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A lot of people are taking to cooking at home in their quest to get well balanced, tasty and nutritious meals. However, as a result of too much reliance on takeouts, supermarket frozen dinners and all kinds of meats, we are used to diets that are unhealthy and fattening. Most of us who are non-vegetarians shy away from vegetables and fruits while stuffing ourselves with sugary and fatty food. However, nutritionists and doctors have declared that it is important to eat a minimum of five to seven servings of fruits and vegetables in order to have a healthy diet. Eating such a large amount of fruits and veggies is quite difficult, not to say distasteful for a number of non-vegetarians. However, with our easy tips on making meals tasty and nutritious, you will soon start loving healthy eating.

· When we look at an average American’s diet, there are three things that are drastically wrong with it. Too much fat, excessive sugar and too little fiber. In order to remedy this situation, you will first have to look at your own diet and weight and think of the changes that you really need to make to your diet. The best way of adding fiber to your diet is by eating more fruits, vegetables and whole grain cereals. The best way to start this is by incorporating a small salad into every meal. This would not only add three to four portions of fruits and veggies to your diet, it will also add the fiber required to convert your diet into a healthy one.

· Coming to salads, while most salads are healthy, some salads drenched in heavy dressing contain fat that should be avoided if you are overweight. Try going for salads that have been tossed in transparent and light dressings instead of going for creamy dressings.

· Start having fruit salads. You can start substituting your desserts with fruits and fruit salads. This will have multiple benefits. Not only will this save you from consuming the excessive amount of sugar that you do with normal desserts, it will also add the required amount of fiber to your diet. Fruits are very rich in anti-oxidants and therefore help in controlling aging and increasing your immunity.

· If you find chopping vegetables a big chore, then you can always start using your food processor to do it. You can avoid cleaning your food processor every day by spending an extra hour in the kitchen on a weekend and chopping up all your vegetables one by one in your food processor. Store chopped fruits and vegetables in separate plastic containers; otherwise they might turn bad sooner than later. Unfortunately, you cannot cut and store apples, bananas, eggplants and potatoes etcetera since they oxidize very fast and will turn brown within minutes of being chopped.
· Start adding chopped fruits and vegetables to all the dishes that can take them. They will not only enhance their flavor, but also make them more nutritious. Try different fruit and vegetable mixes for your salads to add flavor and variety.