Healthy Chicken and Egg Salad for Lunch

As 2015 comes to a close, I have made a resolution to eat healthy in the coming year. Though I don't know how long I will be able to follow this, I am trying my best.

 I guess my body needs it, given the fact that my physical activity is limited. I am mostly at my desktop in office through the day and by the time I reach home, I am almost drained out to take up any exercise. I have made a promise to myself to make some easy changes to my daily routine.

Being an extremely fussy eater, it is extremely important for my food to taste good. I am a hardcore non-vegetarian and have always disliked vegetables. But I have realized that I can't ignore vegetables if I want to eat right.

Therefore, I thought of this recipe. It was an amateur experiment which turned out pretty well.The idea of it was simple and borrowed from a scrambled egg recipe. I tossed shredded chicken, scrambled eggs and lots of vegetables with garlic,onions and tomatoes to make this healthy salad. Loaded with prteins, it keeps you full for a long time.

Healthy Chicken and Egg Salad

Lets take a look:

Ingredients:

1. 250 gms boiled chicken

2. 1 egg 

3. Chopped carrots

4. Chopped beans

5. Chopped capsicum

6. Chopped tomatoes

7. Diced Onion

8. Chopped Garlic

9. Oregano or any other herb

10. Green chillies

11. Chopped Coriander

12. Salt to Taste

13. 2tsp soya sauce

Method:

1. Pressure cook chicken for around 10mins. I used chicken with bones so that the broth can be used to make chicken soup

2. Once the chicken cools down, shred the chicken and keep aside

3. In a non stick pan, add about 1tsp of oil and stir fry the garlic, diced onions and capsicum. You may add bell peppers as well

4. Once the onions and the garlic turns pinkish brwn, add the chopped vegetables and stir fry. You can add as many vegetables as you wish

5. Add the shredded chicken and mix well

6. Use herbs as required at this phase. Add in salt and pepper as well along with soya sauce

7. I added scrambled eggs to this as well to make it a more wholesome meal. You might add only egg white as well.

8.Add chopped coriander leaves and green chillies 

Seve hot. :)

5 Healthy yet delicious breakfast options you must try

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day but is also the highly ignored one. We all are in a mad rush to reach our offices on time and often skip breakfast or make do with packaged breakfast options like cereals. Though cereals are also extremely healthy, yet you have to compromise on the taste factor for it. If someone gives me an option of having cereals everyday, I would no doubt choose the option of skipping breakfast :P

Here I have listed some of my favourite healthy breakfast options that your should definitely try. And the best part is, they are ready is less than 15mins :P

Image Source: food.ndtv.com

1. Dosas: Loaded with the essential nutrients to give the right start to your day, dosas top my list. I know it is not easy to make dosas at home, but as with life in general, practice will make you perfect in this art. The readymade dosa mixes are already here to make your life simpler. With the mixes, all you need to do is mix it with water or curd and your dosas will be done in minutes.

2. Upma: Yet another favourite breakfast option from down South, you can give it your favourite twist according to your preference. Though there are readymade mixes available for upma as well, I prefer making it from scratch without the help of any ready to eat pack. And believe me, it still takes me just 10mins to prepare this flavorful dish on any workday morning. I sometimes replace suji with oats as well.
Read the recipe here: http://lovehealthnbeauty.blogspot.in/2013/03/oats-upma-people-with-heart-problems.html

3. Pasta: Not really a breakfast option, but I still love it for my breakfast especially on a sad Monday morning. :P My pasta recipe is extremely healthy without the use of unnecessary cheese, cream or butter. Yet it turns out extremely delicious. You can add chicken, egg and veggies to give your meal an extra protein punch. Read the recipe here: http://lovehealthnbeauty.blogspot.in/2014/11/pasta-quick-chinese-style-recipe.html

5. Oats or Besan Cheela:  Cheelas are popularly known as the vegetarian omelettes. They are extremely healthy, being made of besan and oats which are loaded with protein and fibre. Only thing which you need to keep in mind is the usage of oil while frying your cheelas. I use a non-stick pan and do not use more than 1teaspoon oil to cook my cheelas.  

How to make red chilli flakes at home ? Easy DIY

I am in a relationship with chilies. All my meals are incomplete without at least 2 green chilies by my side. I make it a point to ask for extra sachets of red chilli flakes every time I order pizzas. 

So, what does a chili lover like me do on a certain day there is a craving for red chili flakes and you have run out of those store made ones ? You do a little bit of experiment and try and make it yourself ! 

Trust me, the home made ones are just as good. In fact, the fresh aroma of dry roadsted red chili is simply better than the store bought ones. The added bonus is that making it is extremely easy. 

As this was the first time I was trying this, I used only a small quantity.

Lets take a look :

1. Remove the stem from the red chilies and dry roast them in a skillet

2. Cool the roasted red chilies 

3. Grind the roasted red chillies. Make sure not to grind it to a fine powder. Your grinding jar should be free of any moisture

4. Store in an air tight jar and use as required

Steamed Fish cooked in a healthy mustard blend sauce - Microwave recipe

Steamed fish in healthy sauce (Bengali recipe)

This recipe is inspired by my mother. The sauce was one of her many experiments in the kitchen that turned out to be an absolute hit in the family. 

The recipe is a staple in all Bengali households and is mostly cooked using the famous hilsa. However, I am have used rohu which is easily available all year around.

Mostly the sauce used in making steamed fish is  mostly mustard paste. But given the heat that the paste generates in the system, my Mom goes slow on the usage of mustard seeds and adds a lot of heart healthy ingredients to make the paste less sinful without compromising on the taste. She uses white mustard seeds, white sesame seeds which are considered to be extremely beneficial for the heart, Poppy seeds and soya chunks, all ground to a fine paste.You can read more about the benefits of white sesame seeds here: (http://www.care2.com/greenliving/20-health-benefits-of-sesame-you-wont-believe.html)


Lets look the ingredients:

To make the paste:

• 4 tsp poppy seeds
• 2tsp white mustard seeds
• 4tsp white sesame seeds
• a few Soya chunks



Steamed fish in healthy sauce (Bengali recipe)

Steamed fish in healthy sauce (Bengali recipe)

Other Ingredients:

• 4 pieces of Rohu
• 1tsp mustard oil
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• Green chilies slit into two

Method:

1. Clean and wash the fish pieces and marinate with turmeric powder and a little salt

2. Once you make the paste,add turmeric powder and salt to the paste

3. Coat all the fish pieces with the paste. You might add about 1/4th cup of water to the paste if want a little gravy

4. Add the slit green chilies to the fish

5. Put all together in a microwave safe dish, and cook for about 3 mins in the microwave

And there your steamed fish is ready to go !!

This is the perfect accompaniment with steamed rice for a Sunday afternoon meal.