Everybody wants to lose weight by eating healthy. But have you ever thought about losing weight by cooking healthy? The problem with fast food and takeouts is that they are often fried, oily, with too much sugar or preservatives in them, but with little nutrients. Eating right may be the first step for a healthier lifestyle, but cooking healthy will allow for an easier adjustment to maintaining that lifestyle in the long run. Another advantage is that cooking allows you to be creative with your dishes, while at same keeping it low on calories or fats. For example, one consistent winner at the 34th Bayou Gourmet Cook Off for the Healthy Category has been whipping up healthy dishes for her diabetic husband, and this allowed her to get creative with some of her recipes. The great thing about eating homemade, healthy dishes is that you have all the room to cook it according to your own taste and you can just be creative with what you are doing.

One way to start cooking healthy is to use this rule: grill instead of fry and bake instead of grill. The less oil it needs to cook the food, the better it is because that way, you can keep the food on a low-fat basis. Another way is to use non-grease or non-stick frying pans like those Teflon utensils so that it will be quicker to cook the food without using so much oil.

Remove excess oil by placing fried food in plates lined with paper towels – another technique to keep fats at a minimum. When choosing cooking oils, go for olive oil or canola oil which are both easy on unsaturated fat content. For salads, go easy on the dressing – there is no point in eating the greens when you are putting on so much mayonnaise or vinaigrette and adding more calories to your dish.

Shopping for food is another way to start eating and cooking healthy. The main rule is to go for organic, low calorie and low fat food. The good thing about organic food is that they are unprocessed and they still keep most of their nutrients with less preservatives in them. Try looking at the labels, and monitor how much trans fats, sugar, salt or calories does the food contain. Of course, opt to buy more green and leafy vegetables and fruits, and choose dairy products with low fat content like switching from ice cream to yogurt, or changing from full milk to soya milk.

Choosing kitchen utensils that allow for various cooking methods will help you get creative when cooking healthy. For instance, you can get the Bosch universal mixer at any Bosch mixer sale, and then start setting it up on your kitchen for that healthy smoothie. A healthy lifestyle starts with having the right tools and the right knowledge to get it right the first time.

One of the best ways to lose weight is by enjoining the support and encouragement of your family to be involved or to join in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Kids naturally have a sweet tooth, and they will always choose a pancakes and eggs over an oatmeal breakfast. It is important that kids must be taught to eat healthy. The Department of Education has regulated the school canteens of public schools to over meals and food that have high nutritional value, rather than selling burgers, fries and chips. Among kids, the incidence of obesity is also prevalent, making them vulnerable to be picked on or bullied by their peers for their weight.

Cooking with your kids is not only an opportunity to teach them how to become independent, but it also allows them to take control over the food they eat. The great thing about teaching cooking skills is that it involves learning many things – from chemistry, to culture and geography. Kids become knowledgeable about a variety of foods and flavor, about presenting dishes, and on becoming a sophisticated and nutritious eater. Best of all, teaching your kids how to cook can be a great bonding activity for the whole family.

The first things kids should remember about eating healthy is reduce, replace or eliminate fats, sodium and sweets in their diet or cooking recipes. For example, reduce calories by reducing salt content and replacing them with herbs and spices that also add flavor to the food. Replace full cream milk with low-fat dairy products such as yoghurt and cottage cheese. Eliminate or reduce salad dressings, seasonings and condiments into your dinner meals. When frying, replace standard cooking oil with canola oil or olive oil. Both canola and olive oil have one of the lowest fat content and helps protect your heart and arteries from possible cholesterol build up.

When cooking healthy meals with kids, it is best not to use the frying method, since this always entails using cooking oil. Instead, bake, grill, boil or steam your food. These cooking methods require using fresh food retains the food’s nutritional value and does not require adding up on sweets or sodium to give it flavor. When mixing ingredients with a Bosch mixer, replace ingredients such as sugar or oil with lemon or orange extracts and with buttermilk. Always include fruits in your diet and whole wheat grains. Baking using the Bosch bread mixer, makes it easier to combine all the thick, but healthy ingredients.