The Power of Steam

Steamed vegetables retain their colour and flavour, and because of the short cooking time, they have a high vitamin content in comparison with boiled or fried foods.
And of course steaming is fast. Five to ten minutes is ample time for most vegetables.

Try these combinations:

• red capsicum, green broccoli and white cauliflower

• snow peas, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil

• carrots cut into sticks, green beans and spinach with sesame seeds and fresh ginger

Or to achieve a particular effect try a dish of all one colour but different textures. Here are some suggestions:

• White: cauliflower, potato and white mushrooms caps, with a few crunchy Chinese water chestnuts and blanched almonds tossed in: an amazing experience in your mouth!

• Orange: a combination of pumpkin, carrot and seedless mandarin segments

• Red: red capsicum and cherry tomatoes sprinkled with oregano

• Green: broccoli, green beans and Chinese cabbage with shreds of fresh ginger

• Purple: diced red cabbage and fresh beetroot cut in small strips

Method

• Put some water into a saucepan - a few centimetres deep - and put on the stove at high heat.

• While the water is heating up, chop your vegetables into even-sized pieces (so they will all cook at the same rate) and put them into the steamer.

• When the water is boiling, put the vegetables into the steamer and put the lid on.

• Steam for three to five minutes. Be careful not to overcook the vegetables - steaming is faster than many other methods.

• A hint to make this even faster is to start with hot water. Boil the kettle while you are chopping the vegetables and take the hot water from there. Your vegetables will be ready within minutes.

Choose your colours with intention: make your steamed vegetables look beautiful together.

Toppings and sprinkles

Try a bowl of hot steamed vegetables with a generous spoonful of one of the following:

• tahini
• lemon juice
• tamari
• Low-fat Pesto
• Tomato Salsa
• Tofu Sauce
• Sweet and Sour Sauce
• Or any of the sauces in the Sauce it section.

Or sprinklings of:

• sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pepitas, pinenuts or poppy seeds
• raw cashew nuts
• blanched almonds
• mung bean, alfalfa or lentil sprouts
• fresh chopped herbs

Send us your and recipes.