How to reduce fat when you cook

About 10 years ago I decided to change all my lifestyle and the way I was eating. I didn’t feel well with my body and consequently with my mind, constantly questioning me about what were the right choices for me and my family. It was then that I started a new quest, trying to find out new practical techniques, types of food and healthy diets more suitable to my needs.

When I have found the book – “Low-fat cookbook” by Sue Kreitzman, everything started to make sense... I started experiencing in the kitchen and being more eager and curious. I can guarantee to you guys that everything that I’m going to post on this blog has been done in my kitchen and are practical things that really work.

So how can we reduce fat when we cook? According to the author, who is a specialist in low-fat meals in order to fight obesity, her strategy is never to use fat when you cook – you don’t replace one fat by another fat – having as a goal an absolute nutritious, delicious and slimmer diet.

There are several techniques that you can find in this book, for example:

•  Use oil (olive oil, sesame, sunflower or walnut) diluted with water;
• Stew with a meat stock instead of using olive oil;
• Sauces that are prepared with semi-skimmed and skimmed dairy products;
• Dense mashed vegetables (purees) and stocks with no fat what so ever;
• Clear all the fat from the meat and also the skin-fat of the poultry.

 For me the most fascinating technique, at the time that I have never thought of was the first one, diluting the oil in water, which we can use to grill, to stew, sauté, or in salads. I must confess that I only use a high quality 100% virgin olive oil diluted with water (as any good Portuguese, we remain loyal to our beautiful olive oil).

So the technique consists in filling up a new and washed air sprinkler (for example, like the sprinkle you use to water the plants), with seven-eighths of water and one of sesame, sunflower, walnut or olive oil. Shake well in order to mix and blend the two liquids, and then you just have to spray the grill, the food, the saucepan or whatever you are using.

According to the author, you should use the olive oil if you want to achieve a more intense flavour, sunflower oil to all purposes, walnut oil to a more delicious and acute flavour and the sesame oil if you are preparing oriental dishes.

Now you just have to try it to see if it works.