Category: Healthy cooking pots

There are 13 essential nutrients our bodies need, they can be divided into fat-soluble and water-soluble nutrients. Both of these are absorbed differently in the body. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat soluble whereas Vitamins B and C are water soluble.

The water-soluble vitamins, as the name suggests, dissolve in water. This means they dissolve quickly in the body. Unlike fat-soluble nutrients, the body cannot store them. Any excess amounts of water soluble nutrients simple pass through the body.

Continue reading Learn how to cook without losing vital water-soluble nutrients:

If you are a healthy cook and you have the right Dutch oven in your kitchen, the possibilities are endless. A Dutch oven is a very useful piece of cookware and can be used to cook a number of dishes. Having a single cookware for cooking multiple types of food is not only convenient but it also saves a lot of money – you no longer need to buy a wide range of cookware to try your hands on different recipes. But, as mentioned in the first line of this article, you need to have the right Dutch oven.

Continue reading 8 Things that a Healthy Dutch Oven can do for you:

Are you using a 100% non-toxic cookware? The answer to this greatly depends on the material(s) used in making your cookware. Metals, chemicals, glazes, enamels, and alloys are known to leach metal ions while cooking. These ions combine with food’s nutrients and form toxic compounds that affect the health of your food by contaminating it and reducing its nutritional value. This is why your cookware has to be 100% non-toxic to cook healthy food. 

100% Non-toxic Cookware – What Does It Take? 

The problem is – most cookware are conventionally made from metals or ceramics and further glazed with chemicals and enamels. All metals are reactive (including popular ones like cast iron, titanium, aluminum etc.) and they leach ions when you cook food in them. This is the reason our ancestors never used metals or alloys to make cookware even though they used them to make tools and weapons. 

For pots and pans to be the best, the material they are made from must be completely inert and 100% non-toxic. Unglazed primary clay is an all-natural material that has these qualities and this is the very material that has been used by one civilization after another for ages. And this is the reason our past generations lived longer and healthier than we do today (i.e. before the wars and before colonization)– they understood the importance and method of cooking healthy and nutritious food better than us! 

How Is Pure Clay Better Than Conventional Materials? 

Unlike other conventional materials, pure clay is naturally inert and doesn’t contain any toxins (see test results). Also, it preserves the nutrients in food by cooking it with gentle, far-infrared heat. And because of the excellent steam management by pure clay pots, the water-soluble nutrients that are typically lost as steam are locked inside instead with these pots! 

As no glazes or enamels are used, the walls of the pots are semi-porous that allows food to cook with sufficient oxygen – another reason food turns out to be so well-cooked. Ever tasted or smelled the aroma of food cooked in a clay pot? It’s far better than food cooked in metals or ceramics – all thanks to the way food is cooked that keeps nutrients, natural color (flavonoids), taste and aroma of the ingredients intact. 

When the body is regularly fed such healthy and nutritious food, not only do the toxins accumulated in the tissues, organs, and blood cleanse out but you will also experience an increased stamina, less frequent hunger pangs and lack of sickness like headaches or common cold. With so many health benefits, who wouldn’t agree that pure clay makes the best pots and pans? 

Head over to MEC Store and buy pure clay pots and pans for your kitchen today! 

Yogurt is a creamy and delicious food full of essential nutrients that make it one of the healthiest foods that can be made at home. Often people turn to store-bought yogurt instead of making it at home when they face issues like yogurt turning out sour or watery. But the store-bought yogurt is not a good alternative because it is full of artificial additives and sweeteners that are unhealthy, like gelatin (glue made from animal bones), pectin (a bio-polymer acid, lab-made ingredient), etc. And all the good stuff is processed out through processes like ultra-pasteurization etc. Why get a compromised or even unhealthy version of this great food when you there is a healthier and easier way to make yogurt at home! 

Here is a different way to make yogurt that is simple and it makes thick and delicious yogurt in less than 10 minutes hands-on time, so you never have to choose unhealthy store-bought yogurt again. 

The key is to choose the right pot – a non-toxic, semi-porous pot made from pure clay is the right one for this purpose! Pure clay is unglazed natural clay and the pot made from it is naturally semi-porous or breathable. This allows just the excess water to evaporate leaving all the liquid probiotics intact. A unique feature that makes your yogurt thicker and silkier, naturally! Also, it is 100% non-toxic so it doesn’t leach like metal/ceramic pots.  

You can make healthy and delicious yogurt at home in less than 10 minutes hands-on time, here are the steps: 

1. Add milk to the pot (2-3 minutes hands-on time) and let it warm on medium heat with the lid on till just before boiling point (till small bubbles form on the surface). This might take 25-30 minutes for a ½ gallon of milk. Then, turn the stove off, open lid (1-2 minutes) and let it cool for 30 minutes or so — till you can put your little finger and hold it there for 5 secs. Now the milk is ready for the culture. 
2. Add yogurt culture and stir. Then cover lid. (3 minutes) 
3. Place in the oven with oven light on. (2 minutes) 

Let it incubate for 6-8 hours and the yogurt is ready! The yogurt left in the pot gets thicker and thicker in just a few hours after. 

How is it healthier? 

Yogurt made this way has no interaction with chemicals or toxins and it does not suffer nutritional loss while heating. As yogurt is naturally thick, and creamy there is no need for straining! And because it’s made in pure-clay (anything cooked in pure clay is very delicious) there is no need for adding unhealthy artificial additives or sweeteners like in store bought yogurt. Just a dab of salt or a sprinkle of brown sugar or any fruits of your choice or even a sprinkle of granola… 

So, you can easily make the healthiest and most delicious yogurt using the right pot — A pure clay pot. 

Wondering where to find such a pot? Here is the answer – head over to MEC Store where you can find them in different sizes that will suit your cooking needs. 

While looking for the safest cookware, one thing that is very important is how reactive the pot’s raw material is? This is because the food is a biochemical entity that is subject to leaching if cooked in a reactive pot or pan. These compounds that have leached from the pot are of no nutritional value in the body but can cause many diseases if allowed to accumulate in the body. Titanium, stainless steel and natural clay –The first two are very popular for making cooking pots, the last one is gaining momentum because of its health value over other manmade materials, Let’s find out which is the safest cookware amongst the three? 

Titanium

Titanium is metal chemically extracted from its ore rutile, by reduction through chlorides and/or magnesium. Amongst its different uses, it is also used for making surgical inserts or bone and cartilage replacements in the body. Because of this reason, it is a common belief that it can’t do any harm in the body. First of all, Titanium is a reactive element and reacts with common elements present in the atmosphere like oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and water to form various compounds. Because of this, it is certainly reactive to food, especially during cooking! Because heat is a catalyst for all reactions.

Stainless Steel

This alloy is available in different grades, the popular ones (general purpose) are 304 and 316. The 304-grade stainless steel contains elements like Chromium, Nickel, Carbon, Manganese, and Silicon. 316 also has high levels of Nickel and Molybdenum. All these elements are highly reactive and break down as ions when food is cooked in Stainless steel cookware. These combine with nutrients in food and form toxic compounds that are dangerous in the body. For instance, a very small amount of concentration of nickel can cause kidney dysfunction, low blood pressure, muscle tremors, oral cancer, skin problems etc. Obviously, if you are looking for the safest cookware, you wouldn’t want to choose Stainless Steel. 

Natural Clay

This material is all-natural and is often referred to as ‘primary clay’ in its purest form. Primary clay is naturally inert and it doesn’t contain any chemicals or metal toxins like Titanium or Stainless Steel. Natural clay is a 100% pure ingredient in nature like rainwater and because it is naturally detoxing, it does not take to itself any contaminants! It also cannot be used for farming because this soil gets very rigid and hard and does not allow the plant’s root system to thrive.   

A simple baking soda test done on these materials also shows that the pot made from unglazed primary clay doesn’t leach anything while cooking. Thus the safest material for making cookware is natural clay – no matter how much we experiment with different materials, this all-natural material beats them all! 

Ready to try this healthiest and safest all-natural cookware? Head over to MEC Store and order a pure clay cookware set today!

The safest cookware has to be 100% Non-toxic, i.e. not leach any chemicals or metals into food while cooking. All metals are reactive while food is a biochemical substance. Cooking food involves a series of reactions that convert raw food into cooked and when this process is carried out in reactive cookware, the output (cooked food) can never be the same. In this article, let’s find out cookware made from which raw material can qualify for this high standard of safety by being 100% non-reactive?  

When it comes to choosing the safest cookware, one must not compromise on the raw material. The toxins like lead, cadmium, arsenic are frequently found in cookware today (read: difference between NO LEAD & CADMIUM and LEAD & CADMIUM FREE) and they are still labeled as ‘safe’ just because the manufacturers have supposedly followed the prescribed guidelines. This is a loophole that is often exploited because even if these toxins are in so-called “permissible limit”, is it worth taking the risk, looking at the havoc they can cause to the body functions? 

Just like the test-tube in a lab cannot be reactive while conducting a chemical experiment, it is best to use a 100% non-toxic and inert material for cooking food too – because cooking in itself is a chemical reaction with natural chemicals in the form of vitamins, minerals, halogens etc.  For this reason, a test tube is made from pure glass (glass made from sand and without any additives), but with cooking, pure-glass cannot stand the cooking heat, but another pure material that can and is also 100% non-reactive, is Pure-clay! 

Pure clay – is all-natural and 100% inert, making it the most non-toxic material! It is time tested and has been used for ages in different civilizations and cultures. An alkaline baking soda test (which can be easily done at home) is enough to prove it doesn’t leach anything like modern cookware (metal, ceramic, enameled etc.). Lab tests have also shown it is completely void of toxins like lead, cadmium, and arsenic (see test results here).  

The people who switched to pure clay reported great improvement in their health and some have even claimed to heal diabetes (because nutrients like complex carbohydrates are preserved) with this cookware. Not only this, the food tastes better and is more nutritious when cooked in this all-natural cookware. 

These are the reasons that make pure clay pots and pans the safest cookware out there. Want to switch to this safest cookware for your family’s health? Head over to MEC Store and buy a pure clay cookware set for your kitchen today.

Healthy cooking is an art that involves careful selection of ingredients and then cooking them “gently” while keeping nutrients intact. The nutritional information of various ingredients is not a mystery these days as we have labels and the internet to help us with this knowledge. On the contrary, keeping our food nutritious even after cooking is a bit complex and confusing, not because it is difficult but due to a lack of correct information related to choosing the right cookware. So how to keep food nutritious even after cooking? Let’s find out: 

A clear and confident answer to this question is rare these days because there is so much misleading informationon the internet related to different methods of cooking. For instance, you might find a few blog articles defending cooking in the crock pot as being a way to keep nutrients intact by cooking slowly at low heat. But you may also find some articles that claim otherwise. There are numerous references to inconclusive and sometimes, outdated researches in favor of or against certain cookware that make choosing the right one a great challenge! 

By the end of this post though, you will have a good idea about which cookware is the healthiest and how to keep the nutritional value of food intact after cooking — information substantiated by verifiable and time-honored information. 

The Secret: Using a cooking pot made from the right material!

The conventional cookware (metals, ceramics, porcelain, enameled etc.) are known to leach toxins into food while cooking because they contain certain metals, oxides, chemicals etc. in varying amounts. All metals are highly reactive to food which is a biochemical entity. They combine with nutrients in food and form compounds that are harmful in the body and cause health problems. Also, heat from these pots mercilessly destroys delicate nutritional cells while cooking! 

In order to cook nutritious food, the cookware has to be completely inert so it doesn’t leach anything into your food, and it should cook gently without destroying nutrients. The only material known to have such abilities is pure clay or unglazed primary clay (see the test for purity of raw material here, and try the alkaline baking soda test yourself, right at home with different pots including these). Clay pot cooking has been the only method of cooking among settled civilizations from time unknown. There is no alternative to natural clay that can give you the same features.

Unfortunately, though, many of the clay pots we see in the market today are mostly glazed with chemicals. Little do we realize, the chemicals used in glazes contaminate our food and the semi-porous nature of pure clay is what makes it perfect for healthy cooking (can “breathe” in Oxygen while cooking, push out toxins in food, etc.)

The gentle far infrared heat, unique to these pots, cooks while keeping nutrients intact. Those who have switched to pure clay have reported tremendous improvements in health with regular use and better-tasting food. If you haven’t tried pure clay cooking until know, you are missing out on extremely nutritious and healthy meals every day, so it’s high time you head over to MEC Store and order a pure clay pot for your kitchen today!

The health of your food is determined by a). its nutritional value, and b). the absence of metals and chemical toxins in it. Would you have ever thought your cookware plays a major part in both these aspects? Let’s see how the choice of cookware determines the health of your food:

1. The health of your food is determined by how pure or contaminated the food is

Conventional cookware made from metals, ceramics, glazes, and enamels are full of toxins that react to food while cooking and contaminates it. Lead, Arsenic, Nickel, Molybdenum, Cadmium and other metals & chemicals are commonly found in most cookware, which start accumulating in your body when you eat food cooked in them. Over time they start taking a toll on your body functions and compromise the immune system – this causes health problems ranging from minor illnesses to chronic diseases.

2. The health of your food is determined by how nutritious it is

You may choose your ingredients wisely but your cookware can destroy most of the essential nutrients in them by cooking it with harsh heat. The food’s delicate nutrients need to be cooked with gentle heat so the nutritional value of your food stays intact. 

3. The health of your food is determined by how much steam stays inside

Releasing steam through vents may seem like a common occurrence if you are using conventional metal or ceramic pots but very few people know steam is essentially water-soluble nutrients. The body needs these on a daily basis as they can’t be stored like fat-soluble nutrients. But the steam pressure created in conventional pots is so high, the pot might explode if the steam is not released constantly. 

4. Pure Clay Cookware: A Healthy Viable Alternative

Switching to pure clay cookware can greatly improve the health of your food. Pure clay is an all-natural 100% non-toxic material that is tested negative for all kinds of toxins found in most conventional cookware. It doesn’t contaminate food and cooks with far infrared heat that is gentle on delicate nutrients – cooks by preserving them intact. 

They also naturally condense steam – steam is condensed on the inner surface of the lid (as it stays cooler than the pot during cooking) and keeps falling back into the food so water-soluble nutrients are preserved right inside the pot.

The food cooked in pure clay is extremely healthy and nutritious when compared to the same food cooked in metals or ceramics. When you eat such food regularly, your body is nourished with essential nutrients on a regular basis and the toxins, which are already accumulated, are cleansed out by the body naturally… when it is not bombarded with more toxins. 

Want to improve the health of your food by switching to pure clay cookware? Head over to MEC store and order a pure clay cookware set today!

We get it, cooking delicious food and keeping it healthy can be a real problem, because if you want tasty food many times you have to compromise on the health of the ingredients etc.  But will you believe it if I say, food can be both extremely healthy and delicious by changing this one thing you may be overlooking all the time – the cooking pot!  

How can this possibly be true? Can you make healthy food by just changing the pot and not having to add unhealthy ingredients (like heavy cream, canned tomatoes, etc.)? Yes. A pot made of the right material and of the right design, can take care of all these things and cook delicious food every time. And what is this right material? PURE CLAY – All-natural clay cookware, unglazed and made without any contaminants.  How can it do this?  Read on to find out:  

Cooking Delicious Food, Reason #1: The Heat Cooking Your Food is very different! 

The heat radiating from the walls of a pure-clay pot is very different: The gentle far infrared heat from pure clay pots penetrates deep into every grain and cooks food evenly and thoroughly. This preserves delicate nutrients that are destroyed with conventional cookware. Well-cooked food – not overly cooked or undercooked – is what one expects from a good cookware. On the other hand, metals and ceramics radiate harsh heat that cooks unevenly and food turns out mushy and even gets burnt at times. As most of the nutrients are destroyed, the result is nutrition-deficient food that tastes bland!

Cooking Delicious Food, Reason #2: Preserves Steam — Water Soluble Nutrients 

Food cooked in pure clay is rich in water-soluble vitamins – all thanks to excellent steam management. The gentle heat causes steam to be delayed till the end of the cooking process and when it is released, it gets condensed on the inside of the lid, which stays cooler than rest of the pot and falls back into the food. This unique feature allows food to be moist and juicy! In contrast with conventional cookware, the steam is released right from the beginning of the cooking process and has to be let out through vents to prevent the pot from exploding and thus water-soluble nutrients are lost and food turns out dry and less tasty!

Cooking Delicious Food, Reason #3: Food Retains essential Phytonutrients – YUM!!

In conventional cookware, the food generally loses its natural color, and thus its fresh taste. This is due to loss of an important group of phytonutrients (plant chemicals) called flavonoids. According to World’s Healthiest Foods, up to 80 percent of flavonoids can be lost in the cooking process. This is exactly what happens while cooking in the conventional.

When food is cooked in pure clay, the flavonoids are completely preserved too, so food retains its natural color. People who have been cooking in pure clay have reported that food tastes better and has rich color every time: 

Erika Chilton, an avid MEC pure clay cook says: 

“I was invited over to a neighbor’s house recently for dinner & was enthralled with her cookware! She was cooking Vietnamese Clay Pot Chicken & I was impressed how well the food cooked in the clay pots! She used Miriams Earthen Cookware & suggested I look into getting some myself. My anniversary is coming up so I am hoping my husband will surprise me with a set so I can make some Vietnamese Clay Pot Chicken for myself!”

Shar, from the USA concurs with these statements: 

“I never write reviews, but this is truly the best purchase I ever made. The pots are so beautiful, and it feels so natural to cook with. Love how good the food is tasting, and how much healthier for my family. Thank you so much !! Also what a wonderful company to work with, she is so very helpful on the phone. Easy to use pans, easy to clean, not heavy, just so wonderful!”

Ready to join the league of people who have tried and enjoyed cooking in pure clay? Head over to MEC Store and order a cookware set now!