The Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in india has made crores of people go in ‘house arrest’. As much as we hate this house confinement, there is no other pertinent options available at the moment. The government is taking all measures to provide safety to it’s citizens, however, the growing number of confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 is keeping the government in distress.
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People are house confined, and they are trying different ways to keep them refreshed at home. Some are making videos at home, some are watching TV/Serials, while some are toning their physique by exercising. There are also such people who are cooking varieties of foods at home. They have ample of time to try out different dishes at home. So, people are trying to do things which were left behind in their busy schedules and due to home confinement, now is the time when people are making time for their ‘Me Time’.
If Google trends are believed, then searches regarding recipes are the most trending topics during lockdown. This suggest that people are trying to cook dishes they ever thought to cook at home by themselves. With this food craze comes the risk of weight gaining. Almost every Indian is concerned about their size and shape during lockdown, especially, if they are singles. So, for these people, we thought to touch this topic to help people identify the healthy way to keep away their food appetite affecting their shape and size.
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Here are the options that you can try at home to cook and also keep your weight under check. These recipes are delicious and healthy too for the health conscious and ‘not so health conscious’ people.
1.Vegan Bowl
This is a super healthy and nutritious dish that is jam packed with flavors. The recipe too is super simple. Roasted sweet potatoes – clean, peeled, chopped into cubes, seasoned with Salt, pepper, cumin, paprika and chilli powder. Stir fry the above mentioned ingredients in a pan with olive oil. Mash 1 avocado, 1 tsp finely chopped onion, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 tsp lime juice, 1 tsp parsley and salt to taste. Assemble all the ingredients in a bowl and enjoy.
Another Vegan Bowl is the Whole Wheat Pasta Recipe. The yummy and healthy pasta for your taste buds. Boil 1 bowl of whole wheat pasta in a pan + cook some red onion, stir fry with olive oil and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Tahini sauce -Mix together 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 tbsp tahini, a squeeze of lemon juice and around 100ml soya milk, salt and pepper. Add the boiled pasta and some spinach to the frying pan, pour over the tahini sauce then stir through until thickened and finally, serve them.
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2.Paneer, Bean Sprouts and Spring Onion Soup Recipe
Combine the basic vegetable stock and baby corn in a deep non-sticky utensil and mix well and cook on a medium flame for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the soya sauce, white pepper powder, salt, paneer, bean sprouts, spring onions and pinch of jaggery powder. Mix these ingredients and simmer the mixture for another 3 to 4 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with coriander.
3.Chicken Veggie Skillet
To cook, we need:
1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1/2-inch strips, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 6 teaspoons olive oil, 1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms, 1 small onion, halved and sliced 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces, 1/2 cup sherry or chicken stock, 2 tablespoons cold butter & cubed.
Directions to cook:
Sprinkle salt and pepper on chicken. In a large skillet, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken; cook and stir 3-4 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove from pan. Repeat with 1 teaspoon oil and remaining chicken.
In the same pan, heat 2 teaspoon oil. Add mushrooms and onion; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add to chicken. Heat remaining oil in the pan. Add asparagus; cook 2-3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add to chicken and mushrooms. Add sherry to skillet, stir to loosen browned bits from pan. Bring to boil; cook 1-2 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 2 tablespoons. Return chicken and vegetables to pan; heat through. Remove from heat; stir in butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. It’s ready now.
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4. Spinach Rice
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 cup chopped onion, 3/4 cup water, 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 cup uncooked instant rice and 2 cups fresh baby spinach.
Directions to cook:
In a saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat; saute onion until tender. Stir it in water, parsley, salt and pepper; bring the mixture to boil. Stir in rice; top with spinach. Cover; remove from heat. Let stand until rice is tender, 7-10 minutes. Stir to combine and the dish is ready to serve.
5. Masala Egg White Scrumble
Ingredients
8 egg whites, ¼ chopped red and yellow bell pepper, ½ chopped onion and garlic, a pinch of chili powder and salt, 1 slice of grated cheese.
INSTRUCTIONS to be followed;
Mix all the egg whites with pepper, chili, salt, onion, and garlic. Then take a cooking pan and add few drops of oil. Now mix the scramble in the pan and add cheese. If you want, you can sprinkle some cooked rice and serve.
6. Sprout Salad
It is a simple Indian Salad that is made with the combination of sprouts, onions, tomatoes, cucumber, green chillies and pomegranate seeds. All the ingredients are mixed and then flavoured with lemon juice, black salt, chaat masala powder and roasted cumin powder.
Simple and basic, this Indian Salad can be prepared in jiffy. The only thing that takes time is the sprouting of moong which can be done beforehand and kept. Once you have the sprouts ready, it will take mere 5 minutes to get this salad ready. If you want, you can add in more vegetables such as Carrot, Avocado, Spinach, Kale, Radish, Corn, etc. in this Bean Sprout Salad, to make it more filling and nutritious.
Apart from sprouted moong beans, you can also sprout other legumes to add in this salad too. You can even add boiled or grilled chicken in this salad too.
7.Vegetarian Peppers
Ingredients:
2 large sweet red peppers, 1 cup canned stewed tomatoes, 1/3 cup instant brown rice, 2 tablespoons hot water, 3/4 cup canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained, 1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed, 2 green onions, thinly sliced, 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese.
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Directions to cook:
For cooking this delicious dish, you need to chop peppers in short length and don’t forget to remove it’s seeds. Now put this peppers in a dish which is free from grease and which is shallow. Now, cover this dish and heat it in a microwave until it turns tender, closely for 3-4 minutes.
Combine the tomatoes, rice and water in a small microwave safe bowl. Cover and microwave at a high temperature until rice is tender, closely for 5-6 minutes. Stir the mixture of the beans, corn, onions and pepper flakes; spoon into peppers. Sprinkle it with cheese. Microwave, uncovered, until heated through, closely for 3-4 minutes. It’s ready.
