There's a serious quest these days for ways to reduce the fat incooking.
Cooks are mastering a variety of techniques to accomplish this.For instance, instead of high-fat ingredients, many other liquids canbe used to replace the fat in cooking. Meat or vegetables can besauteed in water, defatted chicken stock, vegetable stock, wine orsherry. Nonfat dairy products such as nonfat yogurt, nonfat cottagecheese and nonfat sour cream can be substituted for higher-fatproducts. Fruit purees can be substituted for fat in baking.
Other techniques are also helpful. Having the right nonstickcookware is important when you're not using fat in cooking. Forpan-sauteing, a pan with a T-Fal finish is adequate. Wear-Ever'sSilverstone and top-of-the-line Supra, which are heavycommercial-gauge aluminum pans, are good all-purpose nonstickchoices. Buy these with nonstick interiors and removable handles sothey can be popped into the oven or under the broiler.
A Calphalon griddle, made of heavy-gauge anodized aluminum,works well for cooking pancakes.
Before investing in an expensive set of nonstick cookware, buythe smallest, least expensive saute pan or saucepan to test itsnonstick qualities.
A plastic gravy strainer or fat separator cup with a long spoutcan be used to remove fat from soups, stocks and sauces.
Various cooking methods - such as steaming, microwaving,pressure-cooking and pan-sauteing; steam frying - make the job ofreducing fat easier, too. Or try a variety of baking and grillingtips.
Steaming foods is one of the simplest ways to avoid cooking withfat. You'll need a heavy saucepan with a snug-fitting lid and asteamer insert. This insert is a folding stainless-steel basket,which should be available wherever kitchenware is sold. There are anumber of saucepan-basket combinations on the market that aredesigned to be steamers.
When steaming foods, fill the saucepan with about an inch ofwater, place the food in the steamer basket, cover with the lid andsteam over medium heat. Most vegetables that have been cut intoserving-size pieces will steam in about five minutes. Denser foodssuch as small new potatoes, winter squash and large green beans willtake 10 to 15 minutes.
When cooking these longer-steaming foods, be sure to check thesaucepan to see if more water may be needed. Foods cooked lightly bysteaming instead of boiling keep more of their water-solublevitamins.
When steaming, try using wine instead of water, or add lemonjuice or flavored vinegars to the water. Steaming liquids can beseasoned with garlic, onions, leeks, whole peppercorns, bay leavesand fresh and dried herbs such as basil, oregano, thyme and dill.
Microwaving is another way to preserve the vitamin content andflavor of foods while cutting down on fat, since microwave ovens cookfoods quickly, many in their own natural moisture.
Pressure cookers cook with superheated steam under high pressureand can cut the preparation time of many foods from 50 to 70 percent.The moist steam reduces the need for fat in cooking, and vitamins andminerals are retained because pressure-cooked food cooks quickly andis insulated from oxygen.
Unlike old-fashioned pressure cookers, the newest models havevalves that are fully automatic, quiet and self-regulating. Thevalve automatically releases excess air when pressure is too high.
You can pan-saute; steam fry foods even when not using fat bysubstituting small amounts of other liquids such as nonfat,low-sodium chicken broth, vegetable broth, fruit or vegetable juice,vinegar, lemon juice, water or wine.
Use a nonstick pan with a treated finish. To saute, place thepan over medium-high heat. Add liquid and bring it to a sizzle. Addfood and stir quickly, making sure all the ingredients are cookedevenly. To "brown" food, let all the liquid cook down until the foodstarts to brown. Deglaze the pan by adding a little liquid after thefood is cooked.
When baking, you can cut fat calories by avoiding the need tooil baking pans. Buy high-quality nonstick bakeware or line panswith baking pan liners. These may be in the form of reusableparchment paper, which is available in rolls and in precut round andsquare shapes of various sizes at most kitchen supply stores.
Another good choice is the Magic Baking Sheet made by VonSnedaker. This sturdy, reusable product wipes clean and is truly"nonstick." It comes in a variety of sizes and shapes and can bepurchased at cooking supply stores or ordered from Von Snedaker at:12021 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 231, Los Angeles, Calif. 90025. It ismicrowave-safe.
When using muffin tins, use paper liners. If you must oil abaking pan, use nonstick vegetable cooking spray and spray thesurface as lightly as possible. Or, fill an inexpensive plasticspray bottle with olive oil or canola oil to use for this purpose.
While baked goods made without fat will never duplicate theflavor and texture of those prepared with fat, fat-free baking canyield an array of treats to satisfy your sweet tooth. Many recipesreplace fat or shortening with banana puree, applesauce or prunepuree. This adds the nutrients and fiber in the fruit as well asreducing fat. Wrap baked goods made without fat in plastic wrap andrefrigerate them since they'll get stale more quickly.
Test baked foods for doneness instead of relying on suggestedbaking times since your oven temperature may not be identical tothose in which recipes were tested.
When grilling foods, try using fat-free Italian dressings orlemon juice as a marinade to avoid fat calories.
Some fat-free dressings are packaged in dried form to be mixedat home. But here are some fat-free dressings you can make fromscratch. Los Angeles Times Syndicate Basic Italian dressing Makes 3 cups
2 tablespoons arrowroot or cornstarch
2 cups water, divided
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup minced green bell pepper
2 scallions, minced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1. Dissolve arrowroot in 1/4 cupwater. Bring remaining 1 3/4 cups water to a boil. Stir indissolved arrowroot and whisk until clear. Let cool. 2. Stir in remaining ingredients. Dressing can be refrigerated for2 days. Use as a marinade for grilled foods or as a dressing formixed green salads. Honey-mustard dressing Makes about 1 cup
1 cup plain nonfat yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon cider vinegar 1. Combine ingredients in a jar. Tighten lid and shake untilblended. 2. Chill for 30 minutes before serving.
Tools and Tricks Cut Fat From Foods // Out of the Frying Pan
There's a serious quest these days for ways to reduce the fat incooking.
Cooks are mastering a variety of techniques to accomplish this.For instance, instead of high-fat ingredients, many other liquids canbe used to replace the fat in cooking. Meat or vegetables can besauteed in water, defatted chicken stock, vegetable stock, wine orsherry. Nonfat dairy products such as nonfat yogurt, nonfat cottagecheese and nonfat sour cream can be substituted for higher-fatproducts. Fruit purees can be substituted for fat in baking.
Other techniques are also helpful. Having the right nonstickcookware is important when you're not using fat in cooking. Forpan-sauteing, a pan …
