Boiling is best for cooking carbs
Starchy foods like potatoes or rice are full of hard to digest carbohydrates. Heat helps break down the cellular structure of the plant which allows the body to extract nutrients easier. But more isn’t better in this case. For example, deep frying exposes food to so much heat and makes carbohydrates so available, that otherwise healthy potatoes become a sugar bomb with a Glycemic index comparable to pure glucose. Boiling gives you just enough heat to make foods easily digestible but not too much to ruin them.
Don’t throw away the water
Boiling allows you to make good use of older, tougher, and cheaper cuts of meat. It also retains maximum colour and a lot of nutrients when cooking green vegetables, provided the boiling time is short. One downside is that a significant portion of water-soluble vitamins is lost in the water. That’s why you should always try to use the remaining water when boiling vegetables or meat, it makes a nutritious soup!
Recipe: Salmon with basil coconut rice
This recipe uses boiling to cook the coconut rice so you can expect the Glycemic index to stay low. It serves up to three people and it only takes about 20 minutes to make if you already have a boiled leftover rice. It’s a practical and easy way to enjoy some tasty protein and safely prepared carbs!
Ingredients
Salmon
• 1 pound salmon filet
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• sea salt
Basil Coconut Rice
• 3 cups cooked white rice
• 2/3 cup full-fat coconut milk
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 3 green onions chopped
• ¼ cup fresh basil chopped
• 1 heaping handful baby spinach
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice to taste
• sea salt
Directions
1. Put the oven on the high broil setting and lightly oil the inside of a casserole dish.
2. Drizzle the salmon with oil and sprinkle generously with curry powder and salt. Place salmon on the top shelf of the oven and broil for 10 to 15 minutes, until crispy and cooked-through.
1. Add the coconut milk to a saucepan and heat to medium-high. Add the garlic and green onion and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the basil, spinach, and lime juice and continue cooking until spinach has wilted.
3. Add the cooked rice, stir everything together until well combined, and continue cooking until rice is heated through, about 5 minutes. Add sea salt to taste and hot sauce if desired.
