Healthy Cooking Techniques:
The How-To and What To Use

Cooking healthy food can be a challenge until you find the right methods, cookware and ingredients. Listed here are some techniques that require little or no additional fat that anyone can utilize.

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Non-stick Sautee: This method is my all time favorite due to it's versatility and ease of use and clean up. You can reduce the fat of just about anything you would cook in a normal pan with oil by using a good non-stick pan. The key here is a good nonstick pan. My favorite brand, hands down, is T-Fal. It has the most even heat distribution and as the inventors of Teflon, they have by far the best non-stick surface of anything out there. Check out the T-Fal products:







Grilling: Summer is here! So light up that grill because this is one of the healthiest ways to create those tasty dishes of summer time. Just as the George Foreman Grill ads state how the fat just slides right out of his nifty device, the same thing happens on a real grill too! It's not magic, it's simple physics. Notice how that burger shrinks after being cooked? Something had to exit the burger to make it smaller, right? It's about 50/50 water and fat. The same thing happens with just about anything you put on the grill. It's a fat incinerator. But beware! Some extremely fatty foods will still in the end be fatty. Take it easy on oils.Rubs and spices are a delicious way to create a deligthfully tasty treat!What grill is a good grill? The old fashioned charcoal grills are still great if you are looking to achieve that smokey flavor. Weber is of course a well known product that has been around for ages. They carry a vast array of both charcoal and gas grills. Picnicing? Try the portable one by Thermos. It folds up and is easy for traveling.





Broiling: Is that fish too delicate to grill or even sautee? Broil it!Broiling is sort of like upside-down grilling. Many ovens have a broiling feature which heats up the element at the top of the oven to a very high tempurature.Put a thin piece of fish (my favorite is sole) on a sheet pan with a little bit of salt and pepper, lemon juice, and a spray of healthy olive oil and place under the broiler for a few minutes. Voila! A perfectly cooked piece of fish and you didn't even have to flip it! This method works for just about anything thinly sliced that won't get too dry. Keep an eye on it to be sure it doesn't burn. It's hot under there!







Braising: This is almost a one-pot-wonder scenario. You get your meat and, if you want, a sauce too. Take that lovely piece of meat and brown it in a heavy, preferrably non-stick pot with a lid. Remove from heat and "deglaze" (a fancy term for putting liquid in a hot pot or pan to unstick those little pieces from the bottom)with a stock, wine, vinegar or juice. Put pot back on heat and reduce that liquid to about 1/4. Add enough stock or water to cover the meat about 1/4 up from the bottom. Simmer on low heat for as long as the meat requires to be done in the center. (The meat package usually says what the cooking times are per pound, or the tempurature the inside of the meat should reach). Then, if you would like a sauce, you remove the meat from the pot and strain the liquid that's in the pot. Put the strained liquid back into the pot and thicken it with some corn starch or arrowroot. Be sure to wisk the corn starch or arrowroot with some cold water before adding it to the cooking liquid to prevent clumping. Don't forget to check the seasonings!







Roasting: Roasting is like baking, but at a higher temperature. It uses the oven's dry heat to cook the food. To roast: place the meat and/or other food items (veggies, potatoes, etc.) onto a rack that is placed into a roasting pan. The rack allows the fat to drip off of the food, like on the grill. You might need to baste the food with a liquid, such as a water or stock, to keep it moist.







Herbs and Spices: Using herbs and spices is a great way to add loads of flavor without adding salt or fat. If you like to use fresh herbs cut them up very finely and add them to your food when it's close to being finished cooking. For dry herbs, add at the beginning of cooking to soften the herb and let it release its flavor. But be careful! Dry herbs can be very powerful. They are about 3X as powerful as fresh herbs, so adjust accordingly. My favorite spice store is located in Wisconsin and they have never failed to surprise me with the variety and knowledge they have to offer. Visit the website for all the information or to order online. To find any spice you can imagine go to Penzey's Spices.

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Easy cooking for people who want to make dinner fast. Recipes under 30 minutes including pasta sauces, fast food like fajitas, nachos and pizza, recipes for beef and more.
Easy and Fast Cooking Recipes


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