A Review of the Effects of Cooking Methods on the Nutrition, Antioxidant Capacity and Color of Vegetables

Cooking is a way of processing food materials to make food more delicious, better-looking and better-smelling. It not only makes people feel satisfied when eating, but also makes food nutrients more easily absorbed by the body. As a common edible ingredient, vegetables are indispensable whether in the home or restaurant. Vegetables are heated during the cooking process, so the nutrient composition and the color are changed. Compared with other cooking methods, steaming is a relatively healthy cooking method, which could retain more nutrients. In this paper, the effects of several cooking methods, such as steaming, boiling, microwaving, and stir-frying on various nutrients, antioxidant capacity and color in vegetables are investigated, in order to selectively provide reference for consumers to choose cooking methods.