If you’re like our clients, you’ve got a full freezer and want to know an easy way how to roast frozen vegetables in the oven that makes them crispy without using loads of oil so that they’re still great for weight loss. And of course, you want it to be easy. Without an air fryer, you may think that the best way to make vegetables caramelized and crunchy is by adding a lot of oil, but that’s not true. The secret to roasting frozen broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, green beans or a veggie medley, straight from the bag is all in the technique—and we’ve got a simple “recipe”that will help you to lose weight—just fill half your plate with these delicious veggies and you’ll have less room on your plate for heavier items..

Our clients always have a few questions about vegetables and their health and weight loss, so let’s clarify those first.

 

 

 

Frozen veggies—are they as nutritious as fresh?

You betcha! —and they won’t go bad. Plus, you don’t have to wash, cut or peel them! That’s probably why you have them. 😉  Frozen veggies are just as nutritious as fresh ones and often times have even more nutrients.  That’s because they’re picked and immediately frozen, nutrients intact, so they won’t lose nutrients with exposure to light and air (or heat) the way that fresh vegetables do.  When fresh veggies sit in the truck to get to the supermarket or on the store shelf, they often lose some of the nutrients that frozen veggies are able to retain.

What’s the deal with veggies and health?

• Veggies are your golden ticket for all things health (disease and obesity prevention, boosting energy & metabolism, and more!). They flood your body with antioxidants and phytonutrients that fight disease and mop up free radicals, helping to “undo”/protect against some of the damage created by overindulgences, alcohol, stress and breathing polluted air, while keeping meals low in calories.

Do veggies really help you with weight loss?

 Yes!

 Here’s how they work to help you to lose weight and get a flat belly:

• #1: When you fill up on veggies you have less room in your stomach for the heavy stuff at meals, so you don’t consume as many calories and you get leaner.
• #2 (a.k.a. our constipation & flat-belly cure): The high water and fiber content of the veggies flushes bloat and waste and brings on a flat belly—oh yeah!
• #3 (a.k.a. our bloat-be-gone cure): The high water and potassium combination in veggies helps to flush out salt and the extra water and bloat that it holds with it for a flatter belly.
• #4 They’re packed with anti-inflammatory compounds and antioxidants that keep you healthy. When your body isn’t focusing on putting out fires and being forced to work overtime to keep you healthy, all of your body’s systems, including your metabolism can work more efficiently.

Why do some people gain weight from eating veggies?

All green veggies and non-starchy* veggies (starchy veggies are peas, potatoes, corn & winter squash) are super low in calories and high in nutrients.  However, the way you prepare your veggies can make them either help your weight loss efforts or hinder them.  It all comes down to the way you prepare them.  Be aware of the amount of butter, oil or sauces that you add, as the calories add up very quickly.  Even with heart-healthy, delicious olive and avocado oil, the portion size does matter.  Just a level tablespoon is 120 calories.  A fifty -calorie serving of veggies can easily become 200-300 when a few tablespoons of oil are added to make crispy oven roasted veggies or when veggies are fried or sautéed. That’s a lot of calories before you even have any carbs or protein at your meal!  Most people who are looking to lose weight need to stick to about 350-450 calories per meal (150 for each healthy snack).

*Starchy veggies are healthy; they’re higher in calories so eating lot of them could cause weight gain.

 

 

You may like these recipes:

Spicy “Fried” Broccoli

Easy Crunchy Braised Cabbage,

Colorful Detox Salad,

Caramelized Cauliflower with Olive Oil and Lemon Juice,

Easy Peasy Seasoned Brussel Sprouts,

Roasted detoxifying Veggies

How do you roast frozen vegetables that are crispy and still good for weight loss? 

 Follow this technique and recipe below.

Putting your oil in a spray bottle is the secret here-it disperses the high calorie oil so that the vegetables are lightly coated rather than doused in it.

 

How to Roast Frozen Vegetables

• 1, 16-oz bag frozen broccoli florets, cauliflower florets or another frozen vegetable*
• olive oil, avocado oil or coconut oil in a spray container
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, optional
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or oregano, or your favorite seasoning, optional

*Vegetables that are uniform in size work best for them all to get equally crispy.

Directions:

1. Very lightly grease a sheet pan or line your pan with parchment paper if you prefer it for easier clean up. Preheat the oven to 450ºF and place the pan in the oven as it preheats. The goal is to get the pan and oven hot.
2. Mix the spices, except for salt, in a bowl that is large enough to hold the veggies.
3. When the oven is fully heated, remove the frozen veggies bag from the freezer and quickly place the frozen vegetables in the bowl spices.
4. Spritz the veggies with oil and mix with spices. Stir and spritz again with oil.
5. Once the veggies have been spritzed with oil, take the sheet pan out of the oven and quickly place the veggies in a single layer on the pan. You should hear a sizzle. Spritz the veggies with oil and place the pan in the oven.
6. Roast the veggies for 10 minutes. Then remove the pan from the oven. The veggies will have started to defrost and some of the moisture will have left. Toss the veggies and spritz with oil and add salt, if using.
7. Place back in the oven for another 8-20 minutes, depending on the vegetables that you’re using. Stir the veggies a few times to allow them to caramelize evenly.

The average cup of most roasted broccoli recipes will be about 200 calories. This version will be about 50 calories.  There you have it—the best way to roast frozen vegetables that is easy and makes crispy veggies that are great for weight loss.

While broccoli and asparagus and some other softer veggies are a tad softer than fresh with this method, in our opinion, this still works pretty great!  We have to make the most of what we’ve got and this certainly does that!