One possibility is that cooking the food destroys compounds we can digest(like a plant's cell wall) which ends up releasing compounds otherwise inaccessible(min

One possibility is that cooking the food destroys compounds we can digest(like a plant's cell wall) which ends up releasing compounds otherwise inaccessible(minerals & proteins sequestered inside the plant cell). Mastication also does this, but I doubt it is as effective as cooking unless you chew your food very well(which I would recommend doing). The downside to cooking is that high temperatures may destroy some more fragile compounds. I guess if you are going to cook, the best way is to steam or boil/soupify your veggies. That way any released compounds are retained in solution & the heat is limited vs cooking with lipids.