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THE IMPORTANCE OF COOKING HEALTHY AT HOME

When you prepare and cook meals at home, you have better control over the nutritional content and the overall healthfulness of the foods you eat. You can also save money!

It’s also important to remember that cooking at home can play a big part in bringing your family closer together. From getting the kids to help mixing ingredients to setting and clearing the table together, family meals afford the perfect opportunity to bond.

Read on for some tips on healthier eating at home:



Choose lean meats and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.

  • The leanest beef cuts usually include sirloin, chuck, loin and round. Choose “choice” or “select” grades rather than “prime.” Select lean or extra lean ground meats.
  • Lean pork cuts include tenderloin or loin chops.
  • Remove all visible fat from meat and poultry before cooking.
  • Remove skin from poultry before eating.
  • Choose white meat most often when eating poultry.
  • Duck and goose are higher in fat than chicken and turkey.
  • Grill, bake or broil meats and poultry.
  • Organ meats — such as liver, sweetbread, kidneys and brains — are very high in cholesterol.
  • Cut back on processed meats that are high in saturated fat and sodium.

Eat at least two servings of fish each week.

  • Fish can be fatty or lean, but it’s still low in saturated fat.
  • Recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega–3 fatty acids (for example, salmon, trout and herring) may help lower your risk of death from coronary artery disease.
  • Prepare fish baked, broiled, grilled or boiled rather than breaded and fried.

Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.

  • Use liquid vegetable oils and soft margarines in place of hard margarine or shortening.
  • Limit cakes, cookies, crackers, pastries, pies, muffins, doughnuts and French fries made with partially hydrogenated or saturated fats.

Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol.

  • Try to eat less than 300 mg of cholesterol each day.
  • Some common cholesterol-containing foods include whole eggs (about 200 mg per yolk), shellfish (50 to 100 mg per ½ cup), “organ” meats such as liver (375 mg per 3 oz) and whole milk (30 mg per cup).