Unfairly, adults and kids avoid eating vegetables because they are mushy and unpleasant to eat. However, the truth is that vegetables aren’t the issue. It depends on how you cook them. Vegetables can be transformed into savory treats and delicacies if you use your imagination when utilizing herbs, spices, and seasonings.
Vegetables are star ingredients in every cuisine, from Arabic and Indian to Greek, Mediterranean, Italian, and French. Cruciferous veggies have a delightful crunch that’s ideal for deep-frying and grilling, while leafy greens make the most amazing savory sauces. The best part is, adding more colorful vegetables to your diet will make your meals rich in multivitamins and minerals.
If you don’t enjoy eating veggies, reflect on your cooking methods and their impact on the taste. For instance, boiling and steaming is easy, but it makes the veggies mushy and unpleasant. Air frying, baking, grilling, and sautéing are great approaches to making delicious vegetable dishes. Read on to explore practical tips to prepare tasty vegetable meals.
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1. Fry them
If you’ve never had kale or zucchini fries, get ready to explore an exciting world of savoriness with remarkable nutritional benefits. Instead of deep-frying meats and potatoes that soak up excessive oil, use green vegetables to prepare your favorite fried treats. Suppose you’re trying to replace fried chicken with a healthier alternative with greater nutritional benefits. In that case, consider swapping the chicken with cauliflower.
You can toss cauliflower in the same batter you prepare for Nashville-style hot chicken, coating the florets nicely with dry and wet ingredients. Then, fry them up to enjoy this mouth-watering treat. Air frying is a healthier alternative to deep-frying, and recipes are abundant. Eggplant lovers can experiment with a breaded eggplant recipe in the air fryer for a savory and palatable crunch.
Deep-frying can often make veggies mushy and soggy, but the air fryer accentuates the crunch and uses less oil. We suggest infusing the veggies with herbs, spices, and olive oil to accentuate the flavor. You can explore innumerable recipes to make delicious vegetables once you get creative with spice mixes and air-frying techniques. It all boils down to making the right breading and seasoning mix to infuse the vegetable with a delectable flavor palette.
2. Infuse Veggies with Herbs and Lime
If you typically prepare vegetables without adding any herbs or citrus, no wonder you don’t find them enjoyable. Herbs are powerful taste-enhancing ingredients that set the flavor profile of any vegetable or meat-based dish. Each herb packs up a unique taste and a wide host of nutrients with powerful health benefits.
Garnishing vegetables with basil, cilantro, dill, mint, oregano, or tarragon can boost taste and nutrition density. We strongly advise working with fresh herbs as they pack up a rich and bold burst of flavor. You can use a food processor to combine all the herbs and create a paste to slather onto your veggies. Squeezing lime or orange juice will accentuate the taste and freshness, elevating the flavor with a zesty flair.
We suggest stocking your pantry with basil, cilantro, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, and thyme. These herbs are ideal for preparing fresh produce with a flavor-packed taste that everyone will enjoy devouring.
3. Turn up the Heat
Do you love spicy seasonings that give your taste buds a bold kick of fiery heat? Who doesn’t, for the love of spice is universal, and everyone has unique preferences tailored to their spice tolerance levels. If you’re preparing your vegetables with only salt, the result is bound to prove disappointing. We suggest adding some flavorful spices to transform vegetables into delectable treats.
Seasonings and spice mixes accentuate the flavor, making any vegetable a decadent, Michelin-worthy treat. Mixing basil, cumin, coriander, chili powder, and curry powder with paprika, garlic powder, and ginger creates a mouth-watering flavor profile. Smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, and allspice are great for delicious sides and vegetable casseroles.
There’s an exciting world of spices out there, and each culture introduces a new blend. Mexican, Asian, and Indian cuisine is brimming with endless variety that begs to be explored. If you find grinding fresh spices difficult, consider shopping for seasoning mixes from your local supermarket. Some great options include Cajun, Herbs de Provence, and Mediterranean and Italian spice blends.
4. Prepare Flavorful Dips and Sauces
We all love devouring chunky chicken nuggets with generous dollops of ranch, thousand island, and mayo sauces. But have you ever eaten vegetables with a side of flavorful dips and sauces? If not, prepare your taste buds for a delightful burst of flavor.
You can explore many recipes to enjoy raw, blanched, sautéed, grilled, and baked veggies with delicious dips. For instance, you can enjoy baked zucchini fries, cauliflower florets, and eggplant strips with tzatziki, guacamole, or good-old ranch dressing. If you’d like to explore delicious dips and nutrient-dense sauces, we advise taking inspiration from Middle Eastern cuisine.
There’s an exciting world of sauces to explore from Egyptian and Lebanese cuisine, such as hummus, Muhammara, Tahini, and Labneh. Using a blender, hummus is prepared with chickpeas, tahini, lime juice, and olive oil. You can customize a traditional hummus recipe with roasted bell peppers, eggplant, and beetroot. Most of these sauces are prepared in a blender within seconds, demanding no additional effort.
5. Blending and Purees
Do your children gear up for revolt the moment you place a vegetable dish on the dining table? You’re not alone in this struggle. It’s natural for children to recoil at the sight of a vegetable, especially if they’re not accustomed to eating greens. Shifting eating habits becomes increasingly challenging when we encourage a love for fast food and deep-fried treats from a young age. But adding vegetables to their daily diet is crucial to support healthy bone development and nutrient intake.
We have an incredible solution: sneak vegetables into their meals with smoothies and finely blended purees. For instance, a green smoothie prepared with bananas, spirulina, spinach, flax seed, and berries is a powerhouse of nutrients. The bananas and berries will neutralize the vegetables, making the smoothie delicious. Adding pureed veggies to everyday meals will enhance flavor and nutritional value.
Conclusion
When you start experimenting with herbs, seasonings, and cooking techniques, you’ll find vegetables much more delicious than meat. Stuffing vegetables with mixed vegetable pastes and meats is another way to prepare tasty treats. Turkish cuisine is brimming with amazing recipes to prepare stuffed bell peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants. So, try these tips, and your family will love all the vegetable meals you prepare.
