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Who would have thought that actually frying vegetables can be healthier than boiling them! According to a recent study conducted at the University of Granada in Spain, frying vegetables in extra virgin olive oil makes them healthier and more beneficial for the body. By frying the veggies, you get the additional benefit of phenolic compound which have antioxidant properties. When you boil or use any other method of cooking veggies, you do not get any such benefit. Phenolic compound is produced by the plant sand protects them against pests and insects and also add flavor as well as color to it. However, when we consume phenolic through plants, we are able to reap the benefits of phenos antioxidant properties that are linked to reducing the risk of many diseases.

For the purpose of study, the researchers cooked potato, eggplant, pumpkin and tomato and used different methods of cooking such as deep frying, boiling, sautéing and boiling in a mixture of oil and water. After cooking, these vegetables were examined for fat content, moisture and total phenols. When the veggies were deep fried in olive oil, it naturally increased the fat content but the levels of phenolic compound also increased. The boiled vegetables had lower phenolic compound, lower than the raw veggies, as reported by phys.org

The increased level of antioxidants in veggies come form extra virgin olive oil which has phenolic compounds of its own that get transferred to vegetables while they are being cooked. However, don't just replace the water in your veggies with the oil just yet, "Boiling is recommended if the vegetables are to be consumed together with the cooking medium (i.e. the water)," Cristina Samaniego Sánchez, one of the study authors, says in a press release.