Top Kitchen Equipment to Add More Veggies to Your Diet

It’s important to have the right tools in your kitchen in order to make healthy eating simple! This can also cut down on your grocery budget by not having to buy prepared or pre-cut produce items or commercial juices. Often times when you buy processed food items, they have preservatives added, and don’t taste as fresh! Start building up your kitchen with the right equipment to expand your cooking skills and variety of healthy, tasty foods you are consuming!

1. Blender

Smoothies are a great way to add a variety of fruits and veggies without even feeling like you are eating them. For starters adding some fruit, greens and protein powder together can make for a tasty breakfast, but don’t stop there! Try adding avocado, zucchini, cauliflower, cucumber, and many other fruits and veggies to your morning smoothie. Bulking up your smoothie with increase your fiber intake to keep you full throughout the day, and allow you to start your day with a big blast of nutrients.

2. Food Processor
The food processor can help you add veggies into everything! A food processor cuts veggies up very small, but does not liquify them like a blender. This means you can add these veggie pieces into meatballs, hamburgers, pasta fillings, egg bakes, etc. You can really use your imagination to use these tiny cut veggies in any dish. One of the most popular uses is cauliflower or broccoli “rice”. Pulse cauliflower and cook it up in a skillet for a great low-carb replacement.

3. Spiralizer
The Spiralizer has been very trendy lately for a good reason. It can be a great way to add veggies into dishes. Although, that does not mean you always have to completely replace pasta with zucchini noodles. This will allow you to reduce your amount of pasta by bulking up your plate with more vegetables. Although, using spiralized veggies doesn’t always have to be in a pasta recipe! Try using them in a vegetable salad, sandwich wrap, egg bake or pho dish.

4. Mandoline
The mandoline is a great way to cut veggies very thin. You can add these thin veggies to any casserole or even just roast or saute. One of the tastiest ways to use these thin cut veggies is to dry them out with a paper towel, sprinkle with some oil and seasoning, and cook low and slow in the oven for some crispy vegetable chips. Makes a great low calorie and nutrient dense snack.

5. Juicer
Lastly, the juicer is a great way to add more nutrients from vegetables into your diet. Although, make sure you are not replacing whole vegetable servings with juice as this should just be an extra boost. The key with juice is to use mostly veggies and maybe add one lemon or lime into the mix. Stay away from using more than one piece of fruit, so you are not just drinking liquid sugar.

If you have any questions on how to use these products or would like more ideas, reach out to our Registered Dietitian!