“Are leftover steamed vegetables still good for you?  Have they lost any vitamins, etc by reheating them?"   First of all- kudos for not only preparing vegetables for one of your meals… but also having them again at a second one! As dietitians, we spend a lot of our time just trying to convince people to get more veggies in their diet; so a question about how to get the most from them is refreshing to say the least.   Now, to answer your question- it’s all about the bioavailability baby. Big word, I know. Basically it means how much a nutrient in a food can be usefully absorbed in your body. When it comes to any form of food, there will always be a loss of bioavailability in cooking as heat naturally changes the property of food.   With both vegetables and fruits nutrients such as water soluble vitamins (like B and C) as well as antioxidants can leach out into cooking water. Also, the nutrients are unstable in heat, leading to the loss of nutrients.   So, water and heat- two major components in cooking can decrease the bioavailability of nutrients, but does this mean no more vegetables. Definitely not! Steaming is the best way to go as far as cooking vegetables; it’s the least amount of water and a short amount of time in low heat. When microwaving the next day- don’t stress too much- it’s clearly better than not having them at all. Just try and keep the time in the microwave short and do not add any extra water to them.    Finally- when working vegetables into your diet always pick fresh or frozen to reap the most benefits from this super-nutrient food group. Canned will have a decreased bioavailability of nutrients and can have added sodium which is never a good thing. And never, ever, ever have your vegetables in a prepared sauce- that’s just adding a bunch of calories, fat and sodium! Vegetables are delicious so enjoy them au naturale!   -Ashley   References:   http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/vegetables.html   http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/produce/list_veg.html   http://www.5aday.org/index.htm   http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/nutrition/nutrition_for_everyone/fruits_vegetables/index.htm