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In addition to cooking, some antioxidants are more available when paired with another nutrient. One example is orange and yellow vegetables with beta carotene and vitamin E. Cooked with a bit of fat, those antioxidants are more available to the body.

Other foods with carotenes also may offer more nutrients cooked. Examples are carrots, red and green peppers, kale, spinach, and broccoli. Some of their phytochemicals may be better absorbed by the body after being cooked.

Other foods have more antioxidants when raw. In jam made of berries, for example, antioxidant levels were lower than in the raw, unprocessed berries.

Fresh or frozen, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries and cranberries are among the top fruit sources of antioxidants.