the same cutlet with a vegetable side dish, in fact, completely different dishes, both in taste and content nutrients. The most valuable property vegetable side dishes is their ability to facilitate the assimilation of meat and fish products. Side dishes are especially needed for fatty dishes from pork, lamb, geese, ducks, fish. In this case, side dishes not only help the body absorb excess fat, but are also quite inexpensive, since no additional fat is required to prepare them.
From meat second Chopped products are considered the most economical dishes - cutlets, meatballs, meatballs, zrazy, rolls. When roasting and stewing, the meat shrinks a lot and loses weight. 5 out of 400 servings G meat may be too small, while adding to minced cutlet white bread, water or milk, onion allows you to cook 5 portions of 2 cutlets each from the same amount of meat. Of poultry, the most beneficial are chickens, which are used simultaneously for preparing the first and second courses (broth and boiled chicken). Cheaper than others, food from sea ​​bass, flounder and cod; the latter is especially beneficial as it goes on sale gutted and beheaded.
Seasonal reductions in prices for milk, dairy products, eggs, vegetables and fruits should be used in every way to improve nutrition and reduce costs. Many housewives, due to the savings that this price reduction gives, produce the necessary supplies: pickling and pickling vegetables, cooking jam, etc. Individual gardens and garden plots are a great help in economical spending.
Sanitary and hygienic conditions for food preparation. Cooking requires impeccable cleanliness, careful observance of sanitary and hygienic rules. The reason gastrointestinal diseases and food poisoning there can be not only poor-quality products, but also the unsanitary condition of the kitchen, kitchen utensils and devices, negligence and carelessness, which are allowed in the cooking process. Flies, cockroaches, rats, mice are carriers of many infectious diseases.
Daily and thorough cleaning of the kitchen and common areas is mandatory both in a separate and especially in a communal apartment (see. ).
Preliminary preparation of products must be carried out no less thoroughly than cooking or frying. All primary processing processes (cleaning, rinsing, grinding products) should be carried out in such a way as to protect food as much as possible from the penetration of pathogenic microbes. Raw meat, even if it is good quality and fresh, can be contaminated with microbes, so it should never be kept in direct contact with other foods, especially prepared foods. In all cases, especially if the meat is purchased on the market, it must be thoroughly boiled or roasted. Knife and board that were used for slicing raw meat must be thoroughly rinsed with hot water. Do not touch other food until you have washed your hands with which raw meat was processed. It is safest to have a separate board and knife for processing raw meat. Even if the meat grinder was completely clean, it should be rinsed with boiling water before use.
In meat and minced fish microbes multiply especially quickly. Therefore, it is recommended to cook the minced meat just before preparing the dish. Raw meat can be stored in the refrigerator or in the cellar, but minced meat should not be stored. All food from minced meat(zrazy, cutlets, meatballs, rolls, meatballs, etc.) must be well fried or boiled so that the juice is clear at the break.
In the process of primary processing raw fish it is necessary to wash it with drinking running water: the first time - before removing the scales and gutting, the second time, very carefully, after gutting.
Soup or broth, boiled for several days, must not only be heated, but must be boiled daily.
It is necessary to rinse especially thoroughly and repeatedly in drinking running water. green salad, onions, parsley, dill and all those vegetables and fruits that are used for raw salads. If the salad is intended for a child, then vegetables, fruits and herbs must be washed several times and only with boiled water.
For better preservation of vitamin C, vegetables should be boiled in an enamel or aluminum dish, put in boiling water and cook at a low boil only until tender, and the dish should be tightly covered with a lid. When soups, borscht, cabbage soup are boiled, you should first cook the broth and only then put the vegetables, and not all at once, but taking into account the required duration of cooking each type of vegetables; for example, beets - before potatoes, etc. Vegetables should only be peeled and cut immediately before eating or boiling. Vitamin C is most in the outer layer of potatoes, therefore, when peeling, the peel must be cut off thinner, but it is better to boil the potatoes in the peel and remove the peel from the boiled potatoes. If raw potatoes are peeled, they should not be stored for a long time, especially when chopped and in water, as they lose some of their vitamin C and mineral salts. All other vegetables should also not be kept peeled. The peeled potatoes are placed in water to prevent browning. Other peeled vegetables do not need this. We must not forget that baking soda destroys vitamins C and B 1, therefore, when cooking vegetables or legumes, you should not add soda. Carotene (provitamin A) is destroyed by the addition of acids to food; hence the rule is to put vinegar in a salad or vinaigrette just before serving.
The remaining fat in the pan should be carefully drained into separate dishes, and wash the pan with hot water. Many housewives believe that the frying pan does not need to be washed after consumption, as fat remains on it. This is definitely wrong: not only fat remains, but also burnt crumbs, which next time can spoil the newly fried foods. The rags used to remove the dishes from the fire must be clean, they must be changed and washed more often.
Should never be left open milk, it must be covered with clean paper or gauze. Hot dishes are first covered with clean gauze or a towel on top, and when they have cooled down, cover them with a lid. In general, it is better to store food not under a lid, but under a light, clean cloth.
The most hygienic for washing dishes are ready-made scouring pads. parchment paper... These washcloths are inexpensive and discarded after use. Ordinary washcloths and dish brushes should be boiled more often in water with baking soda... It is more hygienic and easier to wash the dishes immediately after using them.

Brief encyclopedia household... - M .: Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Ed. A. F. Akhabadze, A. L. Grekulova. 1976 .