Vegetables in salted water--the death of us?!

CA_Underdog
CA_Underdog Posts: 733 Member
edited November 2024 in Food and Nutrition
Vegetables cooked in salted water taste better than vegetables cooked in fresh water. This is true for my palette and those of guests, and I eat less sodium than most. Adding sodium after cooking also doesn't add the same flavor boost as adding it to the water.

While many sites offer colloquial wisdom that it's negligible or terrible--

http://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/nutrition-101/nutrition-myths-facts/adding-salt-sodium

http://www.seriouseats.com/talk/2011/01/no-salt-needed-in-pasta-water-or-most-anything-else.html

Q. How much sodium DOES actually go into the final food?

Answer:
  • If you add 1 teaspoon per quart, about 342mg/100g serving.
  • If you add 1 teaspoon per quart and rinse, 229mg/100g serving.
  • If you add 1/2 teaspoon per quart, about 171mg/100g serving.
  • If you add 1/2 teaspoon per quart and rinse, 115mg/100g serving.
  • If you add 1/4 teaspoon per quart, about 89mg/100g serving.
  • If you add 1/4 teaspoon per quart and rinse, 60mg/100g serving.


http://www.foodbase.org.uk//admintools/reportdocuments/120-1-187_FA30-2005-236_-_pc_jan07_v3.pdf

http://www.aaccnet.org/publications/cc/backissues/1987/Documents/64_106.pdf

The key take-away from the first study is on page 12, figure 3. For every X mg of sodium you add per liter of water, X/7 mg of sodium end up in the final food per 100g.

The key take-away from the second survey is on page 107, table III--rinsed vs. unrinsed. Notably, salted water helps retain other trace nutrients such as phosphorous, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, and copper--so adding at least some sodium can be healthy! Rinsing reduces sodium by 33% but doesn't significantly affect the retention of these other nutrients.

Replies

  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i think boiling veggies is gross but to each their own.....
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    Salt is good for you -- entertaining (but true, IMO) blog post about salt. Outrageous (and probably unpalatable) salt levels are still bad but the low salt recommendations that are common can kill you. Season your food liberally to taste.

    P.S. If your doctor has you on a low salt diet ask them if it's still appropriate for you. New research suggests low salt diets are more harmful than healthful.
  • jennifershoo
    jennifershoo Posts: 3,198 Member
    i think boiling veggies is gross but to each their own.....

    Lol, indeed!
    I prefer steaming veggies.
  • CA_Underdog
    CA_Underdog Posts: 733 Member
    edited March 2015
    i think boiling veggies is gross but to each their own.....
    I prefer steaming veggies.
    A pot with plenty of water at a rapid boil can cook green vegetables faster than a steamer or microwave, thereby better preserving their color and texture! Plus the extra seasoning opportunity. I've traditionally underestimated boiling, having mostly experienced from it waterlogged, overcooked vegetables--but I'm taking a cooking class and now that I've tried rapid bowling, it's growing on me! A guest asked me yesterday how I steam my vegetables to make them so tasty. :)

    (This led to my dilemma of how to log veggies in salted water.)

    I enjoy vegetables that are steamed or roasted or sauteed too, of course!
  • Barbs2222
    Barbs2222 Posts: 433 Member
    I'm trying this tomorrow. I don't care about salt. I don't eat a lot of it though, but this is making sense to me. Throw them in the boiling water until just barely done. Interesting. I'd log weigh and log them raw. Can't be that big of deal, I wouldn't think.
  • Barbs2222
    Barbs2222 Posts: 433 Member
    Thanks for sharing.
This discussion has been closed.