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The ONE veggy that is better for you cooked instead of raw


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is tomatoes, or so I have heard. Anybody have any info or opinions on cooked vs. raw tomatoes from a nutritional perspective?

 

Now I dont want to hear any smart ass comments like "they are both good for you". Are cooked tomatoes more nutritionally advantageous than raw tomatoes, and if so, why? What is the sciene behind it?

 

I personally love baked tomatoes (but not overbaked to the point where they are just too mushy). Sprinkled with a lil salt and dried parsely flakes, and yum??

 

Or I like raw tomatoes, sliced, with a lil apple cider vinegar and salt and dried parsley flakes.

 

I LUV TOMATOES!

 

compash

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haha, I was like ewwww frozen tomatoes.

 

It seems the main concern of raw vs cooked tomatoes is the concentration of lycopene.

 

as it turns out, this is one case where a vegetable is more healthful cooked than it is raw: Tomatoes contain a lot of water, so they become more concentrated as the water evaporates during cooking. The result is that a half cup of cooked tomatoes, in the form of sauce or paste, for instance, is a far more concentrated source of lycopene than a half cup of fresh tomatoes. And your body absorbs more lycopene from cooked or processed tomatoes, especially when the tomatoes are cooked with a little oil, as they often are. (Serving raw tomatoes with oil--a drizzle of olive oil, for instance--also enhances lycopene absorption).

 

i got that from this article http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/foods_view/1,1523,41,00.html

 

i tend to eat them both cooked and raw.

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Yes, cooked tomatoes are better because of the lycopene. I've read a few things about this. It's present in ketchup.

 

I like tomatoes however they are cooked. Sundried tomatoes are nice, Mediterranean style.

 

I never ate tomatoes until I was 21 - you know how you persuade yourself when you are a kid you don't like certain foods..... I never ate olives until last year, but I love them - green olives are one of my favourite foods.

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I think tomatoes are berries, not vegetables

 

 

Must you be so technical Will? JJ.

technically they're a fruit

 

to make a really good, light tasting pasta sauce try this

 

  • 4-5 cloves garlic
  • 1-2 chillies _take seeds out if you're skehd
  • 6-8 really ripe roma tomatoes
  • ½ cup fresh basil leaves
  • 100ml extra virgin olive oil

 

  1. heat oil to a low/med temp, add sliced chilli and garlic, stirring a lot, carefull to keep the heat down so the garlic doesn't brown
  2. After 1min add the tomatoes, chopped in half, reduce temp to low, cover and gentle simmer for 2omin
  3. remove from heat, tomatoes should have reduced to pulp by now, add basil and puree with wand/food processor
  4. serve

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it's good with the oat/soy "meat"balls and spaghetti, and really good with these eggplant/linguini bakes that i got shown, but i would add some tom paste if it's to be used in a lasagne.

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Fresh fruit and Vegetables are live, they have live enzymes and when we eat them, our living cells absorb their nutrients.

 

When you cook any vegetable or fruit it kills the living enzymes, so technically the nutrition you get from the tomato is less.

 

Not much can live past 110degrees

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Fresh fruit and Vegetables are live, they have live enzymes and when we eat them, our living cells absorb their nutrients.

 

When you cook any vegetable or fruit it kills the living enzymes, so technically the nutrition you get from the tomato is less.

 

Not much can live past 110degrees

less benefit from enzymes, but more benefit from lycopene.. opportunity cost is out weighed by the increase in benefits....

 

but we're arguing a very minor point in your total nutrition so leave it at that.

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haha, I was like ewwww frozen tomatoes.

 

It seems the main concern of raw vs cooked tomatoes is the concentration of lycopene.

 

as it turns out, this is one case where a vegetable is more healthful cooked than it is raw: Tomatoes contain a lot of water, so they become more concentrated as the water evaporates during cooking. The result is that a half cup of cooked tomatoes, in the form of sauce or paste, for instance, is a far more concentrated source of lycopene than a half cup of fresh tomatoes. And your body absorbs more lycopene from cooked or processed tomatoes, especially when the tomatoes are cooked with a little oil, as they often are. (Serving raw tomatoes with oil--a drizzle of olive oil, for instance--also enhances lycopene absorption).

 

i got that from this article http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/foods_view/1,1523,41,00.html

 

i tend to eat them both cooked and raw.

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THanks, I appreciate it.

 

my comments are with tolerance to peoples differences,

 

I agree lycopene is so tightly bound to vegetable fiber, the bioavailablity of lycopene is increased by food processing which greatly increases assimilation from the digestive tract into the bloodstream.

 

The highest natural concentrations of lycopene are found in watermelon

 

 

I'm a raw food vegan, IMPO I enjoy my nutrients raw.

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During the process of heating raw tomatoes the amount of cis-lycopene is increased, allowing isomer to be more available to the body. The assimilation of lycopene overall is aided by consumption of fatty oils upon ingestion, so were you to eat tomatoes raw the food must be administered with fat (oil) for absorption to occur. So don’t loose hope you can still eat your tomatoes raw.

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