Vegetarian Recipe - Sag Paneer (as promised)!

Anyone want to make a tasty, healthy, homemade, quick as you like curry for dinner?  This is for you.  

Quicker than ordering a delivery, much cheaper and of course much healthier!  Great for a weekend treat, or a Friday night in front of the telly.  This one took about 15 mins and there was enough for 2 portions.  So as promised here it is - our no nonsense, vegetarian recipe for a healthy sag paneer (that's spinach and cheese curry)!   

I love a sag paneer and I cant believe I managed to make it myself!  I have no idea if this is the 'proper' way to make it, if this is authentic or spiced as it should be.  I do know it was my first attempt and it looked, smelled and tasted divine!  I will be making it again and I will be following the same recipe to try and create the same results...  Here's what I used and what I did.  Try it and let me know how you get on, or please feel free to share your recipes with me too so I can see how right or wrong I got it!

SAG PANEER

INGREDIENTS:
 
Spinach (approx 150g fresh baby leaves)
Paneer cheese (approx 100-115g)
Onion (1 medium)
Garlic (2 cloves)
Ginger (approx 1 inch)
Tomato (1-2 fresh tomatoes)
Green chilli (1/2 - 1 deseeded)
Ground cumin (1-2 teaspoons)
Ground Turmeric (1-2 teaspoons)
Garam Masala (102 teaspoons)
Rapeseed Oil (1-2 tablespoons)
Natural Greek Yoghurt (2-3 tablespoons)



METHOD:

• Heat the oil in a pan and add the chopped onion 
• Once onion starts to sweat, add 2 cloves sliced garlic and the ginger (grated or finely chopped is good)
• Add the chopped green chilli (deseeded - this isn't a HOT curry, chilli is in here to give a little kick only but mostly for flavour)
• Dice the paneer and add to the pan
• At this point you can add the dry spices too 
• 1-2 teaspoons of turmeric will give colour, cumin and garam masala will give the flavour and the ingredients will cook now in a dry pan covered in the spices (to stop burning/sticking to the bottom of the pan you can add a little more oil here if required)
• Add all the spinach
• Once it starts to wilt, add 3 tablespoons of natural Greek yoghurt and 1-2 tomatoes at the end
• Keep on the heat and stir everything through making sure its all piping hot
• Add fresh coriander to dress

So on the side we added a cucumber raita - again homemade and this is one I had made before.  In fact for some reason this is the way I've made it since I was about 6 years old and it was the only thing I knew how to "cook" when I was little.  When my family would make curry, I would make this:

CUCUMBER RAITA:

INGREDIENTS:

Cucumber (approx 1/4)
Natural/Greek yoghurt (3 tablespoons)
Fresh lemon juice (half a lemon squeezed)
Sugar (1 teaspoon white sugar)
Fresh mint (3 medium sprigs, chopped)











METHOD:

• Grate/finely chop or dice the cucumber and add it to yoghurt in a bowl
• Stir in the lemon juice
• The stir in the sugar
• Lastly add and stir in the fresh mint

Could not be simpler, but the taste is just too good and very moreish.  So nice to cool down a hot curry or as an accompaniment to poppadoms or Indian breads.  Again a tasty and super fresh and healthy alternative to something like a mango chutney, or to shop bought dipping sauce (bar the spoonful of sugar, but you could actually leave that out if you really wanted to!)

And there you have it, super quick, super tasty and pretty damn healthy vegetarian sag paneer with cucumber and mint raita.  no nonsense. 

Have a go yourself and please share your recipes, photos of your creations and let us know how you got on.... You can share via 

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram (#nononsensenita) | Google+

or via the comments below >>>

Keep your eyes peeled for more no nonsense recipes and our simple, quick, healthy versions of more dishes.  As we do them, we share them (as long as they are good!)  

You can also throw some dishes my way (not literally of course), but let me know if there is anything you love and at no nonsense nutrition we will try and healthy it up for you without losing flavour.... Always love a challenge so bring it on - you can send ideas to info@nitakothari.com where you can also contact us about any of our other services or ask me anything there to find out more!

Now, go get curry making, share your pics and enjoy!

 
 **Please remember this is advice ONLY (as is all other information contained in this blog, the website and social media related to it) None of the info or advice is intended to override any recommendation from your GP or health professional**

 

How Do You Milk A Cockroach?

Could be a question we will soon be asking a lot more than you thought due to a recent study, that has found cockroach milk to be so nutrient dense it could be our best bet of a future protein source!

Now you may have heard about insects being next on our worldwide menu to provide the protein fix we humans require as a sustainable food source while other natural sources are thinning out, dying off or simply being over consumed.  ie – There has been huge ongoing debate and research over the last decade or so due to the fact that our food system seems to be literally broken, or indeed braking! You will have noticed over the last few years plant based alternatives making great breakthroughs and now scientists are thinking much more long-term and planning for the future of food.  There is ongoing debate over  consumption of animals looking at everything from the bad fats in animal/meat products, the processing of such, the treatment of the animals to produce the meat, the prices farmers are getting paid, the impact of transportation, to land, water supplies, the total environmental impact of breeding, to disease, horse meat scandals, climate change and everything in between! 

Therefore, there has been lots of research into all of the above to find the next sustainable, nutritious food source and our next  complete protein source – with the answers pointing to insects.  In Asian countries already some are seen as a delicacy, others eaten regularly already with daily meals and as snacks!   

Check this out – there is a name for it: ENTOMOPHAGY

http://www.insectsarefood.com/what_is_entomophagy.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entomophagy

If you want to find out more about eating insects as a sustainable food source, here are some articles to start you off:

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/feb/01/eating-insects-britain-foodies-wahaca

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/nov/05/eating-insects-should-part-sustainable-diet-future-report

http://www.iflscience.com/environment/will-we-all-be-eating-insects-50-years/

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/05/can-eating-insects-feed-world

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20141014-time-to-put-bugs-on-the-menu

And if you want to try it – there are recipes for you here:

For crickets: http://www.insectsarefood.com/recipes.html

https://www.crunchycritters.com/edible-insect-recipes/

http://www.eatgrub.co.uk/recipes/roasting-insects/

 

Anyway – enough of that! Today I wanted to focus on one insect alone – the nasty (to some) but undeniably mighty, would probably survive the apocalypse, COCKROACH.  New research published just a few days ago has suggested it’s not them, but their MILK that could benefit us. 

Are cockroaches the new cows?   

We seem to have a great fascination these days with dairy free milk alternatives and I LOVE most of them.  You know I bang on about hemp milk, oat milk, almond milk etc and I have been using them (although I am not lactose intolerant, I am not vegan and I still eat lots of other dairy produce regularly) as I really enjoy the flavours, textures and the addition they make to my coffee and smoothies and ice cream making attempts!   

While I’m not yet convinced cockroach milk will be my dairy free alternative of choice, there are some very interesting facts in this recent study:

Here is the research paper

http://journals.iucr.org/m/issues/2016/04/00/jt5013/

So behind their dark, scaly, shell like exterior cockroaches – specifically the Pacific Beetle Cockroach as this is the only known species able to have live babies that have developed in the mother's body, instead of the mother laying eggs to develop outside her body - contain a nutrient dense milk used to feed their babies.   

This milk contains a hefty amount of protein, in addition to its energy boosting sugars, and lipids (good fats). Researchers are actually saying this could be the most nutrient dense substance – by weight – ever discovered!  It contains 4 times more energy than typical cows milk for example, making it the top contender for a protein with the most calories. 

Now I’ve mentioned calories don’t let that put you off (of course if you haven’t been put off by the fact that this is COCKROACH MILK we are talking about!)  Remember milk should predominantly be a substance to build up, to provide nutrients, fats, calories and energy to growing offspring. Its produced to aid growth and development.   So the more energy it contains – the better it is!

The milk harvested from a cockroach is actually found in crystallised form – protein crystals come from the gut of the baby cockroach as its ingested the milk from its mother. Its these “milk crystals” that scientists have discovered are a “complete” food – and therefore perhaps something for human consumption in the future.  Leonard Chavas,  one of the scientists behind the research, explains that although the crystal formation may seem surprising, other crystals, including insulin, take shape within the body for easier bodily storage, so this crystal could have potential for human consumption.

So in answer the original question – How do you milk a cockroach?  Chavas and his team go on to explain: currently the crystals are extracted from the midgut of the cockroach embryos – not the most efficient way to feed a growing world population with a broken/braking current food system.  Not a sustainable solution yet – BUT – they are hoping to reverse engineer cockroach milk so for now are furthering their investigation to understanding the exact biological and chemical mechanisms underlying the process, how to control it in a much easier way and ultimately how to bring it into mass production!

So our conclusion so far…. there is certainly no irony lost on the fact that that the cockroach (and Cher) is said to be able to survive a nuclear disaster and its turning out that it may someday provide the ultimate liquid superfood!   

However if the idea of cockroach milk disgusts you – like me - you are probably not ready for this yet.  Due to the nuclear stuff though, don’t dismiss this as a food fad, or passing trend.  Remember, the reason scientists are experimenting with bugs as alternative sources for both meat and dairy, is because our food system is broken/braking, our world population is growing at an unsustainable rate and we have to start thinking of ways to fix this.  People, populations, are still suffering mass hunger, while others are over consuming and suffering obesity epidemics, so things need to change and there is no denying that. 

If cockroach milk is the way forward but this doesn’t sit well with you, then maybe you can do something now to ease the braking system – less meat consumption, more plant based alternatives, less food waste.  Play your part now in preserving the environment and sustainable food sources if only so you don’t have to drink cockroach milk in the future!

What you think?  Are you ready for cockroach milk?  Have you eaten insects? How do they taste?  Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Google+

Contact us for more info on protein sources, complete foods, dairy alternatives: info@nitakothari.com or to book a consultation to see if you should up your protein intake, if you are thinking of changing your diet, or want to know more about foods of the future!  

 

www.nitakothari.com

 **Please remember this is advice ONLY (as is all other information contained in this blog, the website and social media related to it) None of the info or advice is intended to override any recommendation from your GP or health professional**

Are you at risk of vitamin D deficiency?

New guidance today from Public Health England says yes – and EVERYONE should consider taking a vitamin D supplement. 

See today’s press release from PHE here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/phe-publishes-new-advice-on-vitamin-d

Why do we need vitamin D?

 

Vitamin D regulates the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body to help maintain bone and muscle health and keep our teeth healthy.  If you don’t get enough,  it can lead to things like rickets (in children)  and osteomalacia  - ie muscle pain and weakness,  and loss of bone strength (in adults and the elderly).

Where do we get vitamin D?

Vitamin D is often called "The sunshine vitamin".  Its an unusual one as its exposure to SUNSHINE - not food - that is our main source of vitamin D. That's why there have been lots of studies and a raised awareness, especially in the UK, about vitamin D levels and whether we in fact get enough.  We all know we never get enough sunshine!

 

Who needs vitamin D?

It’s been recommended for a while that children and the elderly therefore take a vitamin D supplement to maintain healthy levels – and this should be taken especially during the winter months (October-March) in the UK.

Currently 1 in 5 (UK) adults are not getting enough! (*stats from PHE 2015)

Public Health England have today widened their recommendation to include everyone.  From children and the elderly to people who don’t get much exposure to sunlight, who don’t get outside much (again often the elderly, ill or incapacitated), plus people with darker skins (as they require more sunshine to process and convert the vit D from), and to people who cover up – maybe those with very fair skin avoiding sunburn, skin cancer etc (very wise) or those who are covered for religious purposes etc.  Now as well as extending the idea of supplementation to these at higher risk groups, Public Health England have recommended we ALL take a supplement – and perhaps not only during the winter months.

This new recommendation is based on this health report from SACN – The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition:  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sacn-vitamin-d-and-health-report

How much vitamin D do we need?

 

Basically in the UK – as we at no nonsense nutrition have been saying for a while -, we simply don’t get enough sun.  You know this – this is not news! BUT the news is that without soaking up enough sunshine, we simply can’t soak up enough vitamin D.   

The RDA (recommended daily allowance) for adults in the UK is 10 micrograms.  However although we know we can get the most of this from sunlight, it’s very hard to measure exactly how much we get and how much we are able to convert, which is why as well as getting as much sunlight – SAFELY – as possible during the summer months, we should take a daily supplement to ensure we all meet the RDA. 

Why supplementation?

Let me just say first – it’s not a scam to make you buy expensive pills!  In fact vitamin D supplements are available for free to low income families via the Healthy Start scheme.  You can find out if you qualify and more about vitamins from Healthy Start here: https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/for-health-professionals/vitamins/

But you may be asking yourself why it’s not been recommended that you top up on foods rich in vitamin D?  Well, that’s because the levels of vitamin D contained in food are not usually high enough and a lot more difficult for our bodies to process than from sun.   

Foods that do contain vitamin D however are things such as:

OILY FISH (mackerel, salmon)

RED MEAT and LIVER

EGGS

FORTIFIED CEREALS 

MUSHROOMS

and some CHEESE

No nonsense nutrition - conclusion

So, our conclusion on this new recommendation today – do it.  All of it.  When the sun shines – get out and enjoy it – SAFELY.  When you shop, buy foods rich in vitamin D too – if you eat meat and fish ensure you have a few portions every week of the good stuff, the oily fish and the unprocessed red meats.  It’s the yolk in eggs that can provide a vit D boost, so make sure you eat the yolks!  And if you like cereals choose the fortified ones.  You may find that milk (especially the non-dairy varieties) are now fortified with calcium and vitamin D too which is good news. 

(Sun safety)

As a last note – I hope it goes without saying – but please enjoy the sun safely.  The info here should help you understand a little more:

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Summerhealth/Pages/vitamin-D-sunlight.aspx

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/skin/Pages/Sunsafe.aspx

And especially on days like these remarkably hot ones we’ve had recently have a think along the lines of Public Health Englands #HeatHealthWatch – There is some great stuff on their blogs here too:

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Summerhealth/Pages/Heatwave.aspx

https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2016/04/18/nine-things-you-need-to-know-about-uv-ultraviolet-radiation/

 www.nitakothari.com

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 **Please remember this is advice ONLY (as is all other information contained in this blog, the website and social media related to it) None of the info or advice is intended to override any recommendation from your GP or health professional**