Planning the Family Meals

Learning to plan the family meals is an exciting activity. Here, one thinks of the many varieties of food that are appropriate for snack, for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. One has to be creative on what food combinations he or she can make considering the flavor, form, color, and texture. One also has to develop his or her skills in preparing, cooking, and serving. One has to remember that preparing food is not just a simple household task.

Food preparation is both a science and an art. It is science because in cooking, one has to measure the ingredients carefully he or she uses in order to come out with the right flavor expected to come out in the product. One has to measure the amount of time needed for cooking in order to come up with the right consistency and texture of the product. One has to measure the right amount of food to be served to each family member so that nutrients needed by the body are provided for.

It is an art because food when served must be aesthetically pleasing. If the food is properly cooked and looks attractive, it stimulates the appetite of the family members enabling them to eat properly so they become healthy and strong. Attractive food requires a good combination of color, of texture, of consistency, and of flavor.

Importance of food. Food is important to everyone. Every day we eat our meals whether this is for snacks, breakfast, lunch or dinner. If there is one activity which your never fail to do in your day to day living, it is to eat. Why do you need to eat? You eat food for the following reasons:
- It sustains life.
- It keeps you physically and mentally alert.
- It builds and repairs your body tissues allowing you to grow and to become heavier and taller.
- It keeps your body healthy and resistant to infection and diseases.
- It gives you energy to enable you to work and play.

Without food, you cannot survive. You cannot do your work; you cannot study and do the household tasks assigned to you. You cannot be happy and comfortable in life, because when you are unhealthy, you are sad and uncomfortable. Children who do not eat the right kinds and amount of food become malnourished. Malnourished children are underweight, sad, shy, and weak. They do not have the energy to play with other children. They become sickly and sometimes do not want to play with other children. That is why, it is important to know what to eat and how much to eat.

Using the three basic food groups in planning meals. Every family should have a goal in preparing and serving family meals. The goal is to see that the meal served is nutritious, clean, palatable, and attractive. Nutritious food means that the food served contains all the necessary nutrients needed by the body.

In planning a nutritious meal, one of the important nutrition tools to use is the Three Basic Food Groups. In this group, foods are classified based on the functions they do to the body. Such functions are based on the major nutrients found in the food. At this point, it is well to remember that every food contains more than one nutrient but the group in which the food belongs depends on the predominant nutrient found in the food.

note: originally posted at Exposeknowledge.com under the same author.