Cooking and Eating Heart Healthy

Some of the factors that you will most want to consider if cooking heart healthy is to limit the amount and considering the type of fat you cook with. There are, of course, additional ways in which you can cook heart healthy, but following these guidelines will help you to keep your cooking flavorful and low-fat.
First, you want to limit the amount of fat you cook with. If you are sauteing something in a pan, instead of melting a stick of butter in the pan, spray a non-fat or low-fat cooking spray on the pan or use a non-stick pan and just heat the food without oil or butter. If you find that the food has less flavor, experiment with water and spice mixes. You can also use a small amount of oil to heat and brown food and then add water and spices and cover the pot, allowing the food to steam.
Be careful what type of fat you are using. Some fats, called monounsaturated, are better for you than others. As a rule of thumb, if a fat is solid at room temperature, try to avoid or moderate its use in your cooking.
Avoid adding fat to your food. If you enjoy salads, minimize the amount of salad dressing you use. Salad dressing adds a great deal of fat to any meal, and counteracts the health benefits of the fruits and vegetables in your salad. Likewise if you enjoy bread and butter, be careful how much butter you add to your bread. Using apple butter, made from apples, instead of regular butter, is a good way to have a tasty meal and keep your food heart healthy.
Another way to cook and eat heart healthy is to remove any existing fat from the food that you are cooking or eating. For example, meat often has fat in it. If you trim, or remove, this fat, you are reducing the overall fat content of your meal. This may also make the food taste better.