Little Step No. 46
What to do:
Upgrade your curry with this simple salsa-style salad.
Why this step works:
Contrary to what many people think - making your own curry from scratch can be an incredibly healthy dish. This is because curries are typically packed with a wide array of health-promoting herbs and spices such as coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. You can also include lots of different types of vegetables in there too.
The main reason they get a bad press is not because of the curry itself but the side dishes they are typically served with – perhaps a large portion of rice, some naan bread, poppadums and mango chutney. And it’s these side dishes that can turn a heathy home-cooked meal into a not-so-healthy one.
Rice, naan bread, poppadums and mango chutney all have something in common - they are all very high in carbs (carbohydrates). Carbohydrate foods can provide us with fuel for energy - you’ll often see athletes eating plenty of high carb foods for this reason - but they’re also very easy to overeat. And if you’re not going to be needing all of this energy for a training session any time soon (and let’s face it, most of us will probably be relaxing on the couch after a nice curry!) your body may end up storing some of this excess energy as fat. Regularly eating high quantities of high carb foods can also put a strain on the body’s blood sugar management systems and over time this can increase the risks of health problems in the longer term.
So this little step is all about preserving the main part of your dish (the curry bit) but adjusting the level of high carb foods it's usually served with. There’s no need to avoid carbs altogether; this little step is all about finding a better balance to match your needs.
Next time you make a curry, try adjusting the proportions on your plate; so instead of just curry & rice, reduce the amount of rice and fill up the rest with this tasty salad / salsa instead. The beauty of this little step is that it’s not only a healthy swap but it actually upgrades the deliciousness of your overall meal. Oh and it’s ridiculously easy too! I still serve curry like this when friends come round for dinner and everyone loves it. I’ll even miss out the naan and poppadums too – this salad / salsa adds so much extra flavour and variety to the overall dish that I find that these are no longer needed either.
Ready to upgrade your curry dishes? Here's how:
Tomato & onion cachumber
You will need:
100g white onion diced (1cm)
350g fresh tomatoes diced (1cm)
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh coriander
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp cayenne pepper (or more or less to taste)
Freshly ground salt (to taste. NB. seasoning is important in this dish)
Method:
Chop tomatoes, onion & coriander and place them in a large bowl.
Add lemon juice, cayenne pepper & salt.
Mix all ingredients together, serve and enjoy!
Hope you enjoy this delicious little step; next week I'll share my favourite and very easy curry recipe to go with it x
(Recipe adapted from Simple Indian Cookery by Madhur Jaffrey)