Vegetables, along with rice, have long served as a staple of the human diet. The most significant improvements in a number of varieties are actually quite recent and are largely attributable to the discovery, of the principles of genetics in the late 19th and early 20th century. These discoveries have made it possible m produce new varieties with specific crop yields and qualities such as flavour, colour, and so on.
Today vegetables are consumed mainly as an accompaniment to main courses in most of the western hemisphere, although they continue to play a central role in the diet in Asia and the Middle East, In North America, the consumption has been on the rise since the mid-1970s, largely as a result of increased public awareness of their importance in a healthy diet. The recommendations of health professionals, as well as scientific research establishing a close link between high consumption of fruits and vegetables and the prevention of certain diseases, have contributed to making the health benefits more widely known. The greater diversity and availability in the marketplace have also contributed to the increase in their consumption.
Buying Vegetables
The outer appearance of vegetables can provide an indication of their freshness. To preserve this freshness, producers often cover with a wax coating, notably in the case of the eggplant, cucumber, squash, turnip, sweet potato, parsnip, sweet pepper, and tomato. This treatment minimizes moisture loss and the rate of deterioration, Look for firm, undamaged, and well-coloured that show no sign of mould, bruising frost damage, or softness. Avoid buying fragile vegetables that look as if they have been on the shelf for too long; peeled and with wilted leaves or shrivelled skin should also be avoided.
Preparing Vegetables
The manner in which vegetables are prepared, used, and preserved has an effect on their flavour, nutritional value, texture, and appearance. When preparing, avoid lengthy exposure to air, heat, and water; rinse them well under running water, but avoid soaking them, whether before or after cutting them, in order to minimize the loss of water-soluble vitamins (including B-complex vitamins and vitamin C).
Cooking Vegetables
Vegetables should be cooked as briefly as possible, as overcooking makes them bland and soggy. While also depriving them of a portion of their vitamins and minerals. The loss of vitamins B and C can be minimized by choking at a high temperature for a short time (in a pressure cooker, for example).
Boiling is a simple method that involves cooking vegetables in boiling water. However, it results in a significant loss of flavor and nutritional value, particularly if are boiled too long and if the cooking liquid is discarded. Although this is the most common method of cooking, it is also the one that is the most improperly used.
With the exception of green vegetables, should be cooked in a covered pot; this shortens the cooking time as well as reducing the evaporation of volatile substances, thus preserving the flavour, colour, and nutritional value. When cooking, remove the cover in order to prevent the concentration of acids, which has the effect of destroying their chlorophyll and discolouring them.
Storing Vegetables
There are several methods of preserving vegetables, including refrigeration, cold storage, freezing, canning, drying, marinating, and so on. The healthier-looking and firmer, the longer it will keep. While vegetables such as winter squash, garlic, potato, and taro tend to keep well even when stored at room temperature, most need to be refrigerated upon purchase. The fruit compartment of the refrigerator is the best place to keep perishable vegetables, as it is less cold and more humid than the upper shelves, where the drier air causes them to dry out. For this reason, stored on refrigerator shelves should always be wrapped.
Freezing is a method of preservation that is widely used for vegetables, most of which stand up to the process. The advantages of this method are that it makes it possible to consume seasonal vegetables throughout the year and, when properly done, preserves the colour, texture, flavour, and most of the nutritional value. For best results, users are fresh and in good condition and that reach peak ripeness soon after harvesting or purchasing.
Before being frozen, unripe should be placed in the refrigerator until ripe. While freezing does not keep from deteriorating, it does slow down this process, as well as halting the development of microorganisms (without destroying them); it also slows down the activity of the enzymes responsible for unpleasant odours and for the loss of colour and nutrients.
Nutritional Information of Vegetables
All vegetables supply certain nutritional elements, in proportions that vary depending on the type of vegetable. They also share certain nutritional characteristics:- They provide a range of vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin A in the form of carotene, vitamin B 6, vitamin C, and folic acid, as well as potassium, iron, magnesium and calcium.
- They have a high water content (80% to 95% of their total composition).
- They provide soluble and insoluble fibre.
- They are low in fat, with the exception of avocados and olives.
- They are generally low in protein.
- Most have a low-calorie content, and, since they are of plant origin, they contain no cholesterol.
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