You’re not alone if you find yourself spending more time in the kitchen than in previous years seeking to prepare healthier meals and snacks. As a result, according to the Food Industry Association, consumer health and well-being have risen to the top of the list of critical eating aspects for consumers, with only flavour, price, and convenience ranking higher.

According to surveys, 35% of consumers say they’re not only eating healthier now than they were before the epidemic but that this healthy eating strategy is also here to stay. Thank god this long pandemic has yielded at least one positive outcome.

To help you improve your culinary wizardry in the kitchen without taking a fancy-schmancy cooking class, I asked my registered dietitian nutritionist colleagues for their go-to meal prep gadgets that help them produce nutritious foods quickly and easily. So let’s begin with my personal favourite.

our vegetable cutter is older than both of my siblings. As a journalist, I’m a strong advocate for eating more fruits and vegetables. But, to be honest, I despise cutting vegetables almost as much as I despise flossing my teeth, which I do at least once a day.

With this helpful equipment, I can set the raw veggie on a guillotine-like surface, press the top down, and watch the bits dislodge into the collecting container beneath the blade. Then, in a fraction of second, consistent pieces of vegetables are prepared.

Instead of chopping, we use the kitchen scissors to snip clean, leafy greens like kale, spinach, and lettuce, as well as herbs like chives, parsley, and cilantro. We rely on this instrument so often that we keep a couple of pairs of kitchen scissors on hand so that one is always clean and ready to use.

A grater is a culinary staple that lets you sprinkle a dusting of taste from hard cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano and Asiago over pasta, soups, and salads without adding loads of oil and sodium. Instead, grated cheese adds umami to the dish, eliminating salt and providing macro and micronutrients like protein and calcium.

When it comes to eating healthy, portion control is essential. This is why measuring spoons and cups are necessary for the kitchen. If you pour from the bottle to the pan without measuring first, a tablespoon of oil called for in a recipe can easily become two or three times that amount. Measuring cups and spoons take the uncertainty out of cooking and dining regularly.

While it is now advised that we all eat at least two fish meals each week, particularly fatty fish like salmon, most Americans consume less than half of that amount. Because the metal spatula is longer and thinner than a traditional spatula, it may easily go beneath the delicate fish fillets without damaging them. You’ll think you’re a professional seafood expert.

Coffee grinders, believe it or not, can do more than grind coffee beans. For example, it can be used to grind oats and flax seeds into flour. In addition, we use it as a breading for chicken cutlets and white fish like flounder and sole filets.

By substituting oats and flax seeds for traditional breading, I boost the nutritional value of my meal by adding additional fibre, omega-3 fatty acids, and monounsaturated fats, all of which are heart-healthy.

Use a mandoline to cut firm fruits and vegetables into consistent pieces, such as apples, pears, cucumbers, and zucchini. It is suggested that you prepare only once and consume twice. Extra produce slices are frozen in containers to be used in future meals. Do you despise slicing tomatoes? Then, this device is yelling your name.

If you’ve ever contracted the foodborne disease, sometimes known as food poisoning, after eating undercooked meat, poultry, or fish, you know it’s not exactly a relaxing day at the beach. To guarantee that the piece of meat, poultry, or fish reaches its minimum internal cooking temperature, insert the tip of the thermometer (top 1-2 inches) into the thickest section of the piece of meat, poultry, or fish.

This is 165 degrees Fahrenheit for chicken, 160 degrees Fahrenheit for beef, hog, veal, and lamb, and 145 degrees Fahrenheit for fish. This low-cost tool will help keep you and your guests healthy and avoid an impromptu trip to the doctor’s office.

On average, Americans consume 17 teaspoons of added sugars each day, with soda being the leading source. To enjoy a sweetened, sparkling beverage without the need for added sugars. Instead, place fruit slices or chunks in the infuser cylinder, like peaches, berries, oranges.

After that, fill the pitcher with sparkling water and chill it for at least one hour. The fruit flavour seeps into the water through the infuser, but the fruit stays out of your drink. Instead, try basil, mint, or sliced cucumbers if you don’t want a sweet beverage.