Want to adopt a healthier eating style in 2021? The good news is you don’t have to give up flavor for healthy eating resolutions in the new year. Instead of “dieting” with a piece of undressed lettuce or a sad little carrot stick, I’m giving you a whole meal filled with flavor. Also, since COVID-19 has left us largely housebound, we are taking our culinary adventures around the world.
Get recipes for a modern twist on Vietnamese cooking, a freshened-up Mexican dish, and a Middle Eastern Shakshuka packed full of flavor. And don’t pack your stretchy pants, because that’s a journey that we’re leaving behind in 2020.
Banh Mi Salad
I love making flavor-packed salads that feel like a full meal. You can put all sorts of ingredients into a salad to make it feel hearty and satisfying. While “banh” means bread in Vietnamese, I swap out the bread for rice noodles and serve it over a bed of greens. The briny pickled vegetables add a ton of flavor and the bright, sweet and acidic dressing makes every bite delicious.
You can use many different kinds of meat for this salad. I use the same marinade for pork, chicken, or flank steak. You can also use tofu, brisket, or grilled prawns.
Ingredients and instructions
For the meat:
1 – 2 lbs of any meat mentioned above
½ cup fish sauce
½ cup soy sauce
2 limes, juiced
¼ cup white sugar
3 tbsp chili pepper paste
1 tbsp grated ginger
2 tbsp garlic paste
1 tsp salt
Combine all ingredients in a large zip lock bag and mix together. Marinate the meat for 3-12 hours. Cook in the oven or on the grill until done.
For the pickled vegetables:
10 oz bag shredded carrots
10 radishes, julienned
6-8 jalapeños, very thinly sliced (ribs and seeds removed)
2 cups rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp white sugar
1 ½ tbsp salt
Combine the rice wine vinegar, salt and sugar into a large lidded container and stir.
Add the vegetables and soak, keeping refrigerated for 3-8 hours.
For the dressing:
½ cup EVOO
½ cup rice wine vinegar
¼ cup honey
2 tbsp lime juice
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
¼ cup cilantro
¼ cup mint
Other ingredients:
Cooked rice noodles (thin)
Sliced cucumbers
More herbs
Arugula (or another green)
Putting it all together:
Lay your bed of lettuce. Top with some rice noodles, marinated and cooked protein of your choice, pickled vegetables, sliced cucumbers and some dressing.
Shakshuka
This wildly simple dish gets its flavor from lots of herbs and spices; typical of any dish that comes from any of the Middle Eastern countries. You can really serve it with so many things. I have eaten it over potatoes, rice, with naan and by itself. Shakshuka is wonderful for breakfast or dinner and is budget friendly. It is (more or less) a very fragrant and aromatic tomato broth with poached eggs. My recipe calls for baking it in the oven, but you can also poach the eggs on the stove top if you desire.
Ingredients and instructions:
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
8-10 cloves of garlic, finely minced
¼ cup EVOO, divided
2 red bell peppers
(1) 28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 tsp coriander
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp black pepper
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp white sugar
¼ cup chopped parsley
¼ cup mint
¼ cup chopped cilantro
6 eggs
1/4 -1/2 cup feta
Add the chopped onions and garlic to the skillet and cook on low heat for 8-10 minutes, until translucent and fragrant. Add the chopped red bell peppers and cook for another 5-6 minutes, stirring when needed. You may sprinkle a pinch of salt to the pan, to season along the way.
Add the canned tomatoes, and all of your spices, mixing until well incorporated.
Add your herbs and cook on a low to medium heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently.
After the flavors have been cooking together for 20 minutes or so, remove from the heat of the stove. Add your eggs to the top, of the tomato mixture.
Bake in the oven for 8 minutes or so at 350 degrees, or until the egg whites turn white. The goal is to keep the yolk runny.
Sprinkle with feta, add sliced avocado, extra herbs or whatever else you would like. We put this over some potatoes, but you could use rice, cauliflower rice, naan or whatever really.
Barbacoa bowl
This slow-cooked beef in chipotle peppers, spices and fragrant broth. I love filling my burrito bowls with fresh vegetables like shredded cabbage, tomatoes, corn, avocado or really anything else flavorful (and logical). You can always substitute rice for quinoa or cauliflower rice if you would like. Topping with something healthy like a tomatillo salsa, instead of cheese and sour cream not only has more flavor, but it nourishes your body better too. Lastly, I am a huge fan of cooking certain things in large batches. Although the recipe below says 2-3 pounds of meat, I almost always triple that and freeze some.
Ingredients and instructions:
For the beef:
2-3 lbs of chuck shoulder roast, cubed into 2”-3” pieces
16 oz beef broth
1 yellow onion, chopped
10 garlic cloves, chopped
7 oz can chipotle peppers
3-4 bay leaves
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp oregano
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
2 tsp sugar
Cilantro stems (save the leaves for the salsa)
In a Dutch Oven, combine all of ingredients and cook at 300 degrees for five to six hours.
Remove the meat and shred it, adding it into a pan.
Use a slotted spoon to scoop out all whole/large ingredients from the cooking liquid.
Ladle the liquid into the pan with the meat so that it is moist and has the flavor from the broth.
For the tomatillo/avocado salsa:
6 tomatillos, charred
2 jalapeños, charred
2 avocados
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp agave or honey
1-2 tsp salt
1/2 yellow onion
4-5 garlic cloves
½ cup cilantro
Combine all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
Other ingredients:
Rice (regular, cauliflower, quinoa or whatever)
Optional toppings include avocado, pickled red onions, corn, black beans, shredded cabbage, radishes, tomatoes, etc. I also like to add extra squeezed lime and some cotija or feta.
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