Whole Grains

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When you eat fruits or vegetables it doesn’t matter whether it’s crunchy carrots or juicy peaches and plums, their nutritional value is governed by how much time has elapsed from when they were picked, and how much care was given to them along the way. All Produce is at its peak nutritional value when it’s picked from the tree, vine or pulled out of the ground. From that moment on it’s a loss of nutrients along the way. So purchasing produce as close to the source and in season is your first way to get the most value from your foods.

When purchasing fruits and vegetables look for fruits or vegetables that are heaviest for their size, the more water contained in them the more recently they were harvested. Also look for surface bruises, abrasions, cuts or spots. The less of these there are the more carefully that piece was handled. Smell the item it should be pleasant or have no odor at all, any bad odor is sure sign it’s starting to go bad and has very little if any nutritional value.

Once you purchase the items and get them home it’s important to store them at the optimal temperature. For most people that leaves the choice of counter top or refrigerator. These fruits should always be stored at room temperature on the counter or in the pantry: apples, bananas, lemons, limes, oranges, mangos, papaya, pineapple, watermelon, cucumbers, onions, eggplant, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, and tomatoes. These items should be stored in your refrigerator: blueberries, cherries, strawberries, grapes, green beans, beets, broccoli, carrots, celery, lettuce, mushrooms. If you have a room temperature fruit that you have cut but haven’t finished you should put it into the refrigerator and use it as soon as possible.

Now that you have properly stored all of your produce how do you make sure you don’t lose the nutrients through improper cooking and preparation? Consuming them in a raw and uncooked state will give you the most nutritional value but not always the most taste so you need some sort of compromise. The less liquid it is cooked in, the less heat, and the less time it spends under heat the better it will be for you. Steaming is always better than boiling, stir frying or sautéing is always better than deep frying. Surprisingly microwaving is fairly destructive, so use as little water as possible.

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