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. :)

Chilly Chicken

We all love a nice hot serving of Chilly Chicken. It's my favourite comfort dish.

Be it winter or summer, lunch or dinner, chilly chicken appeals to me everytime it is served.

However, chilly chicken available in most of the restaurants are deep fried in oil which can turn out to be very unhealthy. Therefore, I tried a stir fry version of the chilly chicken and it turned out to be just as good as the restaurant version.

Its healthy and delicious !

Ingredients:

1. Chicken 500gms
2.  2 onions diced
3.  1 capsicum diced
4. 1/2 cup spring onions
5. Green Chillies as per taste
6. Sauces like vinegar, soya sauce, red chilly sauce
7. 6 cloves of garlic
8. Cornflour
9. Salt as per taste
10. 1 cup Chicken stock

Method:

1. Wash and marinate the chicken with vinegar, cornflakes and salt and keep for about 20minutes
2. Take a non stick pan and heat about 1tsp of oil

3. Add the marinated chicken the pan and stir fry the chicken. Make sure that the cornflour coats the chicken well

3. Once the chicken starts turning brown, take it off the pan and fry garlic, onion, spring onions and capsicum and stir fry

4. Once the greens cook a little, add the chicken and mix well

5. Add the sauces of your choice. I added soya sauce, garlic chilly sauce to the chicken.

6. Once they cook a little and start changing colour, add the chicken stock to the mixture. If you want a thicker gravy, add about 1tsp of cornflour to the stock before adding. You can add water(with about 1tsp of cornflour) of you do not have chicken stock ready with you.

7. Add salt as per your taste and serve hot

Heart healthy Oats cheela

Oats is a wonder food. It has numerous health benefits and nutritionists swear by it. Rich in dietary fibre, it has great cholesterol lowering properties. It helps in lowering LDL cholesterol levels and keeps blood pressure in control. It is a boon for people looking to lose weight as it is low in calories.

Oats is one of the most adaotable ingredients and can be used in various forms in cooking. Therefore, with a little bit of imagination, one can easily come up with a delicious yet healthy recipe.

Here, I have listed a simple and quick recipe which promises to be healthy and yummy. It can also be regarded as a vegetarian omlette.

Oats cheela

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup dry roasted oats
2. 1/2 cup besan
3. 1 small onion
4. 1 small tomatoes
5. Chopped coriander
6. 3 cloves of garlic
7. Salt to taste
8. 1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Method:

1. Mix the dry roasted oats and the besan with water to make a batter
2. Add the chopped onion, tomato and coriander with the batter
3. Add red chilli paste, salt, garlic etc and mix well
4. Heat about 1/2tsp of oil in a non stick pan. Once heated, pour some batter on the pan and make it circular in shape as in a omlette
5. Once one side appears golden yellow, flip it and cook well

Sprinkle some chat masala and the cheela is ready to be served.

Use of a non stick pan is recommended as it greatly reduces the use of oil in this recipe and the batter doesnt stick to the pan.

Serve it with ketchup or green chutney and a healthy, tasty breakfast option is ready in minutes.

Please do drop in your feedback.

Bengali recipe - Doi maach ( fish in yoghurt sauce )

This is primarily a bengali recipe but if cooked the right way, it turns out be very healthy.

Fish, as we all are aware, are loaded with omega 3 fatty acids which is considered to be great for heart health. Because if its healthy fat content, it is also a favourite amongst the people who are on a diet.

Yoghurt is also considered to be healthy and aids in digestion as it is rich in probiotics.

The best part is that it is cooked in minutes.

Ingredients :
1. Rohu fish or any fresh water fish
2. 1 onion ( sliced )
3. Yoghurt (about one cup)
4. Turmeric powder
5. Red chilli powder
6. Coriander powder
7. Cumin powder
8. Coriander
9. Green chilies
10.  Garlic paste
11. Aniseed (a pinch for tempering)

Method :
1. Marinate the fish with a lil turmeric powder and salt
2. In about 1 tsp of oil, lightly grill the fish pieces and keep aside
3. In a non stick wok, heat about 1/2 tsp of oil, add aniseeds for tempering.
4. Add onion, garlic paste and lightly fry it till it turns brown
5. In the yoghurt, add turmeric powder, cumin powder, chilli powder and coriander powder and mix well
6. Add the yoghurt paste to the wok
7. Put the fish pieces in the yoghurt paste
8. Add water as per your requirement in the paste if you want more gravy
9. Add salt as required
10. Cook for about 7-8 mins
Garnish with coriander

Tomato & Dhaniya ka Shorba (Tomato & Coriander Soup)

This soup makes a healthy dinner.

 Low in calories, the ingredients are loaded with tons of benefits.

Tomatoes are known for its antioxidant properties and play a major role in maintaining cardiovascular health. Coriander is also known to increase HDL Cholesterol in our body which is popularly known as the good cholesterol and is extremely important for a healthy heart.

Ingredients:
4 medium tomatoes
Coriander (about 1 cup)
Garlic (about 2-3 pods)
Cumin seeds
Black pepper
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Cut the tomatoes into 4 halves and pressure cook them for about 10 mins
2. Once cooled, mash the tomatoes properly 
3. Blend together the tomatoes and the coriander to make a smooth paste
4. Strain the mixture to remove tomato skin if any
4. Heat oil in a pan, add the cumin seeds. Once the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the tomato & coriander mixture to the pan
5.Add about 1/2 cup of water and cook till it starts boiling
6. Add salt & pepper
7. Garnish with fresh coriander and serve hot