Be careful when cooking vegetables
When it comes to cooking vegetables, a common mistake people often make is cooking them for too long. This affects the taste, color and texture of vegetables. Even if you add spices well or make the curry delicious, overcooked vegetables do not taste good. Therefore, it is essential to follow the correct technique while cooking vegetables and understand when to take them off the flame. If you want vegetables to cook thoroughly but still retain their crispness and flavor, follow these simple methods.
Cook according to the texture of the vegetables
Every vegetable takes different time to cook, depending on which vessel or method you are cooking it in. Therefore, do not consider the time of 5 to 10 minutes given in books as correct for every vegetable. Keep checking the vegetables occasionally while cooking them. Try pressing with a fork or knife. If it goes in easily, but there is some strength left in the vegetable, then understand that it is cooked.
cut vegetables into uniform sizes
When you cut vegetables, make sure that their pieces are almost uniform. If one carrot piece is smaller than the other, the smaller piece will cook quickly, while the larger piece may remain raw. Small pieces cook quickly and larger pieces take longer. Therefore, cutting vegetables into uniform sizes will ensure all the pieces cook together.
After boiling put in cold water
Boil vegetables like beans, peas and broccoli for some time and immediately put them in ice cold water. This is called blanching. This process stops the cooking process of vegetables immediately, thereby maintaining their green color and crispness.
Do not over boil vegetables
Boiling vegetables for a long time can reduce their taste, color and firmness. So, boil them until they become soft, but not so much that they get completely mushy. There should be some strength in them, so that their original taste remains.
use right amount of water
When you boil vegetables, there is no need to add a lot of water to the pot. Add as much water as the vegetables can submerge. Some vegetables do not even need to be completely immersed in water. Steaming such vegetables can be a better option.
try steaming
Steaming vegetables is an easy way to prepare them to the right texture. Due to this, the vegetables do not get soaked in water and their natural taste also remains. Vegetables like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and green beans can be steamed well.
heat the pan
If you are frying vegetables in a pan, make sure the pan is well preheated. By putting vegetables in a cold pan, water starts coming out of them and they become soft. First heat the pan, then add oil and then add vegetables and cook. Vegetables cook quickly in a hot pan and also get light browning.
Follow these methods to maintain the taste
It is important to keep some small things in mind while cooking vegetables. Cutting them to the right size, using water as needed and paying attention to their texture while cooking can be very helpful. By adopting these methods you can maintain the color, taste and crispness of vegetables.