No Fat Cooking

It is easier than you think to cook foods without fat. Using a range of cooking techniques means that it is possible to keep all of the flavour and goodness of the food whilst reducing the fat content to produce tasty, healthy family meals.
Here are some simple, no-fuss ways to reduce the amount of fat in your cooking:

• Choose quality non-stick cookware. This means that you can keep the amount of fat used for “greasing” the trays down to a minimum. You can also use baking parchment instead.
• Look out for special non-stick coated fabric sheet which can be cut to size and used to line pans, loaf tins and bakeware. Generally sold by speciality cooking stores, but long lasting and an economical alternative to replacing all your pans!
• Dry fry meat in a non-stick pan if the recipe calls for “browning”. Then drain away all the fat and wipe out the pan carefully with kitchen paper before adding the other ingredients.
• Choose the best cuts of meat that you can afford. Look for the leanest cuts, and simply buy a little less if you are on a budget. Buying cheap meat can be a false economy, and anyway, what price do you put on your health?
• Buy the low calorie “spray oils” on sale in the supermarkets. These now come in a range of flavours, such as olive oil, sunflower oil and even a butter substitute. The fine spray delivers very little fat, but these sprays are ideal for making oven baked potato wedges, roasted vegetables and similar dishes.
• If you don´t fancy using the commercial spray oils, make your own. Invest in an oil spray (available from most kitchenware stores) and dilute good quality olive oil instead.
• Don´t automatically add butter or oil when grilling or roasting food. Wrap meat and fish in foil parcels instead and cook in stock, wine or vinegar as a substitute.
• Try not to fry food. Wherever possible, find an alternative method of cooking. Grill, bake, microwave, poach or steam with no added fat. Or stir fry using spray oil and soy sauce.
• Consider investing in a slow cooker or “crock pot”. Foods cook very slowly in sauce, stock or juices without the need for any additional fat.
• Marinate foods overnight in wine, fruit juices, yoghurt… not only will the meat be lovely and tender, with added flavour, but the marinade can then be used to replace oil when basting.
• Don´t routinely add butter to mashed potatoes and other vegetables. Use a dash of milk. Sprinkle cooked vegetables with fresh herbs as garnish to add flavour.
• If you must add some fat, use one of the “low fat” spreads on the market, but be sure that it is suitable for your needs. Look for an all purpose spread with a fat content of around 40%. Most spreads tell you on the pack if they can be used for baking, although the end results will be a little different to using butter. Spreads with a very low fat content are generally only suitable for spreading.

Cooking at home and from scratch (not out of a bottle) is a great way to reduce your families fat intake. But it can be time consuming BUT with the help of a crock pot it can be quick, easy and tasty.

Put the meal on in the morning and by dinner time it is all cooked. If you have not used the crock pot before (and even if you have), I'd recommend you try one of Lisa's crock pot recipes; try one of these easy chicken crock pot recipes for a start.

A few simple changes here and there will soon add up, so try some of these tips next time you cook, and see if you can reduce your fat intake and feel the benefits to your health.