Food has always been an essential part of daily life. Food is where we get our nutrients that provide our body the energy it needs for activity, growth, and other essential functions like digestion, repair, and boosting the immune system.
Food also is one of the best reasons for people to come together. While not everyone has the time to cook, or has the skills to put out delicious meals, companies like Magic Kitchen, magic kitchen coupon is available on Selectaware offers freshly cooked meals to be readily delivered to your doorstep.
Fresh vs. Frozen
While we now know just how important food is to us, especially on the nutritional front, here comes the debate of fresh vs. frozen.
Fresh food, defined in the simplest of terms, means that it is food that is not spoiled or has been preserved – no smoking, pickling, curing, or even freezing involved. For fruits and vegetables, it means that they were just recently harvested. Fresh meats (including poultry), this means it has just been freshly killed and butchered. When it comes to fish, it should be recently harvested or fished out from the water and simply kept cold.
Frozen food, on the other hand, is described as food that has been subjected to rapid freezing and is kept frozen until used.
Why freeze when you can have it fresh?
Ideally, fresh food is always the best way to go. Fresh food, especially produce packs a ton of nutrients. They’re full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants – all of which can improve your overall health. In fact, numerous studies throughout the years have shown that consuming fresh fruits and vegetables can help prevent heart disease.
Purchasing and eating freshly grown produce is also a good way to ensure that no preservatives, dyes, or harmful chemicals get into your food. Plus, fresh produce just really tastes better!
Health experts agree that having a consistent diet that includes fresh food contributes to a healthier lifestyle overall.
But what if you can’t have fresh food?
Unfortunately, not everyone has access to fresh food. In some places, while fresh food is available for a limited time (or simply not at all), freezing food has become one of the ways to preserve food.
Freezing is a good way to preserve nutrients. Dr.Michelle Hauser, a clinical fellow at Harvard Medical School says that frozen food is a great, healthy alternative especially if the fresh produce isn’t so fresh anymore. Dr. Hauser, who is also a certified chef and nutrition educator, adds that we must remember that fresh food has a slightly higher nutritional value compared to its frozen counterparts. With that being said, here is why people have turned to freezing food.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture – Food Safety and Inspection Service’s (USDA-FSIS) website, freezing keeps food safe by slowing the movement of molecules, causing microbes to enter a dormant stage. Freezing also preserves food for extended periods because it prevents the growth of microorganisms that cause both food spoilage and foodborne illness (you can learn more by visiting their site).
Having frozen food on hand is also an ideal and affordable way to get one’s daily dose of fruits and vegetables and other healthy food from every food group into your diet. Frozen food is a great choice for individuals who are on a tight budget (as some places have a really high cost of living, fresh food can be more a more expensive option), lack the kitchen space, and for those who are just starting to know their way around the kitchen.
Here’s some bits of information from the researchers at the University of California- Davis to further help you out:
- Fresh produce can lose half its vitamins and phytonutrients (naturally occurring compounds that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties) during storage or cooking.
- More fat-soluble vitamins like vitamins A and E are retained in the frozen packaging process compared with water-soluble vitamins like C.
- Fibre, mineral, protein, and carbohydrate content for fresh and frozen food are similar.
- Frozen produce may contain more vitamins and phytonutrients versus days-old fresh items, (but note that additional cooking and storage after defrosting may close that gap).
Experts would also like to remind us that not all frozen foods are created equal. Some of these may have high levels of salt, added sugars, and saturated fat. They advise that we should always check the label and choose frozen items that are higher in fiber, vitamin, and mineral content. We should also always follow the instructions on the package – thaw them properly and cook them immediately after thawing to enjoy not only the best taste but maximize the nutritional value as well.
Both sides now
Looking at both sides of the argument, we would say that both present valid points. So, it all boils down to your personal choice. Our choices can be as complex or as simple as our taste buds. Factors that can affect choice are taste, convenience, and price. If you can’t have a purely fresh diet, incorporating frozen food can still provide the nutrition you need (just watch the label).
Fresh + Frozen = Magic
A lot of quality food businesses incorporate both fresh and frozen food into their meals or incorporate the freezing process to provide better food products to their clients. Magic Kitchen is one such food business that uses only the best quality combination of fresh meats, produce, and frozen food items to give you a meal that’s magical.
Magic Kitchen offers a large variety of nutritious meals delivered straight to your doorstep. They have a large range of meal plans to suit your budget, nutritional requirements, and special dietary needs. They even have meals for all occasions! Each meal is hand prepared in small batches by their in-house chef and is flash-frozen to lock in all the nutrition and freshness.
Quality also doesn’t have to mean costly as they have meals available for every budget. You can also visit Selectware for more Magic Kitchen coupons to enjoy and have a great meal delivered right to your doorstep!