Rosalee Brown
THE HEAVY rainfalls this year have been overwhelming our farmers. Some vegetables have been soaked or damaged by wind, mould and insects. The ripple effect is that the price of vegetables in the market has been going up. Some consumers are buying less vegetables or just buying those varieties of vegetables that are more affordable.
Tomatoes, lettuce, scallion and many other favourites are now at a premium price, but we can still afford callaloo, pak choi and mustard greens. Since we are encouraged to consume lots of vegetables daily, to benefit from their vitamins and minerals and other phytochemicals which have been shown to fight diseases, what can we do in these circumstances?
One very good option is frozen vegetables. Commercial frozen vegetables are very nutritious and studies have shown that they contain greater nutrient integrity than some fresh vegetables. This is so because most are preserved as soon as they are harvested; some companies do it right in the field! A process called flash freezing is used, where the vegetables are sorted, washed, blanched and frozen quickly.
Most vitamins are water-soluble and can be easily destroyed by light and heat. Vegetables from the market that are freshly harvested sit for a long time in the heat and sun and lose valuable nutrients. We transport them, sometimes under not-so-good conditions, and then keep them in the refrigerator for an extended period so, by the time they get to the table, they have lost most of their valuable nutrients.
This is also the case with imported vegetables which sit for a long time in supermarkets, exposed to light and other elements. One thing I find amazing is that, even when the vegetables are wilted and ugly, they are not removed from many supermarkets' shelves and are, in fact, offered for sale at the same price. Even more amazing is that some consumers actually purchase these not-so-good vegetables! I guess our consumers are to be blamed as in most North American supermarkets wilted vegetables are marked down or removed from shelves.
Frozen vegetables, on the other hand, retain their nutrients if kept frozen, and in an opaque bag protected from light, until they are prepared.
PREPARATION TIPS
Read labels and look for additives such as sodium and sugar; choose brands frozen without these additions.
Choose brands in opaque air-tight containers; those placed in chill trays with plastic wraps, although less expensive, are exposed to the light and air and have lost some nutritive value.
Keep frozen until ready to use.
Cook quickly, microwave or steam in a small amount of water, as valuable nutrients can be lost in the cooking water. Use the vegetable water in sauces or to cook rice dishes. One cooking method, which works for me, is to add the vegetables to the top of my rice dish when it is half cooked.
BACKYARD GARDENER
You can do your own flash freezing when you harvest your home-grown vegetables.
Harvest young, tender vegetables; use unblemished ones.
Sort, wash and cut if necessary.
Blanch by plunging into boiling water for a short time, depending on the nature of the vegetable, then in ice water to stop cooking and to preserve colour.
Put individual pieces on a tray, cover and freeze until hard.
Remove from tray and freeze at below 0º C in an opaque, labelled container or freezer bag.
Keep eating your vegetables.
Rosalee Brown is a registered dietitian/ nutritionist who operates Integrated Nutrition and Health Services; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.
