[Kilketay]

I've been looking for ways to reduce added fat and calories when I cook vegetables. I see a lot of sites suggest sauteeing veggies in wine. Does anyone know how many calories that would add? A lot of the alcohol dissipates and cooks off when you heat it, and surely that's where most of the calories are, right?

Anything else you know of to reduce added fat and calories?

[RealCdn]

Use some type of stock. I tend to use chicken or beef, but if you're a vegetarian, use a vegetable stock. You won't see as much browning on them, but it works fairly well. There's a lot of natural sugars in wine, so I'm not sure what would be left (calorie-wise). I say that because if you've ever had a wine reduction it's usually quite sweet.

[zenor77]

The idea that cooking burns off alcohol isn't entirely accurate in practice. For the short amount of time you would saute most vegetables, not much alcohol is going to cook out. It takes 3 hours to cook almost all the alcohol out of a dish.

If you are going to saute in wine, measure it and count all of it.

Broth is another option, but I'm curious as to why you are so anti-fat? You don't need much oil to saute vegetables in and there are many health oils out there. Fat is not bad in of itself. Yes, it's higher in calories than other foods, but it can be more satisfying too.

I cook vegetables in olive oil all the time. You really don't need alot. For example, if I'm roasting a pound of asparagus I'll use 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Since I split that with my husband, that's 1/2 a teaspoon which only adds 20 calories and it's so yummy!

[Kilketay]

I don't have any inherent problem with fats, but they are very high calorie and I like to save them for when they make a difference. I like how vegetables taste just as well with or without fat, so I prefer them without the calories. I save my fat intake for things like nuts, avocados, or the occassional bit of full-fat cheese.

Also, heating fats tends to transform them and make them develop carcinogenogens and other bad stuff, so I try to avoid it when I can.

Thanks for the suggestions!