By: Aaron Guhl

 

We all know we should be eating healthier. But it's not just changing our eating habits in restaurants that needs to be done. We can also change how we cook our food at home. Healthy cooking at home doesn't need to be bland or boring! In fact, you may find some of these tips will add more flavor to your dishes!

 

The first thing to do is choose leaner cuts of meat. The obvious choices for low fat cooking are chicken and fish, but other meats can be lower in fat as well. When shopping for red meat, the words 'sirloin' and 'round' are cuts which are naturally lower in fat. Check the meat and choose the one with the least amount of marbling and trim off any excess fat before cooking. Look for ground beef that is 95% lean. Pork is also another great lean meat.

 

You should also choose to cook without oil or butter when you saute foods in a pan. Instead choose to cook with a non-stick pan so that oils are not required. If cooking with oil is required for a recipe, it is best to cook with healthy oils like canola or olive oil. They even contain some "good" fats that can help lower your cholesterol when used sparingly.

 

Tired of bland vegetables? Try sautéing your vegetables in a little chicken broth (or vegetable broth) instead of oil. The chicken broth can help add flavor to your vegetables as they absorb the broth in while being cooked. Then sprinkle on herbs. Even just a sprinkling of chopped chives can add a zesty new taste to your vegetables. Another great option is roasting vegetables. This works wonderfully with root vegetables or other very firm ones such as cauliflower and squashes. Simply cut the vegetables into large chunks, spray with cooking spray and toss on seasoning. Curry powders, cajun blends or Italian seasonings are great. Roast in a 450 degree oven until the vegetables are tender. You can also place the vegetable pieces on a skewer and roast on your grill!

 

If you have a favorite recipe that isn't exactly healthy, try modifying it a bit to help make it healthier. Remove any skin from meat and cut off as much fat from it as possible to help make it healthier. Make substitutes for healthier alternatives. Cut the amount of unhealthly ingredients in half. Doing a little bit here and there will all help make the recipe healthy when it all comes together.