You've Been Sauteing Vegetables Wrong Your Entire Life

Home cooks looking for a satisfying yet healthy way to eat more vegetables often turn to sauteing them in oil. While this makes a lot of sense at the surface level when you use a healthy fat like olive oil, it can actually be the wrong way to cook. Though the method is wonderful when cooking over a low to medium heat, higher heat levels can quickly cause problems. Olive oils and other kinds of oils with a low smoke point begin to break down when used over high heat, which can actually be unhealthy (via Eating Well). 

However, there is a substitution you can make for the oil that will allow the vegetables to cook at the higher heat — and in a healthier way. For safer and healthier veggies, try swapping the oil for any broth of your choosing. Not only will you eliminate any potential issues with oils getting too hot, but the broth will also help season the vegetables during the cooking process (via Women's Health).

To sautee your vegetables with broth, all you have to do is pour enough broth in to cover the bottom of the pan. Place the lid on top, and let the vegetables cook until they are tender. It's really an incredibly easy method that doesn't even require stirring.

The biggest decision you will have to make is what kind of broth to use. While you can make use of whatever you have on hand, it might bolster your meal if you think about how you want to season the vegetables. For example, consider how chicken broth may improve the taste of the vegetables and complement the rest of the meal as opposed to beef — and vice versa. Of course, vegetarians can easily use vegetable broth.

While using broth to sautee your vegetables might be a surprising twist to your normal routine, it will undoubtedly help reduce the risks that can come with using olive oil over high heat — and some calories too.