Darrick Robles Healthy cooking is not a great art – anyone and everyone can learn it. Especially now that we are all spending a lot of time at home, it is worth trying out new things in the kitchen and doing something good for your health. We have 6 tips on how you can include more healthy ingredients in your cooking and make the cooking pots more fun – delicious recipes included.
1. Bring color in
The more colorful the food, the healthier the menu. Fruit and vegetables in all the colors of the rainbow not only bring a good mood to the table. It’s also packed with healthy vitamins and minerals .
Why is colorful so healthy?
The colorings in fruits and vegetables come from natural compounds called phytochemicals. These include, for example, the carotenoids , which are responsible for the red, orange or green color of tomatoes, carrots and spinach. Many of these substances have an anti-inflammatory effect, they can strengthen the immune system and reduce the risk of cancer and other diseases.
Red, purple, and blue fruits like red grapes, blueberries, and cherries contain anthocyanins . These plant pigments have been shown to have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, can contribute to good vision and neurological health, and protect against various diseases.
These brightly colored foods are rich in healthy dyes:
- Red: Tomatoes, Berries, Watermelon, Cherries, Red Peppers, Pomegranates
- Yellow: Butternut Squash, Honeydew Melon, Lemons, Papayas, Peaches, Yellow Peppers
- Orange: carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes
- Beige: banana, radish, onion, leek, garlic, celery
- Blue and purple: aubergines, blackberries, grapes, red cabbage
- Greens: Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, spinach
get an appetite? Here you will find quick recipes with lots of colorful fruit and vegetables .
2. Cooking with all your senses
Food preparation is a sensory experience. Experienced chefs therefore not only work with taste, but with all 5 senses:
- Feel: The experience begins in the supermarket, for example when you feel an avocado: is it still too hard or too soft?
- Smell : The sense of smell is activated when you chop parsley or garlic. When you sauté onions in a pan, the scent will tell you that they’re done.
- See: “The eye eats with you,” even if you prefer the sun-yellow banana to a spotted one. Unusual varieties such as green tomatoes, purple potatoes or yellow carrots bring variety to the plate.
- Hear: When you bite into an apple, you hear how crunchy it is. And a noisy sizzling or bubbling stimulates the appetite while cooking.
- Taste: sweet, sour, salty, bitter – there are numerous taste buds on the tongue, which transmit signals to the brain and make eating enjoyable.
Preparing meals with children has been shown to help them eat healthier. Teach them from an early age that cooking with fresh ingredients stimulates the imagination and involves all the senses. Of course, this works best if you have fun doing it yourself.
3. Trick a little
If you are considering announcing: “So dear ones, starting tomorrow we will cook healthy.” That’s not such a good idea. Your loved ones might think that only bland food is left on the table. Instead, try to incorporate healthy ingredients into meals that look just as delicious as usual.
Small tricks can make a big difference:
- Veggie Bolognese: Replace the ground beef in the spaghetti sauce with canned lentils — or use half ground beef and half lentils. Drain the lentils in a colander and rinse.
- Sour instead of salty: too much salt can cause high blood pressure. So it’s worth activating other taste cells from time to time. Instead of adding lots of salt, try lemon, lime, and fresh herbs. So you can gradually reduce the salt consumption in the family.
- Yoghurt instead of mayo : You can replace the mayonnaise with yoghurt in the potato or pasta salad – or simply mix the mayo with yoghurt.
- Homemade fries : Instead of fries from the deep fryer, you can try homemade fries from the oven. To do this, cut the potatoes into thin strips so that they look like real pool fries (also works with sweet potatoes).
- Veggie burger : The fast food classic is also available as a healthier veggie alternative that tastes at least as good. For example as an eggplant burger or as a sweet potato and bean burger .
4. Replace white flour with whole grain
Whole grains are an easy way to eat healthier without really changing much. Studies show that people who regularly eat whole grain products are less likely to suffer from coronary heart disease, diabetes mellitus and other chronic diseases.
Whole grain products contain a lot of fiber, which is important for digestion. They thicken the food pulp in the stomach, making you feel full for longer and thus preventing obesity . People with diabetes can also benefit from fiber because it causes blood sugar levels to rise more slowly after eating.
How to replace white flour with whole grain products:
- Wholemeal pasta: Wholemeal spelled pasta is lighter in color and tastes more like classic pasta. Alternatively, you can also mix wholemeal with classic pasta.
- Wholemeal Pizza: Everyone loves pizza. The favorite dish can also be baked from wholemeal flour and topped with colorful vegetables . The more colorful the topping, the better!
- Wholemeal bread made from sourdough: This type of bread is not only full of vitamins (especially B vitamins) and minerals (magnesium, zinc), but also keeps you full for longer.
- More protein: Protein -rich grains include spelt, quinoa, oats, and millet. Some inspiration? Try these delicious quinoa broccoli fritters .
5. Spice up healthy classics
Of course, you can’t reinvent the wheel with every meal. It doesn’t have to be. Choosing a few healthy staples that work well for you can save you the hassle of buying new ingredients and searching for recipes.
Here are a few simple tricks to make healthy meals even tastier:
- Honey Mustard Dressing: Mix together 2 tablespoons olive oil, a dash of balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, and a dollop of mustard. This makes a delicious dressing for a leaf salad.
- Spice up vegetables : Colorful vegetables not only taste good in salads, but also steamed, baked or in soup – and they really flourish with a dash of avocado, sesame or olive oil. Here you will find 5 different ways to prepare oven vegetables .
- Kid-Friendly Dip : Kids like veggies better when they come with a dip, and research backs that up. How about a tzatziki made from Greek yoghurt, for example?
6. Magic with fresh herbs
Fresh herbs are a great way to flavor dishes – and a tasty alternative to salt and pepper. Are you unsure which herbs to use? It’s worth trying out different varieties at the beginning and then deciding on 3 or 4 favorite herbs that you always have on hand.
Here are a few suggestions:
- Basil refines Italian dishes. Tomatoes, mozzarella, avocado, and fresh basil with olive oil and balsamic make for a quick, delicious lunch.
- Coriander works best in Asian stir-fries and curries.
- Flat-leaf parsley goes well with oriental dishes and fresh fish.
- Chives give fresh fish, dips and salads a delicate flavor.
You can also freeze your herbs to keep them fresh for longer: simply put them in ice cube trays, add a little water or olive oil and put them in the freezer. You can then cook or fry the herb cubes as needed.
Did you like our tips? Then we wish you and your loved ones a lot of fun trying it out!
