Steam cooking is known to have originated in the far east in the Yellow River Valley of China going back to the year 5000 BC. The ancient Chinese had discovered the many health and other benefits of steam cooking and so this method of cooking has been passed down from generation to generation. In modern times, steam cooking has been recognized around the world for producing great-tasting food that is both healthy, flavourful, and profitable.
Let's examine the many benefits of steam cooking, including how it helps improve food quality, increase nutritious values of foods, and streamline your cooking processes.
Steam cooking has been found to help lower cholesterol levels in several ways. Steam cooking helps in the removal of fat from meats like pork or lamb so that it can be easily removed after cooking, whereas cooking methods like frying and grilling tend to cook excess fat into the meat itself, which increases the meat’s total fat content. Once the fat is removed after steam cooking, the meat consumed then has a lower cholesterol level which provides fewer calories and a reduced overall fat level.
Steam cooking helps to preserve the natural raw properties of foods like vegetables such as their texture, their taste, their color, their flavour, and their overall freshness. Other methods of cooking vegetables tend to result in a complete loss of their firmness and crispiness and a resulting overcooked and mushy and unappetizing food source.
When vegetables are cooked in water, they tend to become drained of their vitamin and nutrient content. This can often be seen by the green coloration of the water after cooking. On the other hand, steam cooking retains about 50% more important minerals like Zinc, Potassium, Phosphorous, and Calcium than other methods of cooking. It also allows for the retention of essential vitamins such as the water-soluble vitamins B and C, vitamin B-12, Riboflavin, Thiamine, Niacin, Biotin, and pantothenic Acid.
Steam cooking has the additional benefit of producing a significantly larger amount of cooked food from either meat or vegetables than other forms of cooking such as baking, broiling, or boiling.
Steam cooking is a faster and more energy-efficient way of cooking than other traditional cooking methods such as boiling and broiling. This is because steam transfers energy much more efficiently than water does, resulting in quicker cooking times and lower energy usage.
Steam cooking has been used for thousands of years for a variety of reasons. With its nutritious benefits, food quality improvements, and kitchen efficiency advantages, adding steam to your commercial kitchen process is easier than ever. To find out more about the solutions available and menu inspiration from steam cooking, contact our team for a free steam cooking assessment.