7 Unhealthy mistakes made when preparing meals
The festive seasons is here again and a lot of family gatherings and parties are being planned. The standard thing about all these parties and family gatherings is that there will be a lot of eating and drinks at your disposal.
But, do you stop for a second to think about what’s going into your system and how it was prepared? Is whatever you are consuming healthy for you? Or you are just eating because food is available?
There are a number of common mistakes that we make in our kitchens when preparing food that would just lead us to early graves. Some of these mistakes make our homemade food to be so unhealthy.
Peeling of fruits and vegetable
This one of the most common errors of our time. You will find a mother peeling of apples, carrots and even mangos before serving them to the family.
The peel of these fruits and vegetables contain a lot of fibre which is good for our digestion and helps in preventing constipation. The peelings also contain some extra nutrients and vitamins that are so good for us. Next time before peeling off a fruit remember you actually need the nutrients that come with it
Overheating healthy oils
The question that we need to ask is how long should we heat the oils that we use in our dishes? Specific oils like coconut oil and olive oil should not be put under extreme heat in any circumstances.
These oils which are healthy oils are full of nutritional compounds that get damaged when they are heated above their recommended smoke points.
For the extra virgin olive oil can be used directly for dressing and flavouring on salads, no heat is required.
Also Read: How to prepare sweet and spicy chicken curry
Excessive use of dressing and seasoning sauces
Everyone loves having extra seasoning or dressing in their salad or sandwich but the excess sauces and dressings have large amounts of sodium which affects water retention causing swelling of feet, ankles, hands and legs.
Large amounts of sodium in the body translates to excess salts in you.
Overcooking vegetables
Overcooking vegetables until they become soggy eliminates their nutrients. In order to cook your vegetables the right way, avoid boiling them for too long.
You can stir them slightly under a little heat to avoid burning them. Ensure your vegetables remain lightly crisp and firm when you cook them. This is the only way to retain the nutrients in the vegetables.
Consuming raw salt
Raw salt is said to be harsh on the nervous system and on the circulatory system and can cause an upheaval on the carefully balanced lymph system.
Consuming raw salts can lead to having issues with the kidneys and the can cause heart complication, so when preparing food add just enough salt for everyone to prevent that.
Do you have any news or article you would like us to publish? Kindly reach us via outreach@t4d.co.ke or howtodoafrica@gmail.com.
