Roasting Minutes and Tips For Veggies

Regardless your eating regime and your food choice, veggies are probably part of your meals. Consuming vegetables will only do you good; you will have the right daily intake of fiber, minerals, vitamins and sugars (the healthy amount!) and you will feel full and refreshed. Veggies are not always a side dish – they can be served as part of the main meal, they can save you in the late hours when you crave junk food and they can replace a whole meal at work. So, if you’d like to prepare your favorite veggies in a healthy and delicious way, try roasting them instead frying, because the second one includes lots of oil and kills their nutrients.

Roasting vegetables is not difficult at all. Just like any other foods, these will taste and look good if you know the right cooking timing. It’s really irritating checking your veggies on 5 minutes and ending the process with failed, burned and killed sticks and slices. If you’re a newbie in this mastery, here’s something you can use: a list of veggies and the time they need to be coked well and properly.

Pre-cooking tip: Choose low-moisture veggies, the ones that are low in water.

Cutting: Choose the right length and size when you cut the veggies. Make small pieces from the veggies that need the longest to be roasted.

Space: Don’t over-crowd the vegetables. Leave space between them, so that way the hot air can move and catch all of the pieces. If you mix a lot of veggies without leaving some space between the sticks, slices and chunks, you’ll end up with a roasting pan full of pulpy and mushy veggies.

Temperature: when roasting food, always pre-heat the oven. Use a common temperature that will suit the veggie mix, or add later the veggies that get cooked fast. 200°C is the perfect heat your greens, roots and potatoes need.

10-15 minutes – mushrooms and asparagus

15-20 minutes – Brussels sprouts and tomatoes

20-25 minutes – bell peppers, onions, eggplant and carrots

25 – 20 minutes – cauliflower, broccoli, potatoes, sweet potatoes and butternut squash

35 – 40 minutes – beets

When you’re roasting veggies, make sure you’re using the right oil. Avoid using cooking vegetable oils that often contain water or palm oil. Instead, mix virgin olive oil and the herbs and spices you like the most with your veggies and toss the pieces into the bowl, and then move to the roasting pan.