Making the Change to a Healthier Eating Plan and Setting Up the Healthy Kitchen

Hand in hand with a desire to eat more healthily is the need to put this plan into practice. It is not enough to start cooking more healthy meals, the cupboards need a spring clean and some things will need to be discarded, others added.

Here are some points to consider as you look through your store-cupboards. Are there any:

• fruit canned in heavy syrup

• toppings and artificial flavourings

• very salty foods

• highly refined grains - white flour, polished rice etc

• high-fat foods

• canned or packet foods containing artificial colourings and preservatives?

You may find that you want to discard some of these, donate them to charity or give them away.

Kitchen equipment too may need some looking at. Do you have a good big pot suitable for cooking hearty soups, making stocks, cooking rice and pasta? If not, they are available from many stores at reasonable prices. A non-stick pan and a wok are excellent additions as well as a steamer basket for vegetables, and a set of cast iron pans.

You might also want to look at a brush to apply oil, or a spray can of olive or canola oil to  help you use less when frying foods. A wok needs a charn (a spade like turner to help you toss food around) and also a ring to let it sit firmly over a gas burner. You might want to buy a wok that has a long handle like a frypan as these are often easier to manipulate.