Last Updated on October 21, 2025 by

Cooking Tips

DOs for Cooking Tips:

1. Make sure you wash your hands with soap & water before making any food or cooking it. Wash them all before using any utensils

2. To disinfect them, one liter of water is enough for a teaspoon of bleach. Be sure to wash your utensils with water.

3. Before peeling and chopping, soak all fruits and vegetables in salt water for a while, then rinse and wash. Throw away the soaking salt water.
4. Every day, eat a range of foods from the four dietary groups: vegetables and fruits, fish or meat, soybeans, mushrooms, or lentils; grain products (wheat, rice, ragi, bajra, and jowar); and milk and its substitutes.

5. You should consume three meals combined with two or three small snacks daily. The snacks should contain minimal salt and sugar.

6. For the best results, blend either mustard oil with groundnut oil or mix mustard oil with rice bran oil.

DON’Ts for Cooking Tips

1. Cooked or uncooked food should never be left out at room temperature for longer than two hours

2. In Refrigerator: Cooked food should not be kept longer than two days. Always give your food another heating before you eat it.

3. Avoid buying salted potato chips, achar, mithai, samosas, kachori and foods that are very high in salt, fat or sugar. Don’t allow your oils to get too hot or use them more than once. Don’t utilize Dalda too much.

4. Avoid consuming packaged cakes together with chips and namkeens containing trans fat.
5. Wholesome milk, raw or half-cooked eggs, shouldn’t be added to your dishes.
6. One should not have more than two cups of tea or coffee in a one interval.

1. Morning(6-7 AM): Cooking Tips

• Meal Type – 1
  • A glass of milk 250 ml with Rusk  OR 2 Biscuits (Marie biscuits)
  • 1 Apple
  • One Ragi ladoo
  • 1 or 2 Dates
• Meal Type – 2
  • A glass of milk 250 ml with Rusk OR  2 Biscuits (Marie biscuits)
  • 1 Ripe Banana or Grapes (Blue /  green)
  • 01 Ragi ladoo
  • 1or 2 Dates
• Meal Type – 3
  • A glass of milk 250 ml with Rusk  OR 2 Biscuits (Marie biscuits)
  • 1 Guava / 1 Mango / Jamuns
  • 01-Ragi ladoo 1 or 2 Dates
• Meal Type – 4
  • A glass of milk 250 ml with Rusk  OR 2 Biscuits (Marie biscuits)
  • 01-Apple or 1 Orange
  • 1 Ragi ladoo
  • 1 or 2 Dates

2. Break-fast (8 AM to 9 AM) : Cooking Tips

• Meal Type – 1
  • 4 Idli OR 3 small Adai dosa OR 1  bowl upma (whole wheat rava)
  • 1 bowl of thick sambar OR  chutney
• Meal Type – 2
  • Khandvi (1 serving) OR Dhokla (100  gm) OR
  • 2 Thepla with Curd / Yogurt (1 small  bowl)
• Meal Type – 3
  • Moori (1 cup) with sabzi (1 bowl)  OR
  • 1 Stuffed Paratha
• Meal Type – 4
  • 1 Stuffed Paratha/dalia OR
  • 2 Poori with Potato Masala

3. Mid Morning(11-AM): Cooking Tips

• Meal Type – 1
  • 1 Orange OR 1 Apple OR 1  Pomegranate (Anar) OR 1 cup  black grapes with 1 Glass Tender  Coconut Water OR lemon water
• Meal Type – 2
  • 1 Orange OR 1 Apple OR 1  Pomegranate (Anar) OR 1 cup black  grapes with 1 Glass Tender Coconut  Water OR lemon water
• Meal Type – 3
  • 1 Orange OR 1 Apple OR 1  Pomegranate (Anar) OR 1 cup  black grapes with 1 Glass Tender  Coconut Water OR lemon water
• Meal Type – 4
  • 1 Orange OR 1 Apple OR 1  Pomegranate (Anar) OR 1 cup  black grapes with 1 Glass Tender  Coconut Water OR lemon water

4. Lunch (1-2 PM) :

• Meal Type – 1
  • One Bowl cooked Rice
  • Veg. Dish – 1 Bowl  (May be Carrot OR Beet)
  • Spinach Curry OR any Green  leafy vegetable – (1 bowl – must)
  • Dal 1 bowl – (Tuar dal sambar,  Rasam, whole moong dal)
  • Curd / Yogurt – 1 small bowl
  • 1 small bowl Payasam OR Atta/  Rava Halwa
• Meal Type – 2
  • One Bowl cooked Rice OR Dal  Dhokli (One) OR One bowl Khichdi
  • Vegetable Side Dish – 1 Bowl  (Potato with skin OR sweet potato  OR Beet, arbi OR zimikand)
  • Spinach Curry OR any Green leafy  vegetable – (1 bowl – must)
  • Dal 1 bowl – (moong dal, masur,  chana) OR Gujrati Kadhi
  • 1 Chikki
• Meal Type – 3
  • One Bowl cooked Rice
  • Vegetable Side Dish : 1 Bowl  (Potato with skin OR sweet  potato OR Beet, arbi OR  zimikand)
  • Spinach Curry OR any Green leafy  vegetable or saag (1 bowl – must)
  • Dal 1 bowl – (moong dal, masur,  chana )
  • Curd / Yogurt – 1 small bowl
  • 1 Sandesh
• Meal Type – 4
  • One Bowl cooked Rice OR 2  Fulkas/ bajra rotior Chapati
  • Vegetable Side Dish : 1 Bowl  (Potato with skin OR sweet potato  OR Beet, arbi OR zimikand)
  • Spinach Curry OR any Green leafy  vegetable : (1 bowl – must)
  • Dal 1 bowl : (moong dal, masur,  rajma, chana )
  • Curd / Yogurt – 1 small bowl
  • 1 laddoo

5. Evening  Snack(5-6 PM) :

• Meal Type – 1
  • 1 Glass Milk OR 1 cup Tea
  • 1 Medu Vada OR Paruppu Vadai  (occasionally)
  • 2 Biscuits OR Rusk
• Meal Type – 2
  • 1 Glass Milk OR 1 cup Tea
  • Murmura Chaat (100 gm)OR 1 cup  Poha 2 Biscuits OR Rusk
• Meal Type – 3
  • 1 Glass Milk OR 1 cup Tea
  • 1 cup Moori, chanachur,  cucumber, tomato mix OR 2  Biscuits OR Rusk
• Meal Type – 4
  • 1 Glass Milk OR 1 cup Tea
  • 1 Veg Tikki OR 2 Biscuits OR Rusk

6. Soup (7-8 PM) :

• Meal Type – 1
  • Rasam (Tomato, Tamarind,  Garlic, Heeng) – 1 Bowl
• Meal Type – 2
  • Vegetable Soup -1 Bowl/Tomato Soup -1 Bowl.

7. Dinner (9-10 PM) : Cooking Tips

• Meal Type – 1
  • 1 bowl rice  OR
  • 1-2 Chapati
  • Dal – 1 bowl (Sambar)
  • Vegetable
  • 1 bowl Ragi Ambli
  • medium piece of fish 75 gm OR  1 full boiled egg
• Meal Type – 2
  • Chapati 2 to 3 with Dal – 1 bowl  (moong dal, masur, chana)
  • 1 bowl vegetable dish
• Meal Type – 3
  • 1 bowl cooked rice OR Chapati  2 to 3 with Dal – 1 bowl (moong  dal, masur, chana)
  • 1 bowl vegetable dish
  • medium piece of fish 75 gm OR 1  full boiled egg
• Meal Type – 4
  • 1 bowl cooked rice OR Chapati 2  to 3 with Dal : 1 bowl (moong dal,  masur, chana)
  • 1 vegetable dish

FAQs:

Q1. Pregnant individuals need to understand the fundamental importance of preparing food in safe conditions.

Ans. Food safety during cooking provides essential protection from illnesses that threaten women during pregnancy as well as their developing baby. (Cooking Tips)

Q2. Which food products should pregnant women refrain from preparing during their pregnancy?

Ans. Pregnant women should prevent foodborne infections by never eating raw meats together with unpasteurized dairy products and high-mercury fish species and undercooked eggs.

Q3. Expectant mothers can enjoy eating spicy foods but they should regulate their consumption levels.

Ans. Yes, in moderation. Eating spicy foods moderately can be okay for pregnant women but the risk of heartburn and indigestion remains. Therefore they should exercise care during consumption.

Q4. Pregnant women should use which cooking methods as the most beneficial ones for their pregnancy?

Ans. Steaming and baking provide the best cooking methods for pregnant women because they protect nutritional value while eliminating excess fats.

Q5. Pregnant women should check food taste only after the cooking process has finished properly.

Ans. Pregnant women should consume prepared food only when it reaches a temperature that kills bacteria after cooking meat, eggs and seafood.

Q6. What measures should pregnant women follow in maintaining kitchen cleanliness?

Ans. Hand and utensil and surface cleaning remains essential since it dramatically decreases infection risks that include listeria and salmonella.

Q7. Are leftover foods suitable for consumption by pregnant women?

Ans. The food remains safe for consumption following appropriate storage methods together with proper heating until it reaches steam points before consumption.

Q8. Pregnant women should focus on consuming which specific nutrients when cooking meals.

Ans. The consumption of food with iron, calcium, folic acid, protein and fiber content strengthens the development of the baby.

Guideline of WHO for Nutrition counselling and its link as mentioned below: https://www.who.int/tools/elena/interventions/nutrition-counselling-pregnancy

Thanks and Regards

About the Author – “Mr. Bibhu Ranjan Mund”, Master in Public Health (MPH) from IIHMR University, Jaipur (Rajasthan) has experience of 18 years in Public Health activities. Through “Lovely Health Tips-2025”, we share the evidence & experienced based health & wellness guides with solutions for every day well-being. More from Author

Disclaimer

This information is suggestive only and not a replacement for medical advice. For more detail, please visit to my website as mentioned below:

Lovely Health Tips — 2025