VEGETABLES
It is a glorious time for vegetable lovers. Farmers at their markets, exporters, and seedsmen are showering us with tastes, textures, and aromas we had never even heard of a few years ago. Science keeps confirming the age old maternal admonition to eat your vegetables. The specific diseases you can avoid and the miracle micronutrient of the moment might change with each new study, but the general advice stays the same: vegetables are good for you. Every vegetable contains every nutrient, every vitamin (with the exception of vitamin B12 which vegetarians can obtain easily from dairy products), every mineral, every kind of dietary fiber. It is less important to worry about which vegetable has the higher amount of one vitamin or antioxidant than to eat as many vegetables as you can, the fresher the better.
RULES FOR VEGETABLES
1. When possible, buy vegetables that have been organically raised. Give preference to domestically raised vegetables in their seasons. Even better, try to buy vegetables from your part of the country because they will not have been stressed by shipping a long distance, and their nutrients will be intact.
2. Inspect vegetables piece by piece to make sure all you take home are of prime quality. Choose vegetables with a radiant appearance and without blemishes.
3. Get a book from the library and learn the names of heritage varieties of vegetables you like. Then you will know that the funny looking ruffled tomatoes at the farmers' market are Costoluto Genovese and superior in flavor, not some poorly raised contemporary stock.
4. Do not wash vegetables until you are ready to cook them. Those that you suspect have been waxed or sprayed, wash with a mild detergent, rinse thoroughly; then peel. When the edible skins of vegetables have not been treated, do not remove them because they are a source of flavor, nutrients, texture, and fiber.
5. Wherever you store vegetables, give them a quick check daily. When a piece shows any sign of spoilage (sliminess, softness, mold, or oozing) remove it. Spoilage is infectious and will quickly ruin surrounding pieces.
6. As a general rule, store whole onions, garlic, shallots, chayotes, plantains, winter squashes, tomatoes, and thick-skinned tubers and roots in a cool cupboard once cut, they must be refrigerated. When there are leaves on root vegetables, cut them off and store separately. Plunge vegetables with stalks into a container of cold water and refrigerate. Most other vegetables are best stored in a perforated plastic bag in the refrigerator crisper:
7. When cooking vegetables, retain maximum nutrition by cooking quickly and using as little liquid as possible. Save cooking liquids and use them in soups or to cook another vegetable.
ABOUT BUYING AND KEEPING FRESH VEGETABLES
Avoid vegetables that look dry or wrinkled, bruised or badly blemished, lackluster. If two vegetables are of equal size and one is heavier, the heavier vegetable, which retains more moisture, will be more succulent. A good rule to follow is to select vegetables as close to the same size as possible because this ensures even cooking, even when pieces are cut up.
Because vegetables are generally less fragile than fruits, they are permitted to ripen before harvest. Fresh vegetables are still very much alive when you bring them into the kitchen. A cold, moist environment helps keep their tissues vibrant. For most vegetables, the shelter of a scaled perforated plastic bag (sold as" vegetable" bags) in a closed refrigerator crisper is ideal. However, if there is too much moisture, tissues start to deteriorate. For this reason,wait until just before cooking them to wash vegetables.
A few fine points for storing fresh vegetables.
Buds and stems: Plunge the stalks of artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, and cauliflower and any long stemmed greens in a pitcher of water, then refrigerate.
Greens without stems: Whether for salad or cooking, wrap in barely moist paper towels, then place in a perforated vegetable bag.
Roots: Cut oft any greens on top, leaving 2 to 3 inches of stems. Wrap the greens separately. Leaves draw moisture from their roots which is an advantage for the leaves, but not the roots.
Mushrooms: Wrap these in a loose paper bag.
If the vegetable comes wrapped in cellophane, remove the wrapper and place the vegetable in a perforated plastic bag. The following vegetables are best stored in a cool, dry place-ideally somewhere between 45°F and 50°F, but a warmer temperature is better than a colder one: boniatos, eggplants, garlic, onions, plantains, potatoes, winter squashes, sweet potatoes, ,.To roots, tomatoes, yams, and yuca roots.
ABOUT PREPARING VEGETABLES
Prepare vegetables as close to cooking time as possible. All vegetables grown commercially and most you grow yourself (even organically raised vegetables) should be washed before preparing. Only the insides of layered vegetables (lettuces, cabbages, onions) can be presumed to be free of dust and the errant insect. Wash vegetables no more than is needed to remove dust and dirt. Root vegetables whose peel you will retain should be scrubbed with a fairly stiff brush. Do not use a woven plastic or metal pad to scrub vegetables, as brittle bits of the pad can break off and get buried, unseen, in the food. In bunches of greens where soil gathers at the base, cut off the base, separate the leaves, and drop them into a sinkful of tepid, not cold, water. Tepid water relaxes the leaves just enough for them to let down hidden grains of sand. Swish gently with your hands. Individual leaves such as those of mustard greens can be rinsed individually. Lift the greens into a colander; empty the water and check for sand at the bottom of the sink; rinse the sink and repeat until the bottom is clean. With some greens, it will be necessary to repeat several times. If you suspect the vegetable has been treated with wax and/or pesticide, the best approach is to wash it, peel it, and wash it again. Pesticide residue cannot be washed off most vegetables.
The skin is a vegetable's seal, keeping nutrients in and microorganisms out. Break that seal (do whatever cutting and slicing is needed) as close to cooking as possible. If necessary, vegetables can be cut up and refrigerated in an airtight container several hours in advance, as in the morning for an evening meal. Packaged precut vegetables such as carrot sticks at the market usually have been treated with an antispoilage solution, and sensitive palates can taste it. Leave the skin on a vegetable whenever possible, unless you suspect it has been sprayed or waxed. The most efficient tool for peeling thin skin is a carbon steel swivel bladed peeler, which keeps its sharp edge over time; supermarket swivel bladed peelers are fine but should be replaced every few months. Pare as thinly as possible. A paring knife invariably takes more flesh of the vegetable along with it than is necessary. If the vegetable is cooked whole and then peeled and sliced, maximum nutrients and flavor are retained, and the skin is easier to remove. A few vegetables, notably potatoes, artichokes, salsify, celery root, Jerusalem artichokes, and some tropical roots, darken when their flesh is exposed to air. With these vegetables, use only a stainless steel blade because carbon steel will react with the flesh and darken it instantly. Darkened flesh is harmless, but to prevent susceptible flesh from discoloring, drop the pared vegetable into cold water mixed with lemon or lime juice or vinegar (1 tablespoon juice or vinegar to 4 cups water). It is best not to keep vegetables in water for more than 20 minutes, lest nutrients and flavor start leaching out.
Cut surfaces release flavorful juices, as when you are chopping tomatoes for a sauce or onions for a soup. The smaller the pieces are, the more quickly the juices will be released. For soups and sauces, pieces need not be uniform, so you can use a food processor. Just be sure to scrape all the liquid from the workbowl into the pan. For uniform pieces that will finish cooking at the same time, cut by hand, with the slicing disk on a food processor, or with a mandoline. When a vegetable has two parts with distinctly different shapes and textures, as broccoli does, you must cut the denser, slower cooking part into smaller pieces than the more tender part if both are to cook in the same amount of time. The same is true when cooking two or more vegetables together, as when steaming rutabagas and potatoes before mashing them. Another reason for cutting vegetables is to expose just the right amount of surface to the seasoning you have in mind. If you want to serve the vegetable with a light sauce you might decide to cut it into small pieces or thin slices so that the butter you are using can coat as much surface as possible. But if the sauce will be thick and rich, such as a hollandaise, you may want to cut it in larger pieces so that the vegetable will not be overwhelmed.
All hand cutting begins with slicing. Many chopping and slicing devices are available, but nothing can replace a skilled, relaxed wrist and a sharp, heavy knife, practice with a mushroom, which is yielding and not slippery when placed cap down, and work tip to an onion, which can be both resistant and evasive.
The point of the knife is never lifted from the cutting board; instead it forms a pivot. The handle end of the knife is raised high enough to be eased gently up and down, its wide blade guided by the perpendicular forefinger and midfinger of the free hand, which holds and guides the vegetable being cut. As the slicing progresses, inch a slow retreat with the free hand, which should keep a firm grasp on the object. When roll cutting, make a diagonal cut straight down, roll the carrot (or turnip or potato) a quarter turn, and slice again. Repeat until all of the carrot is cut.
It is easier to slice a round vegetable, like a potato, if you first cut a thin slice off the bottom to create a flat surface to rest on the cutting board (the resulting slices will not be completely round, however). For attractive diagonal slices of a thin vegetable, such as green beans or asparagus, hold the knife at an angle to either the vegetable or the cutting board. For most everyday cooking, vegetables are simply sliced crosswise; they can first be cut lengthwise into halves or quarters if they are very thick. But if you want to turn slices into more elegant strips or cubes, cut long vegetables, like zucchini, into 2-inch chunks and then slice the pieces lengthwise (for the tidiest appearance, first cut a straight edge on all sides of chunks and discard the scraps or save them for the stockpot ). Round vegetables, like turnips, can be sliced crosswise or length-wise, depending on which will yield the longer slice.To cut slices into smaller pieces, stack them, a few at a time, then cut them into very thin strips (less than 1/8 inch thick) to make a julienne, slightly wider strips (about 1/8 inch thick) to make matchsticks, or much wider strips (about ¼ inch thick) to make batons.
Cutting an onion chef's style keeps pieces from scattering all over the board and gives you control of the size of the pieces. Halve the peeled onion lengthwise. Lay the halves cut side down on the board. Steady the piece lightly with the tips of the fingers of your assisting hand (the rest of your hand safely turned under, so just the first ioints of the hand are exposed to the knife). Slice the onion lengthwise in parallel cuts up to, but not through, the root. (For slices, now cut off the root.) Next, make several horizontal cuts of the desired thickness parallel to the board up to, but not through, the root. (For matchsticks, now cut off the root.) For diced or chopped pieces, cut through the onion at right angles to the last cuts at the desired thickness, then cut through the root. For round onion slices, slice crosswise.
Many large leaves such as those of chard and some of the Chinese cabbages have fleshy ribs in the center. The leafy parts will cook faster than the ribs and should be separated, although they can be combined again for serving. Fold the leaves lengthwise in half, and either use the tip of a small, sharp knife to slice the green leaves away from the center stalk, or hold the top of the stalk and rip the two leafy parts oft the stalk from top to bottom. Often the stalks can be cut up as another vegetable because the ribs of chard can be chopped and cooked like celery.
ABOUT COOKING VEGETABLES
There is more than one cooking method for every vegetable, and no one method is superior. Some vegetable enthusiasts go so far as to suggest that vegetables are best if not cooked at all. To preserve nutrients, flavors, and textures, cook vegetables as quickly as possible in a covered pot. To preserve color, cook in an uncovered pot because acids, which all vegetables contain, collect on the underside of the lid and then drop back into the pot, darkening colors. Color should never be maintained by the addition of baking soda, for this alkali not only destroys nutrients but makes vegetables mushy. Colors also may be lost through cooking in hard water. Salting early in cooking helps retain bright colors.
The degree of doneness is a matter of personal taste. Some enjoy vegetables like green beans slightly undercooked (the crisp, tender stage). However, cabbage, onions, and rutabaga grow sweeter when cooked until soft. Fibrous greens become easier to digest as their fibers soften. And sometimes a little extra cooking will release enough natural juices to allow the cook to reduce the amount of butter, salt, or other seasoning needed. As with cooking so many other foods, when you start smelling the vegetables, they are at the point of being fully cooked. Most vegetables should be lightly salted before they are cooked because seasoning to taste requires considerably less salt if it is done during cooking and not afterward, and the flavor seems deeper somehow. Allow about ¾ tablespoon salt per 4 cups cooking water, or 1/8 to ¼ teaspoon salt per serving of vegetables not cooked in water.
Here are different ways to cook, heat, and serve vegetables:
Boiling: When green vegetables are dropped into a big uncovered pot of boiling salted water that is rapidly brought back to a boil, their color is instantly set. Given ample space in the water, each piece cooks quickly. For retaining flavor and texture, this method is superb. Boiling time in a recipe is counted from the time the water returns to a boil after the vegetables have been added. This sort of boiling is also useful for tough vegetables, like fibrous green beans or large leaves.
Fill a stockpot with 16 cups (4 quarts) water, unless otherwise noted. Add 1 ¾ tablespoons salt. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Drop the vegetables into furiously boiling water and start counting for specified cooking times from the time the water returns to the boil. Do not leave the pot for long, as most vegetables cook quickly. Soon after the water returns to a boil, pull out a sample vegetable with tongs or a long handled strainer and taste. Do this frequently until the vegetable is a shade less than the desired degree of doneness, then drain. Since the temperature at which water boils decreases at high altitudes, vegetables will take longer to boil to doneness, and water may need to be added during prolonged cooking.
Quickly plunging vegetables into boiling water is the method of choice for setting color and partially cooking vegetables that will be finished another way or frozen or canned. In this partial boiling called blanching or parboiling the vegetables are cooled quickly unless the finishing cooking follows immediately.
Braising and Stewing: Slow cooking in a flavorful liquid is ideal for vegetables like potatoes, carrots, turnips, rutabagas, cabbages, and Brussels sprouts, which can all absorb stock or another seasoning liquid. They can be tossed first over medium-high heat in hot butter or another fat and then simmered, partially submerged in the cooking liquid, until the vegetables are soft and the liquid is reduced to a sauce like consistency. Since the "sauce;" or pot liquor, is eaten with the vegetables, the vitamins and minerals that dissolve in it are not lost. Braising can be done on top of the stove or in the oven; either way requires a heavy pot and will caramelize some of the juices of a sweet
vegetable, like carrots, to yield deep and delicious favor.
Broiling: One advantage to broiling over grilling is that for vegetables like mushroom caps, butter or oil can be placed in the hollow to moisten the flesh without running out.
Creaming, Buttering,, and Saucing: Practically any vegetable can be served in or with a sauce. However the vegetable is cooked, drain it thoroughly before combining with a sauce or butter. The amount to use depends on the richness of both the vegetable an the sauce-as little as 1 teaspoon butter to ¼ cup cream sauce per cup of cooked vegetables. Consider the amount, too, if the vegetables are to be presented in individual bowls or spooned from a serving bowl onto a plate. If you are moistening vegetables in a casserole (perhaps in layers) spoon over just enough sauce to cover them. Such casseroles are often finished off with a layer of buttered breadcrumbs, sometimes mixed with cheese and browned.
Deep-Frying: Check to see that the vegetables are dry before applying a coating. It is also best to let the coating dry for about 10 minutes before immersing the food in fat, which should be heated to between 350°F and 375°F. Cook until the vegetables are golden. Vegetables suitable for coating or battering and deep-frying are long green beans; 1/3inch-thick eggplant slices barely nicked with a thin knife at ¾ inch intervals all around the bands of skin; mushrooms and tiny bell peppers, whole or halved; cucumber, squash, zucchini, or sweet potato rounds; small bundles of julienned onions or thin scallions; asparagus tips; cauliflower or broccoli florets; artichoke hearts or stems.
Glazing: Root vegetables cooked by this method are suitable for garnishing and require no further saucing.
Grilling: Vegetables are usually halved or sliced for grilling to speed up cooking, and the cut surfaces need to be coated with oil or a vinaigrette, which will protect against drying and also promote browning. The popular practice of cooking foil wrapped packets of cut up vegetables on the grill is actually a form of steaming and works with any vegetable that steams well, although carrots and other hard vegetables can take twice as long as they would being steamed on the stove. For campfires and barbecues, here are two simple potless ways to cook vegetables. For the first, use frozen or sliced and washed vegetables. Place them on heavy-weight aluminum foil and seal them. Cook the foil wrapped vegetables on a grill or under or on hot coals for 10 to 15 minutes. For the second method, place thick slices of tomato, mushroom, pepper, or parboiled onion directly on a greased grill rack above the coals. Cover with an inverted colander and cook until tender.
High-Altitude Vegetable Cooking: In baking vegetables at high elevations, use approximately the same temperatures and timing given for sea-level cooking. in cooking vegetables at high altitude by any process involving moisture, both more liquid and a longer cooking time are needed, as the vegetables boil at lower temperatures. If the vegetables are more thinly sliced or cut into smaller pieces, they will cook in less time. Make these adjustments as an approximate time guide: For each l000 feet of elevation, add to the recipe's cooking time about 10 percent for carrots and onions and about 7 percent for green beans, squash, green cabbage, turnips, and parsnips. In cooking frozen vegetables at high altitudes, whole carrots and beans may require as much as 5 to 12 minutes of additional cooking, while other frozen vegetables may need only 1 to 2 more minutes. Do not be surprised if whole potatoes, beets, and yams need considerably more time than at sea level.
Microwave Cooking: For speed of cooking and maximum preservation of nutrients, the microwave is matchless. Colors and flavors are vibrant and, with careful attention, textures can be too. Timing in these recipes is for food on a turntable in a 700 to 1000 watt oven. In the range of time given, the shorter cooking time is for the higher wattage. A turntable is essential for even cooking. If your oven has no built-in turntable, buy a wind-up turntable in the housewares section of a department store. Generally, a 2-quart baking dish is called for. An 8 x 8 x 2-inch glass dish is ideal, with a lid or microwave plastic wrap sealed all around the dish except at one corner, where it is folded back to make a vent. For liquid, use vegetable, chicken, or beef stock, or lightly salted water. No matter what the recipe timing says, as soon as you can smell the vegetables, stop the oven and taste a sample piece, because they are close to ready. The importance of standing time to finish the cooking cannot be overemphasized. Microwaving works best for vegetables with quantities of about 1 pound; otherwise the cooking can be uneven. Nevertheless, it is often faster to microwave two successive batches and mix them together than it is to cook a vegetable by a slower method. Do use the microwave to melt butter or make a simple sauce right in the serving dish, no matter which way you have cooked the vegetable.
Pressure-Cooking: The pressure cooker offers another fast way of steaming vegetables. It is a boon for dense vegetables like roots and winter squashes, but green vegetables are almost invariably overcooked. We do not recommend pressure-cooking any vegetable that requires less than 5 minutes conventional cooking. The quantity of food in the pan does not affect timing, so the pressure cooker offers an advantage when there is a quantity of potatoes, for example, to cook. Always use the trivet that comes with the pan (or, if necessary, a round cake rack). Follow the pan manufacturer's booklet regarding timing. Also note within this chapter which vegetables cannot be pressure-cooked. After cooking fresh vegetables, cool the cooker at once by placing it under cold running water.
Pureeing: A potato masher or food mill will yield a coarse puree; a hand-held mixer or potato ricer will produce a smooth puree. More nutrients are retained if the vegetables are cooked before blending. You can heat the puree briefly in butter or cream before serving.
Refreshing: To instantly stop hot food from further cooking (as when vegetables are pulled from a pot of boiling water) it is plunged into ice water or placed under cold running water.
Roasting or Baking: In the dry heat of the oven with no added liquid, nutrients are preserved and flavors are concentrated. Oven cooking takes time but is convenient, especially with vegetables that have a thick exterior, such as potatoes and winter squashes. Watery vegetables like eggplant cook so soft that they can easily be scooped from the shell. Remember to pierce the skin of any whole roasting vegetable with a knife tip in several places, or the vegetable may explode from built-up steam. Vegetables that do not have a protective skin must be sheltered from drying on the outside, either by coating the flesh with oil or by roasting at a temperature low enough to cook the inside before the outside dries out . An easy way to roast vegetables is to cook them with roasting poultry or meat. Set whole small potatoes, or larger ones halved or quartered (or vegetables of similar size) in the pan and turn occasionally to keep moistened with drippings. They may overcook a little, but they will be delectable.
Sautéing: like stir-frying, this involves stirring vegetables in hot fat over fairly high heat. In sautéing, however, the heat can be a little lower and vegetables need not be cut up. The aim is to season the vegetable with butter or oil as it cooks and, in many cases, to brown it.
Simmering and Poaching: Cooking vegetables at a temperature below that of boiling water is sometimes useful. Use stock for added flavor.
Steaming: Steaming is fast and convenient (you can easily check the progress), and it protects water soluble nutrients, which do not dissolve in the steam. An electric steamer is faster than steaming on top of the stove. A collapsible steamer basket placed in a large pot with a tight fitting lid or in an electric skillet or a metal insert made to fit a specific pan or pot, or a metal or bamboo Chinese steamer also works well with most vegetables. Make sure the water level does not rise above the level of the basket; heat the water to boiling, add the vegetables, cover tightly, and cook to desired doneness. Vegetables that do not fit easily into steamers, such as asparagus spears, can be placed directly in a pan filled with about 3/8 inch boiling water or stock; cover tightly and at least once during steaming reposition the spears or other pieces to lift the parts that are submerged. Another method of steaming greens, which results in darker colors but maximizing nutrients, is to cook them, covered, in ¼ to ¾ inch boiling stock or salted water until tender, stirring occasionally.
Stir-Frying: Vegetables cut in small, even pieces and stirred over intensely high heat with a modicum of fat and liquid cook through in the fastest possible time.
Stir-frying is most efficient when the pieces of food have plenty of room to move in the pan, allowing surfaces constant exposure to heat. Work in several batches, if necessary, to prevent vegetables from being crowded and steaming in their own moisture, which prevents browning and dilutes flavor. Many vegetables are best stir-fried until golden or brown and then finished with steam by adding liquid and covering the pan. This method reduces the amount of fat needed to finish cooking dense vegetables and yields excellent taste.
For best results, the vegetables should be sliced to uniform thickness. Cut those that tend to stringiness on a diagonal. Stem ends and midribs should be removed from coarse-leaf vegetables, then sliced and cooked separately. Use 1 to 2 tablespoons cooking oil per pound of vegetables. Heat the wok or large, heavy skillet until almost smoking hot. Add the oil and heat to the point of fragrance. You can add a slice or two of garlic or fresh ginger briefly, then discard it before the vegetables are put in the pan. If meat and vegetables are to be cooked together, the meat is cooked first. Remove it from the pan and add it again when the vegetables are nearly finished. Stir the vegetables rapidly with a large, flat spatula, coating them with oil, until they show signs of wilting slightly. Some cooks like to season at this point with a dash of soy sauce and stock. When the vegetables are just tender, stir in additional stock if needed. Succulent vegetables such as cucumbers, tomatoes, summer squash, spinach, Chinese cabbage, and leafy greens release so much liquid themselves that they usually do not need additional stock. Cover the pan briefly until the sauce comes to a boil, stir vigorously, then serve at once.
Stuffing Vegetables: Naturally large and hollow vegetables are easy to shape into delicious and decorative cases for stuffing; these include tomatoes, peppers, squashes, cucumbers, onions, and mushrooms. It is best to parboil the cases until nearly tender before stuffing, as stuffing mixtures generally cook faster than the vegetable. Experiment with using parboiled vegetable cases in place of individual baking dishes, filling the vegetable with pasta mixtures, soufflé batters, other vegetable combinations (anything that contrasts in color, flavor, and texture with the case). Raw foods that need long cooking should not be ingredients in vegetable stuffings.
After parboiling and draining the cases, fill the vegetables and place them on a rack in a pan containing about ¼ inch water. Bake the stuffed vegetables in a 400°F oven until thoroughly hot, unless otherwise indicated.
Sweating: To release delicious flavor from finely chopped aromatic vegetables (onions, garlic, shallots, carrots, and celery, for example) before they are simmered in a sauce, stew, or braise, "sweat" them in a small amounts of butter or oil in a covered pan over medium to low heat. After a few minutes when the vegetables are tender but not browned and their juices are released they are ready. For a lower fat technique, butter and oil can be replaced with stock.
ABOUT VEGETABLES IN THE MENU
The government's nutrition guidelines, which recommend three to five servings of vegetables daily, regard one serving as ¾ cup of a cooked vegetable. Put this amount on a dinner plate, and you will see how small it is. A more common portion is closer to 1 cup; the recommended daily intake is actually quite simple to achieve. Although yield varies, the rule of thumb is that 1 pound of vegetables yields three or four servings. With spinach and other leaves, the yield is closer to two servings per pound.
Like many other nonvegetarians, we long ago discovered the pleasure of lightening the week's menus with one or two vegetarian dinners. Vegetables also make excellent seasonings, providing a nutritional two-fer. Stir browned onions or mushrooms into rice; sauce green beans with braised tomatoes; use diced peppers or ribbons of arugula or grated carrots as a garnish. Between meals, grab a stalk of raw broccoli or a hand-ful of radishes or roasted pumpkin seeds instead of sugary sweets.
Try serving leftover vegetables in a salad (cold food is as nutritious as hot).