Stir-frying is quick and healthy: you can’t go wrong with these tips | Cooking & Eating

Stir-frying is convenient and healthy. You can quickly fry small pieces of food with little fat on high heat. This way your food retains its taste and many vitamins. “If you use the right way of preparation, you retain the most nutrients,” says Maryam.

With wok cooking you fry small pieces at a high temperature. “It is important to keep shoveling well, you don’t want ingredients to burn. Then it will also remain crunchy. If black edges or crusts do appear, cut them away.”

You don’t have to cook everything for the same amount of time. Are you going to stir-fry cubes of meat (substitute), chicken, fish or shrimp? Wok these first. Remove the meat from the wok and place it on a clean plate.

Then put firm vegetables with a longer cooking time in the wok, such as green beans, florets of cauliflower, broccoli, onion, eggplant, strips of cabbage and carrot. Put vegetables with a short preparation time last in the wok, such as cubes of zucchini, bell pepper, mushrooms and bean sprouts.

Make sure you use the right oil. When wok cooking, the temperature of the pan and the oil is between 180 to 230 ° C and not all oils can tolerate that temperature. “If you heat it, a substance is released that is unhealthy,” says Maryam. Linseed oil and butter are not suitable for stir-frying because of their lower smoke point. Extra virgin olive oil is also less suitable for this. The taste of extra virgin olive oil is largely lost after heating. this oil can also decompose above 180 degrees and unhealthy substances can arise.

There are different wok pans: A sheet steel pan heats up quickly. With a wok made of cast iron, this takes longer, but it stays hot for a long time. And there are woks with a non-stick coating. Use a plastic or wooden spatula, otherwise the layer will be damaged.

Traditionally, a wok has a round, convex shape that allows the fire to heat the pan from all sides. However, woks on an electric stove or induction hob are also fine, says Maryam. “If you put it on the highest setting, it has the same effect. It’s about cooking food quickly on a high heat.”

– Preferably cut the fresh vegetables yourself instead of taking them pre-cut from a bag. First of all, this is often cheaper, but it also lasts longer.

– Some vegetables are cheaper to find in the freezer, and they are just as healthy.

– With vegetables from a jar, also make sure that no sugar and/or salt has been added.

– When preparing, make sure that the oil does not start to smoke or steam. If in doubt, check the oil’s packaging to see if it can be heated.