Like most people, I had no clue that there was such a month as “Frozen Food Month” (definitely frozen food manufactures have something to do with this)! Anyway, we were grocery shopping and a poster for the same caught my eye. Although I’m not for frozen ready-made/ready to eat food as it has way too much sodium and preservatives, I am a regular visitor to the frozen veggie aisle.
Frozen fruits and veggies are according to me a life saver for working women (and of course those men who can and will cook)! Washing, cutting and cooking veggies take time and that’s where these frozen veggies come handy since they are already cleaned and cut.
Nutritionally too, frozen veggies have the same nutrition as fresh vegetables and fruits. Some scientists feel that frozen fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than fresh foods as they are picked, cleaned, cut and frozen immediately after harvesting. Compare this to the amount of time it takes for the fresh veggies to be picked, packed, sent to the different parts of the country before it reaches a sabziwala(vegetable vendor) or sabzi mandi or bazaar near you. Even after that, it’s probably sitting on the cart/refrigerated shelf for some time before you pick (and put in the fridge) and it gets eaten!
The advantages of frozen veggies and fruit:
1) Easy, convenient and saves a lot of time (can you think of the amount of time saved peeling fresh peas)!
2) Sometimes frozen veggies can be cheaper when the fresh vegetable is not in season.
3) Similar in nutritional content as fresh veggies/fruits.
I always have a packet of frozen mixed veggies which has green beans, carrots, green peas and corn-I usually use this in pulav’s, upma, khichdi, poha, biryani and even in pasta and noodles!
What kind of frozen foods do you pick up?
Online diet consultation and Indian diets for weight loss,Healthy recipes and nutrition articles BY INDIAN DIETITIAN: Sweta Uchil-Purohit (www.myindiandietitian.com)
3 comments:
I had always read about frozen veggies being as good or better than the fresh ones too. But somehow the taste is not the same...
@ HCOF-I guess it also depends on the kind of dishes you use the frozen veggies for and also how you cook them.
Speed, efficiency and convenience are often the keywords in the home life. With busy lives, sometimes it can be quite a hassle to find and cook meals that are healthy, cost efficient and speedy to make. Frozen vegetables can help a cook with a busy lifestyle.
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