HJL,
The writer stated that he doesn’t typically blanch so that he doesn’t destroy the enzymes. However, acid in the stomach will do the same thing as blanching. So it really doesn’t matter whether he does or not, at least as far as “destroying” the enzymes. If he eats the food, the enzymes will naturally break down as the second step of digestion.
An enzyme is simply a type of protein, a molecule that is too big for our bodies to absorb intact. (An very simplistic example: Insulin is an enzyme. If eaten, it will break down and not be insulin anymore. If a healthy person took it as a pill, their pancreas would reassemble it as insulin. A diabetic cannot do that. That is why it is given as injections.)
What really happens when a protein is heated or exposed to acids is that the links between the amino acids are broken down. The amino acids remain intact. Once they are in our cells (I won’t detail the steps of digestion), they are assembled into whatever proteins our bodies need. So, nothing is destroyed. It’s just broken down into building blocks for reassembly. – Nurse Kim
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Hugh,
Just wanted to clarify something that M.P. touched upon but didn’t mention specifically: All commercial frozen vegetables have already been blanched. (I confirmed this with a producer, because I freeze dry them.) So there is no need to blanch them before dehydrating. – Matt R.