Indian Takeaway!

Here's a couple of ideas for spicing up chicken breast. If you like Indian food it's worth stocking your store cupboard with a few staple spices. I got an Indian spice tin called a 'Masala Dabba' for Xmas this year..best pressie ever!

Both of these recipes make enough marinade for 4 chicken breasts.

Chicken Tikka
Juice 1/2 lemon
Handful fresh coriander, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp root ginger, peeled and grated
1 red chilli, deseeded and chopped
200ml low fat natural yogurt
1/4 Tsp grated nutmeg
1 Tbsp mild olive oil
1 Tsp chilli powder
1 Tsp ground cumin
1 Tsp garam masala
1 Tsp ground ginger
2 Tsp ground coriander

1) Put everything in a food processor except the lemon juice and blend until smooth.
2) Slash the chicken breasts, pour over lemon juice and then the marinade. Make sure all the chicken is well coated and leave to marinate, covered in the fridge, for as long as possible (ideally over night).
3) To cook, transfer chicken and most of the marinade to a baking dish, cover with foil and pop in the oven for 30 mins or so until chicken is cooked through. Towards the end of cooking time, remove the foil to colour the chicken.

Chicken Tandoor Kebabs
140ml low fat natural yogurt
1 Tbsp mild olive oil
60ml passata (sieved tomatoes)
1/2 Tbsp root ginger, peeled and grated
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1/2 Tsp garam masla
1/2 Tsp chilli powder
1/2 Tsp smoked paprika
1/2 Tsp turmeric

Mix everything together and marinade the chicken, covered in the fridge, for 2 to 3 hours. For this I chop the chicken into chunks and thread onto a skewer to make a kebab. To cook, I use a griddle pan (or frying pan) and cook for about 15mins turning the kebabs occasionally.

Sprout & Orange Stir Fry

Makes: 1 x 3 blocks carb, 3 blocks fat

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups / 200g brussel sprouts (2 carb)
1/2 orange, segmented (1 carb)
2 cloves garlic, sliced
Pinch dried chilli flakes
1 Tsp olive oil (3 fat)
2 Tbsp soy sauce (wheat free)
Handful of fresh herbs (coriander, flat leaf parsley)
Optional extra: sesame seeds, 1 Tsp = 1 block fat

1) Prepare sprouts by removing outer leaves and putting a cross in the base (this helps the sprout to cook evenly and quickly).
2) Blanch the sprouts in boiling water for about 8 mins, or until just about cooked through. I do this in the wok that I use for the stir fry, why create extra washing up! Drain sprouts, dry the wok and cut sprouts in half.
3) Now for the stir fry....heat the oil and then add garlic and chilli flakes, keep stirring for a min or so and then chuck in the sprouts.
4) As the sprouts are pretty much cooked, give them a couple if mins to warm through and colour and then add orange segments, soy sauce and a squeeze of orange juice from the other half of the orange.
5) Stir, add sesame seeds if using, a handful of fresh herbs and serve.

Portable Protein Snack

I found this recipe in 'Protein Power' by Michael Eades and have tweaked it slightly.

Makes: 2 x 3 block 'flans'

Ingredients
2 eggs (2 protein)
1/2 cup / 125g cottage cheese (2 protein)
2oz / 57g low fat cheddar cheese, grated (2 protein)
Tbsp chopped fresh coriander
Tbsp chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
Black pepper
Olive oil for greasing tin

I found the easiest way of cooking these is to use a non stick muffin tin.

1) Pre-heat oven to 200c and lightly oil tin.
2) Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until combined and smooth.
3) Pour into tin, dividing mixture equally.
4) Bake for 20 mins or until browned and puffed up.
5) Remove from oven and use a knife to loosen around the edges. Serve when ready.

TIP: Your puffed up domes will 'flop' slightly when you remove them from the oven, don't worry it happens to us all!. They still taste good though. I've called this portable protein snack as these are good next day in pack lunches, eaten at room temp.

TIP: If you want a Paleo version of this, check out the 'Egg Cupcakes' at http://everydaypaleo.com/

Protein Choices

There's been some chat in the box about food and protein choices, so here's a reminder of what to consider when wandering the supermarket isles.....

Barry Sears defines the quality of a protein source by its fat content, as all protein contains fat

To make it into the Zone Top 100 food list the protein source must contain at least twice as much protein as fat.

Lower fat protein choices will reduce your intake of both saturated fat and also Omega 6 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat found in all protein sources.

Fish contain another type of fat called long chain Omega 3 fatty acids. These are 'healthy' fats and counteract the damaging effects of Omega 6. So a fish protein choice can be higher in fat and still be considered a good choice if the form of fat is long chain Omega 3 fatty acids.

Zone rankings for protein quality is as follows:

Excellent Source
Mackerel
Turkey breast
Haddock
Cod
Salmon
Tuna Steak
Turkey breast, deli
Lobster
Sea bass
Snapper

Very Good Source
Chicken breast
Freshwater bass
Trout
Cottage cheese (1%)
Chicken breast, deli
Tuna, canned in water
Soy products
Emu

Good Source
Pork tenderloin, well trimmed
Tofu, extra firm
Beef tenderloin, well trimmed
Tofu, firm
Tempeh
Tofu, soft

Why not try....Indian Spiced Fish (works well with both Haddock & Cod)

Ingredients for Indian spice marinade
2 Tsp chilli powder
2 Tsp ground coriander
1 Tsp ground cumin
1 Tsp ground fennel
2 Tsp Turmeric
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Small knob of fresh root ginger, peeled & grated
2 Garlic cloves, peeled & crushed
Black pepper
2 Tbsp mild olive oil

Mix everything together and coat the fish well with the paste. Leave to marinate for at least 30 mins and then whack it under the grill, leaving the paste on the fish so it forms a 'crust'.