Cooking techniques and nutritional quality of food: A comparison between traditional and innovative ways of cooking

Abstract The role of diet in the prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases has been demonstrated in numerous studies and attributed to various nutrients and bioactive compounds, naturally present in foods. It is therefore important to preserve the nutritional quality of the dishes served in hospital settings where the prevalence of malnutrition is particularly frequent. The experimental and interdisciplinary research project “IN-Nutritional Intelligence” was born to verify the possibility, the efficacy and the efficiency of adopting less aggressive gastronomic techniques in food services to minimize the loss of nutritional properties of food. Methods Eight samples of food treated with two different cooking methods [traditional procedures (TP) vs low aggressive gastronomic procedures (Niko Romito Food Processing Technique - NR-FPT)] were compared. Pre- and post-cooking evaluations of the concentrations of some bioactive compounds (phenolic compounds, carotenoids, vitamin C) and oxidation products (peroxides, Kreiss test) were carried out. Food Antioxidant Potential (FAP) of the foods was calculated as ANTI-oxidant/PRO-oxidant ratio. Results The NR-FPT has been found to preserve the nutritional quality of the foods: less marked increase or a more evident reduction in phenolic compounds, less marked increase in the concentration of carotenoids, minor reduction in the vitamin C content of the foods. The increase in peroxides after cooking was in almost all cases higher with TP than with NR-FPT. The FAP of the foods was better preserved with NR-FPT compared to TP.