Cooking Healthy Dishes with Parchment Paper
Cooking healthy and delicious dishes is so much easier when using Mamma Giuliana’s parchment paper technique. Greaseproof paper has many uses in the kitchen but we bet you never knew about this simple, healthy technique for reducing the amount of fat in your cooking and maximizing the natural, fresh, flavors of your ingredients.
Every cook has a supply of parchment paper in their store cupboard, but while most will use it for lining baking tins or steaming fish or vegetables ‘al cartoccio’ (or ‘en papillote‘), Mamma Giuliana has another trick up her sleeve: use the paper to line a frying pan to avoid the need for excess oil or butter when cooking fish, meat or vegetables.
Simply cut a piece of parchment paper to fit your frying pan, wet it with cold water to help to mold it to the shape of the pan, then heat while you prepare the ingredients. Continue to cook as you would normally; the paper will protect your dish from sticking and help to create a healthier, reduced-fat version of your recipe.
Try Mamma Giuliana’s recipe for meatballs and zucchini cooked in this innovative way. Shape some minced beef into small patties, like mini hamburgers, and place in the hot, lined pan along with some sliced zucchini. Season with salt and pepper and fry until the meat has cooked through. The minced meat will release a little fat but the resulting dish has a light, non-greasy consistency, and a fresh flavor that will easily convince you to use this technique regularly in your kitchen.
