You Won't Believe How Chefs Keep Green Vegetables' Color After Cooking
Green vegetables tend to lose their color during cooking, making them look unappealing. How do chefs overcome this issue to present beautiful dishes? The secret is revealed in the article below.
When you cook green vegetables like broccoli, green beans, asparagus, or spinach, they often lose their vibrant green color and become dull.
This is due to the cooking process at high temperatures, which breaks down chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for the green color.
Chefs, who are certainly aware of this 'issue', have found an inexpensive and easy trick to bypass it—using ice water to maintain the bright color of green vegetables even after cooking.
The technique starts with blanching the vegetables: a short cooking in salted boiling water for a few minutes, just until the vegetables slightly soften while maintaining their crisp texture. Immediately after blanching, the vegetables are quickly transferred to a bowl of ice water, where they are rapidly cooled. This process stops the cooking and stabilizes the chlorophyll, so the green color remains stunning.
Beyond aesthetics, this method also preserves the nutritional values of the vegetables, such as vitamin C and dietary fibers, which tend to be destroyed in prolonged cooking. The technique is especially suitable for salad dishes, stir-fries, or cold side dishes, where maintaining color and freshness is important.
Using ice water is a simple tool that any home cook can adopt, ensuring more attractive and nutritious dishes.
