Meat Free Mondays!
Our Accredited Practising Dietitian, Snehal Joshi, is enthusiastic about sharing food ideas to keep healthy-eating fun and interesting!
Check out this recipe for Kidney Bean Curry with Rice, which is suitable for gluten-free eaters, and is a tasty vegetarian alternative that's full of nutrition.
Having a meat-free day at least once a week is a great way to get more vegies and fibre into your family's diet, and will reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Why not start Meat Free Mondays in your household!
Kidney Bean Curry with Rice
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp of olive or sunflower or canola oil
- 1 medium finely chopped onion
- 2 medium finely chopped tomato
- 2 garlic cloves (finely chopped or grated)
- Thumb-sized piece of ginger peeled and grated
- 1 small pack coriander (finely chopped leaves)
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground paprika
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 400g can kidney beans (no added salt)
- Salt as per taste
- Cooked rice
Note: Try not to add salt if you have high blood pressure or other cardiac problems.
Method:
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a low-medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until softened and just starting to colour. Add the garlic, ginger and cook for a further 2 mins, until fragrant.
- Add the spices to the pan and cook for another 1 min, till the point everything should smell aromatic. Tip in the chopped tomatoes and kidney beans in their water, then bring to the boil.
- Turn down the heat and simmer for 15 mins until the curry is nice and thick. Season to taste, garnish with coriander leaves then serve with the basmati rice.
Health facts:
- Beans and lentils are high in fibre and are also good sources of protein, iron, and B Vitamins. Beans are a good alternative to meat.
- Coeliac Disease: It becomes hard to manage meals when one cannot consume some staple ‘gluten’ containing products like bread, pasta or certain cereals. Beans and lentils are great alternatives. They are ‘completely gluten-free’ and full of nutrition.
- Diabetes: Beans and lentils are a great source of complex carbohydrate. Complex carbohydrate helps to stabilize blood glucose levels because glucose in the blood is released at a slower rate.
- Heart Disease: Fibre in beans reduces ‘LDL’ (‘Bad’) cholesterol from the body, hence reducing cardiovascular risk.
Snehal consults at Glebe Hill Family Practice on Wednesdays. To read more about Snehal click here.
