Virkus says cooks should use foods’ benefits deliberately

Recipe writer Lia Virkus says home cooks can make meals both enjoyable and beneficial to the body by using ingredients deliberately, ERR reported after an interview on Vikerraadio’s Vikerhommik programme.

Virkus recently co-wrote the book Vitality from Food with Liis Orav. Virkus said Orav provided a list of valuable foods and contributed nutritional guidance for each dish, while Virkus developed the recipes. She has written more than 100 cookbooks.

Among Virkus’s recent discoveries are cauliflower and broccoli, which she steams for a few minutes. She said she lets the vegetables sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes before steaming, adding that this helps their beneficial components become more potent. She also advised eating cucumbers with their skin and heating tomatoes before eating them.

Virkus said meat can be replaced with legumes, or a salad can be topped with good cheese. She added that she keeps vegetables such as carrots, onions, garlic, peppers and cucumbers at home, and that her family particularly enjoys salads.

She encouraged families to cook at home rather than buy prepared meals, and to pass that habit on to children. When she needs to make a quick hot meal, she often prepares an omelette with spinach and cheese, served with cottage cheese.