Dahl-ling, if you’re looking for dinner in a tikk-a, hurry up and get some curry!

One of my favourite things to do is travel. I love wandering through towns, exploring the sites and getting to know the ins and outs of different ways of life.

While we currently can’t walk through the colourful streets of Delhi or be amongst the hustle and bustle of the markets in London’s Covent Garden, there’s no reason for us not to explore and experience other cultures. My favourite way to do that is, you guessed it, through my palette. At the moment, I’m loving exploring cultural delicacies in the kitchen at home.

If you’ve taken a stroll through the blog, one thing will be apparent – my love of Indian food. There’s something about it that feels extra special to me.

Some think of Indian food as oily samosas and a stealthy butter chicken; while my mind conjures up an image of the richest, tastiest and most nutritionally dense cuisines.

Spices are the foundation of Indian cuisine and give each dish a full-body sensorial experience unlike no other. Plus, these spices add some serious health benefits.

If spices are the foundation, vegetables and legumes are the bricks of Indian cuisine. Filled with fibre; their vegetable and legume-filled dishes are a warming hug for your insides and a good healthy dose of prebiotic fibre for gut health. Indian food is perfectly hearty, reasonably easy to make and dang right delicious.

Below are ten of the best Indian recipes you’ll find on the blog, now all in one convenient place. You’re welcome.

Chicken Biryani with Turmeric Cauliflower Rice

Of course, I have to start with the beloved dish, chicken biryani. Biryani is a traditional Indian meal that playfully combines Indian spices with proteins, vegetables and rice. While biryani should be consumed with approximately seven bowls of rice, I’ve opted for cauliflower rice for a lighter and fibre-fuelled alternative. Taste buds, here we come!

Green Bean Subji

Maybe it’s the health blogger in me, but there’s nothing I love more than sitting down to a dish that makes me feel like I’m making the right decisions for my health. This dish is exactly that. It’s an exotic, yet simple vegetable dish that will leave you nourished and satisfied. This spectacular subji is based on the humble green bean, but is impressively dressed up with a list of medicinal and flavourful Ayurvedic ingredients like cumin, ginger, mustard seeds, shredded coconut for texture and the freshness of coriander leaves. In minutes your regular bean is transformed into an exotic, aromatic vegetarian dish that’ll really blow your hair back and widen your eyes.

Delicious Lamb Mulligatawny

This dish is a perfect example of cultures uniting to create something beautiful. Mulligatawny is a British soup with Indian origins, just like me! Lamb is one of my favourite meats to cook and goes well with a myriad of spices and tastes. I hope this vibrant and delicious recipe inspires you to take a journey in your kitchen with international aromas and delicacies. 

Vegetable Thoran

One of the simplest and most magical dishes I’ve ever eaten is a vegetable thoran, a dry vegetable curry. Sounds weird, I know, but have I ever led you astray before? All you need to do is temper finely chopped or grated vegetables with mustard seeds and cook them with curry leaves, shallots or onions, freshly grated coconut and spices. You can add any veggies you like. Pre-warning: this dish requires some time and patience, so not for the speed-cutting hearted.

Jolly Good Butter Chicken

It wouldn’t be a jolly good list if I didn’t sneak a butter chicken in the mix. This. Is. The. Best. Butter. Chicken. You’ll. Ever. Eat. My butter chicken is a healthier version of one of my (and many others) favourite dishes and has an oh-so-creamy buttery taste. Dig in.

Broccoli Bhajis

While I’ve started with dishes many of us know and love (and I’m sure some of your food delivery drivers know you love them too!), I’ve always loved going rogue. Bhaji is similar to your average fritter but is a bite-sized and well-loved spicy Indian street food. It can be served atop a meal but has come to be appreciated as a delicious snack or starter.

Supercharged Dahl

It’s about to get dahl-icious up in here (how many times can someone make that joke until it gets old. I’m asking for a friend). Dahl is perfect for the meat-free among us, combining anti-inflammatory turmeric, high-fibre lentils, antioxidant-rich garlic and digestive-relieving cumin. It’s a real powerhouse dish that gets better with age. Make this dahl for dinner and you’ll find your family fighting over the leftovers the next day.

Eggplant and Green Bean Curry

I love a one-pot meal. Don't you just love not having to dust off every pot you've ever owned and cleaning up a gazillion dishes when you cook?. This Eggplant and Green Bean Curry is a different and lighter approach to your typical vegetarian curry.  The homemade curry paste lifts the curry into a richly-layered, warming dish that has serious flavour.

Tuna Tikka Curry

If you haven’t realised by now, I kind of like curry. This exotic seafood curry contains seafood, bursting with omega-3 fatty acids which are essential for brain health and function. This meal is also a tri-doshic Ayurvedic powerhouse, helping to balance Vata, Pitta and Kapha, so it’s great for the whole family.

Maharajah Indian Stuffed Peppers

If you’re thinking stuff this, it’s all too difficult, stuff these capsicums/peppers instead! I’ve supercharged these stuffed capsicums/peppers and upped the heartiness with lamb mince, so they’re flavourful and filling. 

If you want one more, taking the grand total to eleven, I have a new special dish just for you from my Ayurvedic cookbook Eat Right for Your Shape. This Indian Chicken with Pomegranate is the star of this show. I’ll admit, there’s a lot of ingredients that go into this chicken marinade, but some things are worth fighting for… mostly chicken; chicken is worth the fight. The chicken is juicy, the pomegranate sweet and your tummy super satisfied.

Enjoy these dishes, and remember, I’m sending you lots of love, health and curry!

Indian Chicken with Pomegranate

SERVES 4

• 1.5 kg (3 lb 5 oz) chicken

Optional:

• Baby spinach
• Pine nut
• Pomegranate

INDIAN INFUSED MARINADE

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 teaspoons finely grated ginger
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons Himalayan salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons brown rice flour
• 1⁄2 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves
• 1–2 tablespoons warm filtered water
• 1 tsp Love Your Gut powder (optional)

Method:

To make the marinade, combine all the ingredients with sufficient warm water to make a paste of spreading consistency.

Rub the marinade over the chicken, ensuring it is completely covered. Place in a roasting tin, cover with foil and marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour but preferably overnight.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F).

Remove the foil and roast the chicken for 60–75 minutes or until the juices run clear when the flesh is pierced with a skewer. If the chicken starts to brown too much during cooking, cover with fresh foil. Rest for 10–15 minutes before serving.

Serve warm with baby spinach, pine nut and pomegranate salad. The chicken will be very moist and tender and won’t be spicy-hot.

I'd love you to try one of my Indian recipes and let me know what you think in the comments section below. If you’re up for another recipe with that same touch of brightness, try chicken beurre blanc.

Beauty comes from the inside, and I’m not just talking in clichés here. Our skin acts as a reflection of what’s going on internally. Inadequate nutrient intake, low-quality sleep, and high stress can show up on the skin as acne, early aging, redness or dark under-eye circles. Yikes, that's a lot to look forward to ;).

To ensure you’re doing the best you can to look after your skin, my advice is to aim for prevention rather than cure. My favourite preventative measures for skin health include eating a nutrient-rich diet, exercise, stress management techniques, looking after your gut (hello, love your gut powder and love your gut capsules!) and lots of good quality rest.

When it comes to eating for skin health, I recommend leaning towards an antioxidant-rich diet. Antioxidants protect the skin from free radicals, which can otherwise cause damage and accelerate aging. Stress and overexposure to UV light can destroy antioxidants and increase oxidative damage.

UVA rays are not as strong as UVB rays but penetrate the skin more deeply. Unprotected exposure over time can cause genetic damage to the top layer of the skin, causing damage to cells, premature aging and immune suppression. Both UVA and UVB can deplete and suppress Langerhans and immune cells. UVA and UVB are now considered causes of cancer.

While there are plenty of different antioxidants in the body, carotenoids are one of my favourites to talk about (and eat). Carotenoids are the pigment in fruits and vegetables that give them their gorgeous yellow, red, and orange hues.

Carotenoids are potent antioxidants that help neutralize free radicals and create glowing skin. Carotenoids are a fighting nutrient, or more specifically, a phytonutrient, a ‘plant chemical’. There are over 600 different carotenoids in the body, including beta carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Provitamin A carotenoids may be the ones you’re most familiar with, as they’re converted into vitamin A; essential for growth, immunity, and eye health.

Carotenoids are abundant in some of the most delicious fruit and veg around, including sweet potatoes, carrots, yams, pumpkin, tomatoes, spinach, kale, and oranges. Carotenoids are fat-soluble compounds, meaning they’re best absorbed with fat. It’s time to face the fats; we need good fats!

So next time you're wondering about how to spruce up a plant-based dish, drizzle some olive oil on your veggies, or just eat good fats whole by enjoying an avocado or sprinkling nuts and seeds on your soups and salads.

Adding more carotenoid-rich foods to your diet can be a surefire way to supercharge your skin health. If you’re wondering which carotenoid to pick, at the moment I'm going through a carrots phase. I carrot live without them 😉

Heirloom carrots are probably one of my favourite sights when gathering seasonal produce. I love their spirally little bottom roots like tendrils, luscious green tops, and the remarkable amount of colour they can add to a dish.

When it comes to cooking, they’re such a treat to roast, and this recipe preserves their full form and flavour, elevating them with caramelized rice malt syrup. I've added Golden Gut Blend for it's anti-inflammatory ability, it also includes cinnamon which is anti-fungal, antioxidant and anti-bacterial making it useful against acne and skin blemishes. 

This is the perfect dish for lunch or dinner on its own or as a side. Enjoy these beautiful carrots. 

 Th-th-th-that's all folks! 

Sweet Lemon Thyme Roasted Carrots

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 90 g (3 1/4 oz/ 1/4 cup) rice malt syrup
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsps Golden Gut Blend or Love your gut powder  (optional)
• 6 lemon thyme sprigs
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) heirloom or baby carrots, peeled and trimmed

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F).
• Combine all the ingredients except the carrots in a small bowl and stir well.
• Spread out the carrots in a large roasting tin, drizzle over the dressing and toss to combine.
• Roast for 25–30 minutes, until the carrots are cooked through.

Today I have a great dish with vegetables and kidney beans- not kidney-ing you!

It’s my mean bean casserole. You’re welcome.

It’s time to free your pantry and crisper from lockdown. Just use any vegetables you have in the fridge or lying around, also adding lemon and tamari for flavour and some stock and mixed herbs will supercharge your taste buds. If you like it hot add chili, cayenne or paprika.

The kidney beans have meatiness and will absorb up all the aromatic spices and herbs. This is your dish your way so make it vegan by adding vegetable stock or add chicken stock if preferred.

I hope you love my rock n roll casserole. Enjoy it with the whole family because it will really jazz up dinner.

By the way, this dish freezes well, so double the recipe and have it the next day or next week.

You can watch a video about how to make it here.

Vegetable and Bean Casserole

Serves 4-5

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 brown onion, chopped
• 1 red capsicum, chopped
• 1/2 pumpkin coarsely chopped
• 2 zucchini’s chopped
• 1 small cauliflower chopped
• 2 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 2 tbs mixed herbs
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ¹/₂ tsp ground coriander
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1/2 lemon juiced
• 3 tbs tamari or soy sauce
• 400g can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• Handful chopped kale
• Season to taste with salt and pepper

Method

Chop onion and garlic and all vegetables

Heat olive oil in a deep casserole pan or saucepan

Add garlic and onion into the pan and stir and cook on a medium heat for a minute

Add red capsicum into pan and soften it down cook for a couple of minutes

Add vegetables into pan and stir them well

Add the mixed herbs, cumin and coriander into the pan and stir again

Slowly pour the stock in and stir again and ensure vegetables are evenly distributed and covered with the stock

Add squeezed lemon and tamari and stir

Add your kidney beans now and stir again gently

Now place your chopped kale on top, turn it down to medium heat and place on the lid

Cook for about 20 mins or until vegetables are tender or to your liking

Give it a shot and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Lee x