Perhaps you've heard the claim that microwaves damage the nutrients in food. However, a recent study from Harvard Medical School shows that microwaves can preserve vitamins and minerals in food to the greatest extent, making it one of the healthiest cooking methods.
A U.S. survey on kale found that most Americans cook broccoli for 10 minutes or longer, which causes a cancer-fighting and detoxifying substance in broccoli—sulforaphane—to be completely lost. To preserve the activity of sulforaphane to the maximum, the cooking time for broccoli should be controlled to 3-5 minutes. In fact, it's not just broccoli; the same applies to other vegetables—the shorter the cooking time, the more complete the retention of nutrients. How to cook broccoli in 3 minutes? You might have guessed the answer: that's right, it's the microwave.
Unlike an oven, which cooks food by heating the surrounding temperature, a microwave typically heats the food molecules themselves. The electromagnetic waves generated by the microwave are absorbed by the water molecules in the food, generating heat to cook the food in a very short time, thus preserving the nutrients to the greatest extent. In addition, nutrients in food are easily destroyed by high temperatures and can be leached out and lost by large amounts of water. Microwave cooking, on the other hand, is done at a relatively low temperature and does not require adding a large amount of water. For example, potatoes are rich in vitamin C, which is highly sensitive to temperature. If boiled, vitamin C will dissolve into the water. If roasted in a 200°C oven for half an hour, vitamin C will also be severely lost. However, if you put it in the microwave, it is usually fully cooked in just a few minutes without needing any water.