Eat more fruits and vegetables easily

Fruits and vegetables are super healthy. They contain essential nutrients, such as vitamin C, vitamin A, folic acid, fiber and potassium. If you eat enough of it, you lower your risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers. Fruit and vegetables also help lower your blood pressure. In addition, fruit and vegetables are relatively low in calories and contain a lot of fiber that ensures that you feel full for a long time: good for the line!

Unfortunately, there is not one vegetable or fruit that contains everything you need, so it is important to vary. You can’t just replace vegetables with fruit, because they contain other vitamins and minerals. You can opt for fruit and vegetables from the freezer, can or jar, because they are just as healthy as the fresh variety (if no salt or sugar has been added: check the label).

1. At every meal

Add some vegetables or fruit to every meal. You really don’t just have to put vegetables on the table at dinner, try to eat it with every meal and in between. Put extra fruit in your yogurt in the morning. In the afternoon, put some cucumber and tomato slices on your sandwich. Try making a salad for lunch or fry a lot of vegetables with two eggs for a well-filled vegetable omelette.

2. In between

Vegetables are an ideal, healthy snack. Useful vegetable snacks include carrots, radishes, cherry tomatoes and pieces of cucumber. You can easily take such a snack with you. Buy handy mini vegetables or cut the vegetables yourself and store the bite-sized pieces in a sealable container.

If you feel like munching on something in the evening, swap the chips for crispy strips of bell pepper and celery. With a little hummus or a yogurt dip, that’s a fresh TV snack.

3. Bring fruit

Fruit is also easy to take to school or work. Just put an apple, pear or banana in your bag. For variety, dried fruit is a fine variant: raisins, dates, apricots, plums, apple and so on. Because it is nice and sweet, it is a healthy substitute for sweets. Dried fruit does contain less vitamin C and more sugar than fresh fruit, so stick to a handful a day.

4. More Variety

Are you a real potato-meat-vegetable cooker and do you always end up with cauliflower, broccoli or beans? Take out a subscription to a vegetable package, so that you have various vegetables at home every week that you might not normally buy. Often there are recipes that you can use right away, otherwise you can always find a suitable dish on the internet. This way you become a lot more creative and you naturally eat more varied.

In addition, remember that your vegetables do not always have to cook. Many vegetables are already tasty raw and you can of course also bake, stir-fry, grill or steam them. Check out our new weekly menu every week for eight healthy recipes for inspiration.

5. Half plate green

If you want to consume more vegetables with dinner, it is a good guideline to fill half your plate with vegetables. Have a salad with dinner for a little extra greenery.

6. Save time

Little time? Then stock up on pre-cut vegetables. It is also useful to have fruit and vegetables in your freezer, so that you always have fruit and vegetables at hand, even if you do not have time to go to the store.

Vegetables in a can or jar without added sugar and salt have a long shelf life and are a healthy alternative to fresh products. Fill your pantry and you’ll quickly have a meal on the table without having to do any shopping first.

7. Process leftovers

Do not immediately throw any leftover vegetables from your evening meal in the trash. Leftovers can be stored for two to three days in a refrigerator with a temperature of 4 to 7 degrees Celsius. Or freeze vegetables, then they can be kept for up to three months.

You can easily process vegetable leftovers in a soup (water with a stock cube, just boil and puree) or combine with an egg to make an omelette or put in a tortilla or quiche.