Steamed vs Grilled vs Pan Fried Veggies

thisismynewmindset

I know there are many ways to cook your veggies, such as steamed, grilled, or pan fried.

But what I don't know is what these methods does to the nutritional info of the veggies... do any of these methods increase or decrease the calories?

chels1605

steamed is best! Fried probs increases because of the oil.... same with roasted?

makeachange22

not really, unless when you pan fry you pan fry in butter then yes. grilling them doesnt change, and steaming only keeps in the nutritional value comapred to calories

Lleldiranne

The only thing that would change calories is if you fry them in some kind of fat or oil or butter (the extra calories come from the oil/butter/fat).

As far as nutritional content, frying them with fat, etc, can pull out some of the oil-soluble vitamins, like A, D, E (but only if there's a lot of fat around them). This is why french fries and even sweet potato fries are basically empty calories. And cooking vegetables in a lot of water can pull out water soluble vitamins like C and B vitamins. Steaming or grilling/frying with very little oil shouldn't do too much. IMO, steaming gives the best flavor.

Of course, you can always eat (most) vegetables raw, which preserves all the nutrients :happy:

squishycow7

You should ROAST them!! roasted cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, asparagus, zucchini, summer squash... all really good. I usually just barely coat them in olive oil or balsamic vinegar and some spices are they're perfecttttt

thisismynewmindset

MMM roasting sounds good.

CAVEAT - I do not know how to cook... can someone tell me how to properly steam veggies without a proper steamer?

irridia

You should ROAST them!! roasted cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, asparagus, zucchini, summer squash... all really good. I usually just barely coat them in olive oil or balsamic vinegar and some spices are they're perfecttttt

I love them that way too! Beets, sweet potatoes and mushrooms are the bomb! I assume since the oil stays on them that there's less worry about fat soluable vitamin leaching because you then eat the oil as well ...

littlemili

Get an oil spray and then stir-fry or pan-cook in a non-stick pan with a tiny spray of oil, adds so few calories for when you're bored of boiling/steaming. I often grill stuff with just a spray of olive oil (it's like 1/10 of a teaspoon or something ridiculous) for a change too. Just use any method where you keep in the nutrients and don't need to add more than a squirt of oil.

irridia

MMM roasting sounds good.

CAVEAT - I do not know how to cook... can someone tell me how to properly steam veggies without a proper steamer?

if they are frozen, then microwave, if not then add some water and microwave... don't have a microwave or steamer? put them in a pot w/ a little water, you can also put them in a pan that is hot and then pour water in and immediately cover w/a lid and that will flash steam them.