This is the first in an intermittent series of culinary how-to's with such ease and changeability that calling them 'recipes' would seem a bit overreaching.
First up: carrots!
First up: carrots!
I love carrots. Not only are they delicious and healthy, but they're also one of the cheapest vegetables around! And, unlike some of their other cheap veggie brethren (cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, onions), carrots won't embarrass you in public with gastrointestinal cartwheels.
My favorite way to prepare carrots, like any other vegetable, is roasting. A high-heat roast for 30-45 minutes caramelizes the natural sugars in the vegetables while giving them a perfect texture. However, roasting is a bit of a luxury to the cash-strapped college student. It takes a long time, it heats up the apartment, and you're spending a lot of money to use your oven. So what am I supposed to do? Boil my vegetables? Ugh!
Microwave to the rescue! Microwaves (contrary to the common beliefs of gullible people) do not cook food with cancer-causing death rays. You just need to take a few precautions. That means using glass cookware (no plastic!) and not a bit of metal. Okay? Can we please put the 'microwaves reassemble your food's nutrients' thing to rest? ANY form of cooking is controlling a chemical reaction to alter the chemical nature of your food. And microwave cooking is PROVEN, by SCIENCE, as one of the best cooking methods to preserve some nutrients (like vitamin C). Suck it, hippies!
Okay, rant over. Can you tell scientific misinformation peeves me out?
Carrots are ideal candidates for the microwave because they retain a nice texture and taste, and cooking them requires a minimal amount of water. Some vitamins and minerals are water-soluble, and the use of water in cooking causes them to leach into the water. Which is fine if you drink the water, like in soup, but otherwise you might just be throwing nutrients down the drain.
How To Microwave Carrots
1 lb of carrots, washed and sliced (I don't peel - you can, if that's what you want)
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon vinegar (rice, wine, apple cider, etc.)
Seasonings
Here are some tried-and-true seasoning combinations:
Enjoy!
My favorite way to prepare carrots, like any other vegetable, is roasting. A high-heat roast for 30-45 minutes caramelizes the natural sugars in the vegetables while giving them a perfect texture. However, roasting is a bit of a luxury to the cash-strapped college student. It takes a long time, it heats up the apartment, and you're spending a lot of money to use your oven. So what am I supposed to do? Boil my vegetables? Ugh!
Microwave to the rescue! Microwaves (contrary to the common beliefs of gullible people) do not cook food with cancer-causing death rays. You just need to take a few precautions. That means using glass cookware (no plastic!) and not a bit of metal. Okay? Can we please put the 'microwaves reassemble your food's nutrients' thing to rest? ANY form of cooking is controlling a chemical reaction to alter the chemical nature of your food. And microwave cooking is PROVEN, by SCIENCE, as one of the best cooking methods to preserve some nutrients (like vitamin C). Suck it, hippies!
Okay, rant over. Can you tell scientific misinformation peeves me out?
Carrots are ideal candidates for the microwave because they retain a nice texture and taste, and cooking them requires a minimal amount of water. Some vitamins and minerals are water-soluble, and the use of water in cooking causes them to leach into the water. Which is fine if you drink the water, like in soup, but otherwise you might just be throwing nutrients down the drain.
How To Microwave Carrots
1 lb of carrots, washed and sliced (I don't peel - you can, if that's what you want)
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon vinegar (rice, wine, apple cider, etc.)
Seasonings
- In a microwave-safe (glass) dish, place the sliced carrots, water, and vinegar. Loosely cover with a paper towel and microwave on HIGH for 5-7 minutes.
- Stir the carrots, recover with paper towel and microwave on HIGH for another 2-3 minutes, or until carrots are fork-tender.
- Drain, adorn with your seasonings of choice, and serve.
Here are some tried-and-true seasoning combinations:
- Southeast Asian (pictured above): Sriracha, fresh basil
- Italian: pesto, cracked pepper
- Indian: curry powder, cinnamon, salt
- Japanese: tamari sauce, sesame seeds
- American: parsley butter, salt, pepper
Enjoy!
RSS Feed