Water

Water is fundamental, our bodies are made of 60% of the stuff. Staying hydrated boosts our metabolism and keeps both our bodies and minds working well!

For people suffering from water retention ironically drinking more water can help with this!

Bottled water however convenient, has become too environmentally unsustainable, we suggest swapping the bottle for a more eco-friendly alternative, a water filter jug. You can keep it in your fridge for clean fresh water all the time!

Uses of water in cooking

Cooking often involves water, whether it be for cooking pasta, poaching eggs, activating yeast or in making stock! It also plays a huge part in promoting cleanliness in the kitchen. When preparing certain foods it is important to wash them before consuming as they can carry harmful germs.

• Steaming – Is a very gentle cooking method, simply boil a small amount of water in a pan and place a steamer basket with the food you want to cook inside it on top. The steam will rise up and through the steamer basket, cooking the food as it escapes. Steaming is a very good method for cooking vegetables as it preserves the vitamins better than boiling. You can also steam fish, rice and white meats.
• Simmering – Is when foods are cooked just below the boiling point. To get your water simmering a good method is to bring your water to a boil and then reduce the temperature slightly when simmering water should only bubble every few seconds. This method allows food to be cooked thoroughly but still maintain its structure, you will find it in a lot of recipes for stews and soups.
• Boiling – When water boils, lots of bubbles rapidly rise from the base of the pot and to the surface and it makes that familiar boiling sound.
• Braising – Is a low cooking method that involves tenderising a large piece of meat (usually tougher joints of meat with stronger muscle fibres are used in this process). This is achieved by almost immersing the joint in the water
• Blanching – is usually used in preparing fruit or vegetables, the method is a two-step process of first boiling your food then adding it after to a bath of iced water, halting the cooking process.

Cooking time can be using a pressure cooker. Pressure cookers have a special lid that locks on to the pot, this increases the vapour pressure which helps food cook faster.

Water in diet

Drinking water provides hydration, helps our digestion of food and kickstarts our metabolism. Water also helps when it comes to weight loss, a lot of the time dehydration is preserved as hunger. It’s a good idea to have a glass of water before having a snack to make sure you aren’t consuming unnecessary calories.

If you want to up your water intake a simple yet effective way is to keep a bottle or a jug of water visible. Keep one on your desk at work or on the table when you are having dinner. If you have it readily to hand you are more likely to drink more without it feeling like a chore.