We all know we should eat our veggies. Most of us think raw is probably better than cooked, but that's not necessarily so.
For some vegetables, cooking breaks down the cell walls, making it easier for your body to absorb the nutrients.
Spinach is rich in calcium and iron, and to get the maximum benefits, you should blanch the leaves lightly and then plunge them into cold water. That reduces the levels of an acid present in raw spinach that inhibits absorption of its nutrients.
When you cook carrots, you can absorb about 14 percent more of the carotenoids, the antioxidants that they contain.
Cooking white mushrooms just about doubles their levels of important nutrients like potassium, niacin, zinc and magnesium.
The list goes on. Boiling asparagus just until they turn bright green boosts cancer-fighting antioxidants and phenolic acid.
And the same goes for tomatoes. One study found that cooking them boosts the disease-fighting antioxidant called lycopene by about 35 percent and creates a deeper, more intense flavor experience, too.
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Consumer Reports recommends roasting tomatoes for about a half hour at 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
Keep in mind though that cooking veggies also can destroy some vitamins. For instance, the level of vitamin C goes down quite a bit in cooked tomatoes. So it is important to eat a wide variety of vegetables — both cooked and raw — to get as much of their good nutrients as possible.
