Cooking is probably one of the oldest household activities or chores that man has been doing. I suppose man would have introduced the concept of cooking when he was a hunter and had to eat meat. In my mind, thousands of years ago, the caveman would have spent days hunting and trying to get food in order to survive. His life would have revolved around thinking of ways he could feed himself in order to live. As it evolved, the barter system must have gotten to where he could trade and thus have some time to do other things. Today, food is taken for granted and is a tiny part of life. As it is today, I’m not quite sure if it is considered an important part of life. I think we’ve taken the concept of outsourcing and bartering too far, where we expect someone to almost prepare our food for us and finish it or worse yet heat it up. We have found several other things to do and have lost focus on the most important aspect of life: food. Well, I am not a food addict, but the reason I believe that food is a very important part of life is because it determines the state of health of the mind and body. As they say, health is wealth, and this is best appreciated when it is unhealthy!
Going back to the cooking method of yesteryear, I remember one of the programs on television that showed a famous chef visiting India and cooking regional food in the traditional way. He cooked meat in a hole where the fire was filled. The meat was tightly wrapped in banana leaves and all the spices loaded on the meat. The banana leaf is supposed to keep the meat moist. My trip to my hometown reminded me of another traditional cooking method: a crock pot! The sight of women cooking in clay pots on a fire outside the house tempted me to join them. Another traditional process involved fermenting some foods. For example, in South Indian cuisine, certain doughs were allowed to ferment overnight and the bacteria that actually ferment the food aided in digestion. You could continue with this traditional process, but did you notice what they have in common? Weather! Everyone needs some time to cook, but what is a surprising fact is that my ancestors, who followed traditional cooking methods, lived a long and healthy life. As our lifestyle has changed, so has our cooking method. There is probably no home without a microwave oven and few homes without ready-to-heat or eat-ready foods stored in the freezer. I am sure that the microwave oven is considered a blessing by many people who are busy juggling work and family. Challenging him is and I am no exception. I struggle to find enough time to cook good food and bought a large microwave. And what do I think of that now? Well, here is a summary of some claims that I saw on some websites:
1. The general advice is not to heat baby milk (breast or formula) in the microwave. The obvious reason is that uneven heating could burn the baby’s mouth, but also that the milk is spoiled and some key components of the milk, such as vitamins, are lost.
2. Scientists named Hertel and Blanc are said to have discovered that eating microwave-cooked foods caused hemoglobin levels to drop. It is said that they also found that large amounts of radiolytic compounds are formed in microwave-heated foods, causing deterioration in the blood and immune system. Some powerful organizations allegedly prevented them from publishing their findings.
3. Russian scientists are said to have discovered that microwave energy causes changes in the cells of food, be it vegetables, meat or milk, and creates carcinogenic structures. It also damages the immune system and makes it harder for the body to fight cancer cells.
4. One would think that if it is that bad for humans, it would have been banned. But regulatory organizations like the FDA are said to insist that more microwave energy does not leak and harm people and also one of the popular benefits of using it, that is, less oil and no water therefore is healthier and more nutrients are preserved.
After reading these terrifying findings, I think it is suicidal to continue eating food cooked in the microwave. Better safe than sorry. So, just as I conclude this article, I have decided to sell my microwave oven. Instead, here are a few things I plan to do …
1. Plan my meals for the whole week to have all the ingredients in storage. Whenever possible, prep how to cut veggies, make and refrigerate the garlic ginger paste, make the basic gravy, and refrigerate.
2. Cook large amounts over the weekend and freeze a couple of servings for myself and my husband. Thaw in the refrigerator in the morning as needed and heat on the stove at night.
3. Use my convection oven whenever possible and try to reduce fat intake by baking rather than frying.
4. Use traditional methods like cooking in a crock pot which also tends to increase the flavor.
While it’s entirely up to you to decide if you really want to cut down on cooking time the modern way, I would refrain from putting microwave recipes on my food blog.