Nutrients & more...

In the last post we discussed all the de-merits of deep fried foods. Nonetheless, we can still enjoy these foods if only we take them moderately and have good physical activity levels to burn off the excess fat consumed. Deep frying is a technique which has to be done properly to reduce fat absorption. Appropriate cooking temperatures are important here. Each time you deep-fry, oil's smoke point is lowered irreversibly. So choosing an oil appropriate for cooking requirements is the best option. Some useful indicators of oil deterioration are: 1. Darkening, foaming, smoking, thickening, unpleasant smell on heating and a rancid taste. 2. Loose absorbent particles accumulate as sediment at the bottom of the storage container or are suspended in the oil. Use a small strainer or slotted spoon to remove as many crumbs as possible. 3. The viscosity of oil changes; it gets denser and it pours slowly. Tips to utilize oil effectively 1. Select oil with high smoke point if you ...

Indian cooking is full of various fried dishes from Pakodas, samosas, kachoris, namkeen sev, bhujiya (usual savory snacks) etc. to poori and bhaturas (fluffed, deep fried flatbreads) to bhajiya & vadas (deeo fried dumplings); fried foods are everywhere. Reasons to avoid Deep fried products 1. Full of fat- The amount of fat/oil exceeds far beyond the daily needs of an average person. Excess fat accumulates in the body over a period of time and leads to obesity. Such people are more prone to metabolic syndrome and heart diseases. Pic 2. Deadly- Repeated frying (a common practice in India) makes the oils smoke and changes the properties of the oil. Overheating leads to production of deleterious compounds like acrylamide, acrolein, etc. which are extremely damaging to the body. Pic 3. Salted- Salt is necessary in our diet but we are getting too much of it. This is evident by the increasing number of patients with high blood pressure. Most of the fried foods are salted. O...