Healthy cooking

One of the most common concerns for people who care about their health is to cook in a healthy way, rich in flavors and that can adapt to our daily lifestyle.

But what does “ healthy cooking ” mean?

Food guides

Modern nutrition advice recommends eating 45% to 60% of your daily caloric intake as carbohydrates (fruits, vegetables, legumes, and seeds); the rest of your calories come from protein , and fat is limited. However, on a ketogenic diet , you eat 5% to 10% carbohydrates, 15% to 30% protein, and 60% to 75% fat. This obviously changes the way you cook and the types of meals you eat.

The essentials

To cook healthily in a ketogenic diet , you have to choose raw or minimally processed foods, and try to have a stock of the essentials. You can also cook in large quantities by freezing the dishes to have a stock and not find yourself at the last minute with nothing to eat...

Proteins

The most important macronutrient, essential for the proper functioning of the body, is protein. Protein has an important place in the ingredients for healthy cooking at home. These include all types of meat and its derivatives, poultry, eggs, cheese, fish and seafood.

Lipids

A must-have for the ketogenic diet: the right lipids for healthy cooking and seasoning dishes. These include cream, butter, ghee , lard, duck fat, coconut and palm oil , MCT , olive oil, avocado oil, flaxseed oil , sesame oil, pistachio oil, macadamia nut oil, etc. It is not necessary to have them all, but to have at least one fat that can be cooked at high temperatures, one for light cooking and one to use cold.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates will come mainly from low-carb fruits and vegetables. The choice is individual, depending on preferences and potential allergies or intolerances.

Other basics

Foods to also have, which bring flavor, as well as proteins and good lipids are oilseeds, condiments, whole and coconut cream, sugar-free sauces , and for those who like the sweet side, sweeteners , chocolates and keto-compatible flours.

How to prepare your dish

Choosing a protein

The rule is simple: First, choose a protein. Protein should make up about 30% to 40% of the surface area of ​​your plate. Protein makes up about 25% of your daily calories, but since fats contain 9 calories per gram compared to 4 calories per gram of protein, they will take up more space on your plate than 25%. Fats, on the other hand, will take up less space because they are higher in calories. Protein also contains fats.

Choosing a healthy lipid

Once you've chosen your protein, move on to your fats: healthy fats make up about 50% of your plate (that's 75% to 80% of your total calories, because they have twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates and protein). Note that fats used for cooking should be considered as space-saving if placed separately on your plate. You should also consider the fat in your protein.

The place of carbohydrates on the plate

Finally, we add (or not) carbohydrates in the form of vegetables. These should represent about 10% of the surface of the plate (based on 20 grams of net carbohydrates per day). Carbohydrates represent 5% of calories, but since fats contain 9 calories per gram compared to 4 for carbohydrates, they will take up more space on the plate than 5%.

This is also because carbohydrates generally contain fibers that are not counted in the 20 grams but take up space on the plate. If we choose foods containing a lot of fiber, carbohydrates can take up to 15% of the plate. Note that oilseeds and dairy products contain carbohydrates.

The tips

Smoke points

The smoke point of a fat determines how much it can be heated. Oils with low smoke points release free radicals —if heated beyond their point—that are inflammatory and lead to poor gut health.

High temperature

For cooking at high temperatures, the ideal is to use ghee , lard or duck fat, coconut oil, palm oil, cocoa butter.

Light cooking

For light cooking, olive oil, macadamia oil, avocado oil or butter.

Cold

The oils to be used cold are, in addition to those recommended for light cooking, pistachio, flax , walnut, sesame and pumpkin oils .

Batch cooking

Cooking in bulk can make life a lot easier. In fact, if you're going to cook hard-boiled eggs, it's best to cook a dozen instead of two or three; this allows you to have a ready-to-eat protein. Hard-boiled eggs last a week in the fridge. Along the same lines, if you're going to make cauliflower rice, for example, it's best to cook the cauliflower whole, put it in freezer bags and set aside in the freezer. The same trick applies to zucchini spaghetti, chopped onion and garlic, and any other vegetable that can be frozen. For proteins, it is better to cook them immediately than to freeze them cooked, because they lose their flavor.

The “ life-savers”

Finally, having products in your cupboards and fridge that allow you to concoct a keto plate quickly and easily is always recommended. Grilling knacks, sausages, or opening a can of tuna into crumbs is quick and easy. Accompany it all with keto products such as palmini (palm heart pasta) in different forms, low-carb pasta, protein bread , konjac , tortillas , and good lipids. Never forget that a cold cuts and cheese platter is something easy and quick that provides protein and fat and almost no carbohydrates!

Conclusion :

Healthy cooking may seem like a challenge, but in the ketogenic diet everything is simple, despite what may seem complicated at first: you choose a source of protein, good lipids and vegetables in the correct proportions, and you already have a dish that can be ready very quickly.

The key is to consume proteins and lipids, which will have a beneficial impact on health. Carbohydrates are not essential, but they bring diversity to the plate and fiber. Ready-made keto-compatible products can complement and brighten up a ketogenic meal.