• What goes into the preparation of the meal?

Some processes in preparing certain meals strip them of their nutritional value. People end up eating meals that taste good but offer little nutrients to the body. To avoid such a situation, it’s always good to be aware of how meals are prepared or, better yet, learn to prepare your meals.

• Is the food prepared hygienically? 

Every healthy meal is prepared hygienically. We jeopardize our health when we eat food prepared in an unclean environment. If the food you eat could make you sick, it is not a healthy meal for you.

• Acceptable to your body. 

The fourth characteristic of a healthy meal is that it is acceptable to your body. Any food you eat that jeopardizes your health or your body finds it difficult to digest is not good for you. Just because everyone is eating it and there is a big hype about the food isn’t enough reason to keep eating something that affects your health poorly. For example, meals made with milk, peanuts, or seafood are not healthy for some people because they either fall sick or have extreme allergic reactions to eating such meals. The food you eat should heal you and not kill you.

• Ability to sustain you.

Lastly, a healthy meal would sustain your body for a more extended time. A healthy meal will keep you alive and in good health. Healthy meals are fuel for your body. Good fuels will last longer and give you enough energy to handle your daily tasks till it’s time for your next meal.  

Benefits of healthy food preparation.

Healthy meals come at a cost. Either you spend money buying them, or you spend time preparing them. Whichever route you settle for, preparing healthy meals have immeasurable benefits like;

1. You reduce the risk of compromising your health due to unhygienic food preparation by others.
2. You’re in charge of what you want in your food. 
3. You’ll learn new things while preparing your food.
4. You’ll save tons of money by not patronizing fast foods often.
5. It saves time and stress. You can prepare meals in advance instead of stressing about what to eat or waiting for orders to arrive before eating.

How to prepare healthy meals.

Preparing healthy meals is not rocket science. You can do it. Here are practical things to know if you wish to know how to prepare healthy meals;

• Keep an open mind about learning and making healthy meals.

Mental preparation is the first step to making and eating sumptuous healthy meals. Open mind exposes you to new hacks and meals that could benefit you. It expands your options because you will no longer be stuck with familiar meals. You will be more willing to try out other types of peas, grains, and vegetables. 

• Make meal plans in advance.

A practical step to preparing healthy meals is planning for them in advance. Planning for meals encourages you to shop for them in advance before you prepare them. Secondly, it encourages you to stick to a healthy diet. Thirdly, you’re more likely to include a variety of meals that will balance your diet when you plan your meals. And lastly, planning your meals motivates you to be organized in your kitchen and other areas of your life. 

• Shop and store a variety of slow perishable food.

Most carbs and proteins are gotten from tubers and grains, which include a variety of peas. Thankfully, most grains can be bought in their dried state and stored until time for consumption. If you want to learn how to prepare healthy meals, buying and storing varieties of grains is important. You can learn how to prepare various grains before you buy them.

• Take practical steps to reduce excess oil/ fat in your diet.

Healthy food has minimal fatty content. One way people have learned to cut down on fatty food is to use air fryers and non-stick pans/pots when preparing meals that would generally need a lot of oil. You can also introduce measuring items and containers with nuzzles that limit the oil flow in your kitchen. 

• Focus on maximizing nutrients.

 Preparing your own meals could help you maximize the nutrients you gain from your meal in various ways; 

1. Reducing the length of time, you steam certain vegetables
2. Inclusion of certain fruits and foods in meals you prepare. You learn to combine foods properly.
3. Including healthy oils and herbs when preparing meals.

Healthy dinner ideas.

The trick to eating healthy dinners is to time them properly. Heavy and semi-heavy meals should be eaten on time, while light meals can be eaten much later. It is not a rule that you should eat all your dinners very early. Here are a variety of healthy dinners you would love;

Grilled catfish and creamed salad. 

Catfish are enjoyed in different parts of the world for their Omega-3 fatty oils that benefit the brain and heart. They are delicious and can go well with side dishes like creamed vegetables and grilled Irish potatoes. 

How to prepare it.

Grilled catfish

• Make some cuts on the fish before marinating. 
• Blend negro pepper, red pepper, salt, ginger, a tiny clove of ginger, lemon, cooking cubes, and peanut bars are popularly known as kuli kuli. 
• Mix the blended spice with a little oil and water and rub it into the catfish.
• Allow it to marinate for 5mins.
• Place sliced onions on the catfish and wrap the fish in thick foil.
• Grill for 20-30mins