The next time you decide to serve a side of Brussels sprouts for dinner, it’s A-OK to drown 'em and deep-fry 'em first, according to science.
That is, in extra-virgin olive oil.
Researchers at the University of Granada in Spain compared four different cooking methods--sautéing, deep-frying, boiling in water and boiling in a water/oil mix--to determine the amount of antioxidants that the veggies retained.
The result? The vegetables tested (potato, tomato, eggplant and pumpkin) all showed higher amounts of phenolic compounds (disease fighters) when deep-fried or sautéed in EVOO. Here’s why: Those veggies not only absorbed the good-for-you nutrients from the oil but they also held onto their own antioxidants better. (Veggies that were simply boiled actually lost some of their original phenol content.)
