• News
  • Sports
  • Finance
  • Lifestyle
  • Entertainment
  • Video
  • Travel
  • Cars
  • eBay
  • Jobs
  • Dating
  • Property
  • More sites
Make ninemsn your Homepage
Hot Topics:   Miranda Kerr Cudo: 57% off five day Thai holiday!
  • Mobile
  • Messenger
  • Hotmail
recipes
  • Recipes
    Ingredients
    Avocado
    Banana
    Beef
    Chicken
    Lamb
    Great rice recipes
    Seafood
    Search all recipes
    Cuisines
    Asian
    French
    Greek
    Indian
    Italian
    Spanish
    Thai
    Cooking inspiration
    Categories
    Barbecue
    Budget
    Easy
    Coles & Curtis
    Healthy
    Kids
    Less than 15 mins
    Food in pictures
  • How to
    Tips & tricks
    Expert advice
    Cooking tips
    Alana's blog
    Pink Leopard blog
    French Connection
     
    How to bake bread
    Making fresh pasta
    Pancake perfection
    More tips
  • Family
    Everyday recipes
    Coles & Curtis
    Cooking with kids
    recipes+
    Delicious desserts
    Easy soups
    More family meals

    Great family recipes

  • Healthy eating
    Healthy recipes
    News & features
    Healthy choices
    Special diets
     
    Low fat recipes
    Vegetarian recipes
    Low carb recipes
    Aussie food
    More healthy tips
  • Entertaining
    Party planning
    Special occasions
    Wine & cocktails
    Summer entertaining
    Grill a celebrity
    Desserts to impress
    More entertaining

    How to make a Bloody Mary

  • Cooking videos
  • Table talk

News and features

NINEMSN FOOD > Healthy recipes > News and features

Secret weapons for your kitchen

By Pamela Allardice
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
 
Share with MessengerShare
Tweet
Secret weapons for your kitchen
More about Healthy eating:
  • Deep frying food not linked to heart attack
  • Who invented the cheeseburger?
  • How to eat out without gaining weight
  • Women lie 474 times a year about their diets
  • Man markets panda poo tea
Topics:
Healthy eating

Having the right utensils goes a long way towards improving the quality of your nutrition. Pamela Allardice lists the top five gadgets no cook should be without.

1 Hand-held stick blender

You can pop this straight into a saucepan or bowl to puree soups, smoothies or sauces, rather than having to spoon the mixture into a food processor. Blending produces a rich consistency, without adding fat.

2 Slow-cooker

Long-cooked stews and casseroles are a signature dish of many classic cuisines, including the French cassoulet and the Moroccan tagine. With a tiny bit of preparation at breakfast, dinner literally cooks itself. There are few things more comforting than being greeted after a hard day with the mouthwatering aroma of a satisfying meal. Plus, slow-cookers make the most of cheaper ingredients, like beans, vegetables, stewing beef, and chicken thighs.

3 Steamer

This is one of the healthiest ways to prepare food, particularly vegetables, as the short cooking time and the fact that the food isn't immersed in water means that they retain their nutrients more than with boiling, which leaches water-soluble vitamin C and folate into the cooking liquid. A versatile and energy-efficient choice of steamer is the double saucepan-style. Fish and tofu also work well in a steamer, particularly the ones which can fit over a wok containing boiling water.

4 Cast-iron saucepan

Twenty per cent of women of childbearing age are iron-deficient, says the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. They're not officially anaemic, but the symptoms are the same – fatigue, susceptibility to infection, difficulty concentrating. Cast-iron saucepans will increase the iron content in your diet: the mineral leaches out of the pot into the food, especially in acidic foods like pasta sauce and tomato-based soups.

5 Microplane grater

This inexpensive gadget is probably the most worthwhile investment of all, as it amps up the flavour of food without adding salt, sugar or fat. Use it to zest citrus fruit, and to grate nutmeg, ginger, and hard cheeses.

P.S. What about microwave ovens? Sure, they're quick, but the 'ping-and-peel-off-the-plastic' school of food preparation may not be the healthiest choice.

A study in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture found that microwaving zapped up to 97 per cent of the flavonoids (antioxidant compounds that reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease) in vegetables. Steaming only caused a loss of 10 per cent.

Which kitchen 'weapons' can't you do without? Tell us below!

 
Share with MessengerShare
Tweet

Also in this section

Valentine's Day treat: Adriano Zumbo's Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur milk chocolate macaronsValentine's Day treat: Adriano Zumbo's Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur milk chocolate macarons Deep frying food not linked to heart attackDeep frying food not linked to heart attack Who invented the cheeseburger?Who invented the cheeseburger? Eating off red plates can cut food intake by 40 percentEating off red plates can cut food intake by 40 percent

More inspiration

Rose scented white chocolate mousse with candied walnutsRose scented white chocolate mousse with candied walnutsI never really understood the desserts that were served in our house when I was growing up. My dad loved to experiment – tinned pineapple and sour cream was memorable – I remember it curdling, I... Valentine's treat: marinated strawberry and rose ricotta cheesecake glassValentine's treat: marinated strawberry and rose ricotta cheesecake glassLike every women I love receiving roses, but what I enjoy even more is incorporating beautiful crimson roses in my cooking and Valentine's Day is the perfect time to use the perfumed flavour of roses... Curtis Stone: How to make a reductionCurtis Stone: How to make a reduction
Recipe finder
Advanced search options
Recipes A-Z Meal maker
advertisement
Get great recipes on your mobile wherever you are.

Follow us on twitter @ninemsnFood

Alana Lowes: yoghurt flatbreadAlana Lowes: yoghurt flatbread Curtis Stone: How to use prosciutto when cookingCurtis Stone: How to use prosciutto when cooking Curtis Stone: How to make pastry doughCurtis Stone: How to make pastry dough
 
Top tips on how to cook for a crowd from the OzHarvest CEO Cook-offTop tips on how to cook for a crowd from the OzHarvest CEO Cook-off How to get teenagers interested in cookingHow to get teenagers interested in cooking
Celebrate the Queen's diamond jubilee with a $150,000 whiskeyCelebrate the Queen's diamond jubilee with a $150,000 whiskey
Valentine's Day breakfastsValentine's Day breakfasts

Recipes How to Family Healthy eating Entertaining Cooking videos Table talk
Gourmet TravellerGourmet TravellerWIN a trip to beautiful Hawaii
  • News
  • Sports
  • Finance
  • Lifestyle
  • Entertainment
  • Video
  • Travel
  • Cars
  • eBay
  • Jobs
  • Dating
  • Property
  • More sites
  • About ninemsn
  • Careers at ninemsn
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
Other ninemsn businesses: iSelect RateCity msnNZ Cudo
© 1997-2012 ninemsn Pty Ltd - All rights reserved