Lighter Cooking

Helpful How To . . . Cook Light

The Basics:

1. Bake, broil, or grill your meat instead of frying it.  This both uses less fat and releases more of the meat’s fat. 
2. Lightly steam your vegetables to help retain most of their vitamins and minerals, while releasing the best flavor.
3. Take advantage of what’s in season.  Fresh fruits and vegetables have more nutrients and flavor than their frozen or dried counterparts.

Intermediate Level:

1. Make onions, garlic, vinegar, and mustard your friends.  These are easy ways to flavor dishes that are low in fat.
2. Tomato sauce is packed with sugar.  A healthier substitute is grilled red pepper puree.  To make, slice a couple of red peppers in half and remove the seeds.  Place on a baking sheet skin-side up and place under a broiler until skin is pretty charred.  Remove skin and place pepper in a blender or food processor and combine with some salt, olive oil and a clove of garlic (for a more subtle garlic taste, roast it, too).  Toss with pasta, fresh tomatoes and any other vegetables or grilled chicken for a lighter pasta salad.
3. An easy way to get protein and the good kind of fat is from yogurt.  Plain, non-fat varieties are good for you, but something like Greek yogurt is really the best.  You can substitute it for plenty of things—in cereal with fresh fruit instead of milk, on grilled potatoes instead of butter or sour cream, or tossed with steamed green beans for a fun vegetable side dish.

Advanced Placement:

1. Use fresh herbs.  I recently cooked with a good friend and Vamp, Marie, and was amazed at how she used fresh herbs in nearly everything she made.  The results were really delicious and complexly flavored dishes. Trying new combinations takes some experience (my tarragon red potatoes did not work out as nicely as I hoped they would) and a sense of adventure.