Preparing Vegetables

• culinary

Let's See If You Remember The Unit Price Lecture...

One dozen eggs (12 eggs) costs $5.99, how much would it be per egg?

One loaf of bread costs $4.75 and there are 21 slices in the package, how much would one slice cost?

Unit 3 Vegetables

What are we going to learn?

• Classifications
• Nutritional Value
• Selecting and Store
• Fresh, Canned, Frozen, Dried, Unit Price
• Preparing and Cooking Vegetables

Preparing Raw Vegetables

• It is important to wash all vegetables to remove dirt, bacteria, and pesticides. 
• Do not soak fresh vegetables in water. 
• Store washed and thoroughly drained vegetables in covered containers in the refrigerator. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• When you cook vegetables, several changes take place. The cellulose (fiber) softens, to make chewing easier. 
• Starch absorbs water, swells, and becomes easier to digest. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• Flavors and colors undergo changes and some nutrients may be lost
• Crisp-Tender: This means vegetables are tender, but still slightly firm. You can pierce them with a fork, but not too easily. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• Cooking vegetables too long causes several undesirable changes to take place
• In most cases, you should cook vegetables for a short tme in a small amount of water. 
• Serve them when they are crisp-tender. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• Yellow vegetables contain carotene, a source of Vitamin A. 
• Heat does not destroy carotene, but overcooking will cause the cellular structure to break down and release carotene into the cooking liquid. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• White vegetables contain pigments called flavones. 
• Flavones are soluble in water. 
• Overcooking white vegetables will cause them to turn yellow or dark gray. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• Red Vegetables (Ex: Purple Cabbage) contain a pigment called anthocyanin. 
• Add vinegar or lemon juice to the water to keep red vegetables red. (Cooking beets with their stems and leaves will also prevent them from changing color.)
• Cooking vegetables in their skins retain more nutrients. 

Food Science Principles of Cooking Vegetables

• Legumes are dried peas, beans, and lentils. 
• They must be soaked before cooking. 
• Vegetables cooked in the microwave can be more nutritious than vegetables cooked with other methods. This is due to the short cooking time and the use of little of no cooking liquid. 

What does it mean to cook vegetables "crisp-tender"?

1. Crispy and black
2. Tender, but slightly firm
3. Golden brown
4. Gray and yellow

What happens to the flavones in the white vegetables when they are over cooked?

1. Turn yellow or gray
2. Turn pink
3. Turn black
4. Turn into mush

Cooking Vegetables 

• Mince
• Frying
• Sauté
• Crisp-tender
• Steam
• Blanched

• Pressure Cooking
• Baking/Roasting
• Broiling
• Microwaving
• Legumes

Mince

• A cooking technique in which ingredients are finely divided. 
• This allows the flavor of the ingredient to be distributed more evenly.

Frying

• This means cooking your food in fat.
• Fat can be oil, lard, or butter
• Frying is one of the quickest ways to cook food, which temperature typically reaching between 175F - 225F
• Frying vegetables can be coated in a batter, coating, or with nothing at all. 

Sauté

• A cooking method that uses a small amount of fat (oil, butter, lard) in a shallow pan over high heat. 
• All ingredients are heated at once and cooked quickly
• When sautéing, make sure you move/stir your items quickly or they will burn. 

Crisp-tender

• A term that describes vegetables that are cooked until just tender but still somewhat crunchy. 

Steam

• To cook by steaming, suspend the food over boiling water in a covered pot or steamer.

Blanch

To cook in boiling water or steam for a short time. 

This stops enzyme actions which can cause loss of flavor, color, texture. 
It reduces cooking time by half. 

This must be done before freezing vegetables. 

How to Blanch Vegetables

1. Boil water over high heat
2. Add your vegetables
3. Boil for 3-5 minutes
4. Transfer vegetables to a bowl of ice water

Watch this video to get a better idea on How to Blanch Vegetables

Pressure Cooking

• Cooking food at high pressure, using water or a water-based cooking liquid in a sealed vessel known as a pressure cooker. 
• High pressure limits boiling, and permits cooking temperatures well above 212F (100C) to be reached

Baking/Roasting

• Baking is a method of preparing food that uses dry heat. 
• Normally done in an oven, but can also be done in hot ashes or on hot stones. 
• Heat is gradually transferred from the surface of foods to their center.

Broiling

• Is a cooking technique that uses radiant heat from an overhead source. 
• Foods are placed in the oven, and the heat above cooks the food.  

Microwave

• A microwave is a small oven that cooks or heats food very quickly. 
• Instead of the electric or gas heat that a regular oven uses, a microwave heats with electromagnetic radiation.

Microwaving

• Vegetables cooked in a microwave often retain their shapes, colors, flavors, and nutrients. 
• This is due to the short cooking time and the use of little or no cooking liquid.  

Preparing Canned, Frozen, and Dried Vegetables

• Canned vegetables have already been cooked
• Heat canned vegetables no more than necessary before serving
• Frozen vegetables have already been blanched (preheated in boiling water or steam for a short time). This reduces cooking time by half.

Legumes

• Dried peas, beans, and lentils are the most common dried beans. 
• They are high in protein and fiber, and make a great meat substitute. 

Preparing Legumes

• Before cooking legumes, rinse and sort them. (Sometimes rocks or non-food debris will be mixed in the legumes.)
• Dried beans must also be soaked before cooking so they will absorb water and cook more evenly. 
• Discard soaking water before cooking to reduce the gas-causing properties of beans. 

Watch this video on how to prepare legumes. 

Sauté 

Roast/Bake

Blanch

Fry

Steam

Homework

Unit 3 Study Guide

Due 10/14 11:59pm

Assessment (Exam)

Unit 3 Assessment

10/15

30 Questions

(Matching, True/False, Multiple Choice)

Extra Credit

Vegetable Video Critique

Watch a cooking video related to the current unit. 

Find a short (3-5 minute) cooking video in which vegetables are the main ingredient. 
Then you will critique the video and complete the questions on the assignment

10 Points