Vegetables won’t provide you with many calories, but will support your health with a number of important vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

Plus, they add a great deal of flavour when eating healthy meal plans for muscle building, so they are an important addition to your diet plan.

That said, some of you have some important questions about cooking vegetables, so let’s take some time to go over those right now.

Question 1: When I cook stir-fry’s, I try and make my vegetables ‘crunchy’ but they always turn out a bit more mushy than I would ideally like them to be.  Am I missing something here?

Muscle Cook: If you find that your vegetables end up more mushy than they do crunchy, this is a clear indication that you are cooking them for too long.

Try cooking them for just a few minutes and make sure that you don’t have too much water or sauce in the pan that you’re cooking them in.

This can also increase the risk that they turn soft and mushy rather than staying crisp.

Focus on fast flipping and a bit higher heat to ‘fry’ them.

Question 2: Are there different cooking times recommended for different vegetables? There categories that you can break them down based into color, texture, or certain characteristics?

Muscle Cook: While there are no specific categories that you can break your vegetables down into during the cooking process, there are different cooking times for different vegetables.  Generally speaking broccoli, mushrooms, and onions tend to be rather quick cooking, while cauliflower, peppers, carrots, and celery will cook more slowly.

Succeeding at eating healthy meal plans might mean you need to pay attention to the sequence at which you cook your veggies. Some should be added to your cooking pot at different times in order to ensure that they stay as crisp and fresh as possible.

Question 3: What are the three healthiest ways to cook vegetables?

Muscle Cook: The three healthiest ways to prepare these foods for anyone eating healthy meal plans will be steaming them, stir-frying them, as well as grilling them.

All of these methods will add few fat or calories provided you’re not using high calorie sauces or marinades.

So there you have the important tips that you need to keep in mind when it comes to cooking vegetables, one of the best types of muscle building foods to add when eating healthy meal plans.

Make sure that you’re not leaving them out of the picture as they are a very important part of your meal plan.

What is your favourite type of vegetable based dish?

Many people completely overlook this as a possible cooking technique and it can cause them to quickly become bored with their diet altogether.  Remember, the more variety you can have with how you prepare your best fat burning meals and the actual foods that you’re adding to that diet, the easier it will be for you to see success.

Let’s go over what you need to know about pan roasting.

What Pan Roasting Is

Pan roasting is a technique that will work great for thicker cuts of meat and will slash the time it would normally take for oven roasting.   To pan roast, you’ll require a heavy pan that helps to keep the heat in (cast iron is preferable), your choice of meat, some healthy oil, any seasonings you desire, and then kitchen tongs and oven mitts.

You’ll begin by preheating your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and then heat the pan over medium-high heat.  You need to make sure that the pan stays hot at all times.  Next, coat the pan with your oil, making sure it’s fully coated and then place the meat inside.  Just be sure it’s not crowded or it won’t sear properly – if you need to do two batches, so be it.

Sear the meat for a few minutes and then you have the choice of either putting it in the oven from there, or if you prefer searing the other side and then placing it in the oven after that.  Cook the meat until the desired doneness temperature is reached (checked with a meat thermometer) and then serve.

Which Foods Work Best For Pan Roasting

Most of your main fat burning meals that are high in protein will work great for pan roasting including fish steaks, beef tenderloin, chicken, as well as pork.  Some people may also enjoy preparing vegetables in this manner as well, so that’s another thing to consider.

The only thing to remember is to NOT use a pan like the one being put in the oven. Only use a cast iron pan and never use a pan that has any plastic handles. It pays to invest in a nice black cast iron pan like in the first photo.

Pan Roasting Benefits

There are a number of benefits that you’ll achieve with pan roasting.  First, it’s a lower calorie method to prepare food that will only add a small dose of healthy fats from the oil.  You don’t have to deep fry or coat the meat in high calorie condiments, sauces, or cheese to get it juicy and flavorful.

Second, it’s also fast.  If you need a meal quickly but enjoy the taste of oven-roasted meat the best, this is the method to use.  You can dramatically decrease the cooking time by using this method so that you can have that meal to your table quickly.

So make sure that you aren’t overlooking pan roasting as you prepare your best fat burning meals. It really is a great method to consider for those who want variety and are serious about sticking to their diet plan.

I like to think of all these cooking methods as different weapons for mass destruction on fat and building muscle. Not every method works with every type of food, but every method does have a place.

What is your preferred cooking method?

I`ve picked some great questions I have been getting about cooking, storing and handling chicken!

Chicken is an excellent source of lean protein that will support your muscle building goals and help to speed up the recovery that you experience between sessions.

That said, many people do have a number of questions about cooking chicken on their healthy meal plans, so let’s sort through these so that you can learn what you need to know.

Question 1: If I freeze fresh chicken breasts, then thaw them at another point, how long do I have to cook them before they turn bad if they stay refrigerated?

Muscle Cook: Keeping frozen chicken breasts on hand is an excellent way to stick to your healthy eating meal plans and save on grocery shopping time.  If you’re taking them out of the freezer and thawing them in the fridge, you should aim to use them within 1-2 days for optimal freshness.  Make sure that you also store it in the coldest part of the fridge as well.

Another option you might consider is pre-cooking all your fresh chicken breasts beforehand and freezing them in the cooked state. This will extend their ‘fridge life’ up to four days.

Question 2: If I freeze meats and then thaw them to cook one day, can I refreeze them if I took out too much or is this not recommended?

Muscle Cook: While you can do this if you freeze them almost immediately after you’ve taken them out to thaw, it really isn’t recommended as it will reduce the taste quality of them and they won’t be as fresh the second time around when you cook them.

Also, if they have been sitting outside of the fridge during the thaw-out process, you really are best cooking them and then re-freezing them if you must.

Question 3: When I cook chicken in a frying pan, ever so often I find that the outside cooks faster than the inside.  This leaves me with a burnt outside and an uncooked portion on the inside.  Besides cutting them into strips to cook more evenly, is there any way to ensure a thoroughly cooked chicken breast?

Muscle Cook: Certainly.  Your first option would be to choose thinner chicken breasts or to slice your chicken breast lengthwise through the middle.  This won’t turn them into ‘strips’ but will allow the heat to reach the inside faster during the cooking process.

Another option to try is cooking the chicken breast over a lower heat. This will extend the duration f cooking time but can help the chicken cook more evenly in the middle.

If you have any questions about cooking yourself on your healthy meal plans, make sure to ask them below.

Poaching is relatively easy and once you get the hang of it and start using it a few times, you’ll find that you turn to it time and time again.

Let’s have a look at what poaching is all about so you can see for yourself what this cooking technique has to offer.

What Is Poaching

Poaching is a form of cooking food that requires medium to low heat that will allow the food to cook slowly and evenly, making sure the moisture is never squeezed out.

To poach properly, you’ll want to bring a shallow pan of water to around 160 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, so it won’t be quite at a simmer.  Use a thermometer if necessary to make sure you have this temperature as it’s necessary for properly performing this
technique.

Once you have little bubbles forming in the water but it’s not fully boiling, place the meat into the pan and cook until it has reached around 160 degrees.  If you are unsure if the meat is finished, cut into it gently and check on the inside.

If you are going to poach an egg rather than a piece of meat, you’ll want to crack the egg and let it slide right into the pan, preferably without it falling apart.

From there, continue to let it cook until the egg white is fully cooked and the center looks runny but does have some firmness to it.  Next remove from a slotted spoon and serve over toast or however you desire.

Which Foods Work Best For Poaching

In terms of what works best for poaching, chicken and eggs are the most commonly used muscle building foods, however don’t be prepared to venture into steak, pork, or other forms of meat.  Just keep in mind the flavor won’t be quite as strong with poaching, however the meat will be juicier than many other cooking techniques.

You can also poach fruit for a unique dessert if you desire as well, or consider poaching in liquids such as milk or a broth for added flavor.

Poaching Benefits

One of the biggest benefits of poaching as you prepare your muscle building foods is the fact that it will not add any additional calories unless using a calorie-containing broth.

Poaching will take a little longer than some other cooking methods and does require further patience, so that is something to also keep in mind.

For anyone who enjoys meat that is very juicy, it is the way to go.

Consider topping the meat with salsa, lemon juice, or some additional spices if you do want to increase the flavor of it and add some color. Especially with chicken breasts, you’ll be left with very white looking meat.

So there you have all the main facts to note about poaching.  It is an excellent cooking method to try out with your muscle building foods.

Ever try it before? Your thoughts?

It’s very easy to make one or two small mistakes along the way and have these negatively impact the end result of the dishes that you’re preparing.  Fortunately, by taking the time to learn what these errors are ahead of time, there is a lower chance that you make them while serving up your muscle building foods.

Understanding what these are can mean the difference between you sticking with your diet plan or not, so it’s not something to take lightly.  Let’s go over what you need to know.

Egg Shells Sticking During The Hard Boiling Process

If you’ve decided to hard-boil your eggs, then one of the top concerns most people have is the egg shells sticking.  If you often find yourself running into this problem, the first thing that you must make sure you’re using slightly older eggs.  Eggs that are at least one week old will work best when hard boiling, so keep that in mind.

Next, make sure that after the cooking process is finished, you submerge the eggs immediately in ice cold water and let them sit for at least 10 minutes.  Once that time is up, then you can proceed to crack them and you should find the shell comes off much more easily.

Your Marinade Isn’t Leaving Enough Flavor

Ever marinade your meat only to cook it and find that it still doesn’t have the flavor you were going for? If this is the case, you’re without a doubt frustrated with the process.

What are you doing wrong?

If your marinade is not leaving lasting flavor, this is likely because you haven’t let the food sit in the marinade long enough for it to fully seep into the food you’re cooking.

Remember, marinades are not for cooking your muscle building foods.  They’re for preparing your muscle building foods.  Coat the food in the marinade and then let it sit for four to five hours or overnight.  This should solve your problem instantly.

Using Too Much Salt

Finally, the last grave mistake that many people are using with their muscle building foods is adding far too much salt.  They think that the more salt they add, the better tasting the food will be.

Not so.  Too much salt can easily ruin a good dish, not to mention cause you to consume far too much sodium over the course of the day.

Instead, consider preparing your food with natural herbs or a low sodium broth instead.  This will still add more flavor to your foods only be ten times better for you.

So there you have the main cooking mistakes that you might be making as you prepare your muscle building foods.  Were you making any of these?

This is NOT a sales pitch for these supplements…it is just me chillin out, giving you honest feedback on what is in my supplements cupboard.

No rehearsals, no script, no planning (as you will see when I find supplements that I have to throw out because they were past their expiration date).

So get a protein drink, coffee or tea and sit back and watch as I dissect EVERY supplement I own

As promised, here are the sites addresses where you can get these:

BlueStar products - http://www.bluestarnutraceutical.com
Greens - http://www.athleticsupergreens.com
Dale’s Raw Protein Bars and Products - http://www.dalerawfoods.com
Leantymes Vitamins, Minerals, Digestive Enzymes - Not available to public yet (will post link soon)
Fit Freeze - http://www.fitfreezeicecream.com
Fancy Supplements Samples - In my trash can

Did I miss any that you would like more info on? Post them below in the comments and let me know which one’s are your favorites.

Dave

Eggs contain a very good dose of nutrition, are quite low in cost, and can be prepared in less than two minutes depending on the cooking method you use.  If you need a fast and reliable source of protein on the go, they simply can’t be beat.

Eggs, although very nutritious, can also quickly add calories since the yolk is mostly good fat. That is why I recommend to use a combination of egg whites and yolks.

Since there are so many different ways to prepare eggs, this also makes it that much easier to prevent boredom from setting in. simply by changing the way that you prepare them, you can add a new twist to your diet plan.

Let’s take a closer look at what you should know about why eggs are one of the best muscle building foods.

Eggwhites or Full Egg?

Now a lot of people ask me why they should only take egg whites and not the whole egg. The reason is that most people who are into bodybuilding need much more protein than fat. But if a person were to try and get their full protein requirements in a meal from whole eggs alone, they would go way over their fat requirements for that meal. Just take al ook at this comparison below to give you a better idea.

6 Whole Eggs: 30g Fats/36g Protein

4 Eggwhites and 2 Whole Eggs: 10g Fats/34g Protein

See the difference? The equivalent protein amounts, but much less fat with the second option.

I dont have anything against the yolk, but if you eat too many of them the calorie content might be too high.

Free Range, Grain Fed, Or Regular?

One question that you might find yourself asking is whether you should be going for free range eggs, grain fed, or regular.  The primary difference is free range eggs do tend to be healthier and many have a higher level of essential fats than regular or grain fed eggs.

So if you want the best quality in your eggs, this is the variety to select.

On the other hand, regular eggs do tend to cost less, so if budget is a concern, this will be the variety to turn to.

Normally I will get a mix between organic and regular eggs unless I am preparing for a show at which time I will switch to all organic just to be on the safe side and bring my A-game!

How To Prepare

So how should you prepare your eggs?  When preparing your eggs you’ll always want to choose the lowest fat methods of preparing them, only adding olive oil if need be so you keep healthy fats in there.

There are more ways than just the tradditional Bodybuildder’s Boiled Eggs!

Good options for preparation include:

• boiling them
• scrambled
• poaching them in water
• sunny side up
• or creating an omelette
  with your eggs and serving them with diced vegetables for added nutrients.

Remember that you can also use egg whites to prepare French toast using Ezekiel bread, protein pancakes with oatmeal and protein powder, or any other baking that you’re doing to increase their protein content.

Now let’s show you one sample recipe for using this one of the top muscle building foods.

The Perfect Omelette: Turkey Bacon Scramble

Makes 1 Serving

Ingredients

- 8 Egg Whites
- 1/2 cup Red Onion, chopped
- 1 cup Mushrooms, sliced
- 1 cup Broccoli florets
- 1/2 cup Green Pepper, chopped
- 1 Scallion, minced
- 1 tbsp of Olive Oil
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 3 slices Turkey Bacon, cut
- Salt and Pepper

Directions

1. In medium skillet coated lightly with cooking spray – set to medium high heat – cook the onion, mushrooms, broccoli, scallion and green pepper until tender

2. In another skillet, cook turkey bacon.)

3. Add the eggs to the veggies and scramble until completely set. Then add a tablespoon of olive oil, and sprinkle garlic powder, oregano, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir and add the cut cooked turkey bacon

Nutritional Facts

(Per Serving)

Calories: 327

Protein: 50g

Carbohydrates: 7g

Fat: 11g

So if you’re not making use of eggs in your diet, now is the time to start. Do not overlook this one of the perfect muscle building foods as it really can offer so much nutrition and quality to your diet and support your muscle building goals.

What is your favorite ‘egg’ recipe?

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“The Death of Bulking”

DOWNLOAD >> Right click here and “Save Target As”

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Regardless of what exactly you celebrate, this week, you get the chance to WIN a free copy of Anabolic Cooking!

How?

Really easy. All you have to do is submit your best recipe in the comments section below.

The catch?

1. It has to be ‘Anabolicious’.

2. It has to be as original as possible (no plagiarism please)

3. It has to be submitted before Friday December 23 at noon.

The winner will be announced Friday December 23rd at 6PM and will get a free copy of Anabolic Cooking.

So go ahead and submit your comments below. I cant wait to see all of them

Dave

Add to this that you’ll have social function after social function to attend and you can already see your healthy diet plan going down the drain.

Before you’re so quick to just give up hope and decide that you’re going to start a massive fat loss program come the New Year, come up with an action plan instead for how you can combat the typical holiday weight gain that most people deal with and even use the time as a great muscle building phase!

If you go in with a plan, the chances that you come out with your weight in tact will be ten times higher, not to mention you’ll likely enjoy the holidays that much more as well.

Let’s have a quick look at some simple tips that you should be using.

Always Eat Protein Before Social Gatherings

The very first tip that you should definitely be making use of is always having some protein before you attend any social gatherings.  Since quality protein is often the hardest thing to find on the menu or buffet when at a social function, by eating enough before the event you can be sure that you’re still going to be meeting your daily needs.

In addition to this, protein has the highest satiety effects on the body so by taking it in before you go you’ll have a reduced chance of eating more calories than you should.

Keep Your Muscle Building Meals Tasting Great

The next thing to do this holiday season is to make sure to experiment with your typical muscle building recipes so that you’re creating meals that you enjoy. If you aren’t enjoying your standard daily diet it’s going to make all those tempting treats look that much better and really increase the chances that you cheat on your plan.

Try one new healthy recipe a week and you should be able to stick with your diet that much better.

For great recipe ideas, you know where to go right?

Be Prepared With Healthy Snacks

When at the office, always try and keep a few healthy snacks on you.  Since this is the place where holiday baking seems to flood during the coming months, by having your healthy snacks to eat when you get hungry, you’ll be less likely to eat that plate of chocolate truffles that passes you by.

Those healthy snacks will also help to keep your blood sugar levels more stable so you don’t get sudden urges of hunger that you want to satisfy with some simple carbs.

Allow Yourself One Treat Per Event

Moving on, when you do go to a social function, make an agreement with yourself that you’ll have one treat per event.  This will help to keep the total calorie intake down and ensure that you still don’t feel deprived.

One smaller portion isn’t going to create too much damage so it should still allow you to keep your weight intact quite effectively.

Bring Your Own Dish

Bring your own dish to any function whenever possible.  While it may be a bit more work on your part at least then you will know that there’s going to be something healthy there that you can turn to if you do get hungry.

The worst case scenario is if you’re someone where there are no healthy options and your stomach is growling.  This will take care of that problem in a hurry.

A popular dessert you could bring would be something like my Maple Pecan High Protein Muffins. See recipe link below:

Maple Pecan High Protein Muffings Recipe << click here

Plan a BIG Workout!

If you can, I would always try and schedule workouts around those holiday parties or meals. I often hit up a big workout before sitting down for a holiday feast, and while still following the rules above, I am able to indulge in those little treats with much less guilt and the best part is that it all goes towards refuelling depleted glycogen levels.

So keep these tips in mind this coming holiday season. If you are sure to apply them to your nutritional approach you shouldn’t be facing the average 5-10 weight gain that most people deal with come the New Year.

But just one last note; if you only have 1 meal during the holiday season, you don’t really need to adhere to these guidelines as much. Don’t be shy about having a cheat meal if it is done in only one shot. Just don’t make every gathering an opportunity to stuff your face lol.

What foods do you look forward to the most over the holiday season?