Water-Based Cooking for Better Health

When it comes to supporting your digestion and feeling your best, how you cook your food matters just as much as what you’re eating. Water-based cooking methods—like steaming, braising, boiling, and making soups or broths—are gentle on the gut, deeply nourishing, and help preserve the vital nutrients your body needs to thrive.

So what makes these cooking methods so beneficial?

The Gut-Nourishing Power of Water

Cooking with water prevents excessive browning and burning of food, which means fewer harmful compounds are created in the process. It also helps maintain hydration in your meals—important for digestion, nutrient absorption, and keeping your gut lining happy.

Soups and stews, for example, allow vegetables, herbs, and spices to infuse into the cooking liquid, creating a kind of edible herbal tea that’s easy on the system and deeply restorative. Broths and stocks are rich in amino acids and minerals that help rebuild and protect the gut lining. And gentle dishes like kitchari give your digestive fire a rest while still offering complete nutrition.

Water-based cooking also supports a healthy gut biome—the community of beneficial bacteria and microbes that live in your digestive tract. Together, the gut lining and gut biome form the foundation of your digestive and immune health. The lining is the protective barrier; the biome is the ecosystem. When both are in balance, you’re more likely to experience strong digestion, better nutrient absorption, and a greater sense of vitality overall.

What About Roasting, Grilling, and Sautéing?

These dry-heat cooking methods can be delicious—and there’s absolutely a place for them—but when used too frequently, they may contribute to digestive stress and inflammation. One reason? A compound called A.G.E. (short for Advanced Glycation End products).

A.G.E.s are formed when proteins or fats combine with sugar during high-heat cooking. Think grill marks, crispy edges, browned bits. While tasty, these compounds can increase oxidative stress in the body and are linked to a variety of health issues—from premature aging to gut dysbiosis to chronic inflammation.

It doesn’t mean you can never roast a veggie again, but it’s a helpful reminder to balance those crispy, caramelized textures with more gentle, moist cooking methods—especially if your digestion feels off.

Want to Go Deeper?

If you’re struggling with bloating, sluggish digestion, or other gut-related issues, we offer several ways to support your journey:

• Ayurveda Consultations  Personalized, whole-person assessments that take your unique constitution, lifestyle, and digestion into account. BOOK HERE

• Functional Medicine + Bio Marker Testing  For those looking to get real data on gut health, inflammation, and nutrient absorption. BOOK HERE

• Do a Kitchari Cleanse  This is not your typical detox, deprivation kinda cleanse, rather it’s a mono-diets implemented as a way to support our vitality and life-force—and are often a way to support our bodies in times of seasonal transition. Information on how-to, and our go-to kitchari recipe, by Mary Silcox McQuate, is ideal for resets or whenever your system needs a little TLC.