Food

Mexican Molletes Sandwich

July 27, 2020 By Editor

The Mexican Molletes is a popular grilled sandwich served across Mexico. It is nutritious, simple, and fast to prepare with ingredients such as beans, cheese and vegetable salsa. If you love grilled cheese sandwiches, the Molletes is a similar type of Mexican version.

Mexicans eat Molletes for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Most Mexican restaurants serve Molletes and they have a place on their menu.

Mashed beans is a good protein source and it is very common to use beans in the Mexican diet. Adding cheese and vegetable sauces make it tasty, nourishing and a healthy food choice. If you are Vegan, you can use Vegan Cheese substitutes that are available or an Avocado spread instead of regular cheese.

Ingredients for making (per serving)

-Mashed beans (2 teaspoons)

-Cheese (as required)

-Baguette (Bread)

-Butter (optional)

-Onion (20gm)

-1 Tomato

-Coriander (50gm)

-1 Lemon (one slice)

Prepare the “Pico de Gallo” sauce for topping:

-Fine chop onion, tomato and coriander

-Add lemon juice to the fine chopped items above and mix them well

-Add salt and pepper as required

Cooking Step by Step:

Step 1: (Preheat the Oven)

-Preheat the oven or convection toaster oven to 450°F (220°C).

Step 2: (Brown the Baguette with butter)

-Heat a skillet or cooking pan over medium heat.

-Spread the butter over the cut sides of the Baguette or bread.

-Place the bread slices with the cut sides down on the hot skillet or pan.

-Watch closely until the bread slice gets lightly golden brown in a minute or two.

Step 3: (Prepare the Baguette / bread for grilling)

-Spread the mashed beans over the toasted side of the baguette or bread.

-Place a layer of regular cheese (preferably Cheddar cheese) or any Vegan alternative of your choice.

-Place the Molletes in the oven until the cheese is melted and turned golden brown, usually ready in about 5 minutes.

Step 4: (Spread sauce and serve)

-Spread “Pico de Gallo” sauce or “Salsa” on top of the warm mollete with the beans and melted cheese

-Serve fresh and enjoy!

Khichari – Punjabi Style

July 6, 2020 By Editor

By Monu Harnal

Try Khichari if you prefer something light, nutritious and easy to prepare. Ayurveda, from India, is one of the oldest medical practices in the world, prescribes Khichari to correct imbalances and also to cleanse the body.

Khichdi or Khichari, pronounced KITCH-A-REE, is a staple dish throughout India. It takes 30 minutes of cooking time from start to finish to prepare a well-balanced, healthy and nutritious meal.

Khichdi can be prepared in a variety of ways. You can cook it in its simplest form or prepare it with various Indian flavors. The main ingredients are lentils, rice and water. Once you know how to prepare the dish you can add or remove condiments to your liking.

To help revive energy and balance the digestive system, this dish is usually prepared in its simplest form of boiled lentils, rice, water and a pinch of salt and pepper. Ayurveda recommends using spices mildly to balance the three Doshas (Vata, Pitta and Kapha) in our body. Any Ayurvedic doctor or practitioner will explain the significance and wonders of Khichdi.

Getting prepared:

Make sure you have all the necessary ingredients and utensils for cooking. Please follow the steps below.

– A pressure cooker, an instant pot or a hollow pot.

– Rice: preferably Basmati

– Daal: referred to as lentils. You can choose either a green Mung daal (also spelled as Moong dal). You can also use a combination of yellow toor and red masoor daal.

– Water: the amount of water will determine the consistency of how thick or thin you prefer the Khichdi. A thin/soupy Khichdi is recommended for those who are not well or are observing a diet.

– Ghee: use ghee, purified butter, or a cooking oil of your choice. Some use mustard oil that has a specific aroma and is very healthy, or use avocado oil.

– Spices:

Turmeric powder (very good to have)
Salt
Pepper
Red chilli powder (optional)
Cumin seeds (optional)
Mustard seeds (optional)

Vegetables:

Onions (optional, You can saute the onions with the spices. Or chop them up, soak them in lemon juice and salt to have as a side salad)
Tomatoes (optional, You can saute the tomatoes with the spices. Or chop them up, soak them in lemon juice and salt to have as a side salad)
Cilantro (optional, to garnish)

Ingredients for 2-3 people:

1/2 cup Lentils of your choice. Wash thoroughly and set aside.

1/2 cup rice. Wash thoroughly and set aside.

1/2 spoon (tsp) cumin

1/2 spoon (tsp) mustard seeds

1/2 spoon (tsp) turmeric powder

1/3 spoon (tsp) red chilli powder

2/3 spoon salt (tsp) (more or less to taste)

1/4 spoon (tsp) black pepper (more or less to taste)

4-5 cups of water (the amount of water depends on how thick or thin you prefer your Khichdi).

How to prepare Khichdi:

Though I used an instant pot to prepare the Khichdi, a regular pressure cooker or regular pot will give the same results.

Turn on the Instant pot and start with the Saute setting.

2. Add the ghee in the pot and let it heat for approx. 1-2 minutes

3. Add the mustard and cumin seeds. You will know they are cooked once you hear them pop.

4. Add water

5. Add the washed lentils and rice into the pot.

6. Add the rest of the spices; turmeric, red chilli, salt and pepper.

7. Stir all ingredients gently.

8. If you are using Instant pot to cook, change setting to “Pressure Cook”.

9. Set the pressure cooker timer to 15-20 minutes (25-30 minutes for everything to boil in a regular pot).

10. Let the pressure out after the time is up. In a regular pressure cooker, there may be 4-5 whistles before the Khichdi is ready.

Serve Khichdi with your preference of aachar (mango, lemon or chilli pickles), yogurt, a dab of ghee or butter, and/or fresh vegetables soaked in lemon juice! Enjoy!

Common health concerns about processed food

July 14, 2018 By Prem Lee Prasannan

Why is processed food a health risk?

The health concerns of processed food have been in the research domain for decades now. The multi-billion-dollar food processing and manufacturing industry has been heavily investing in the preparation and marketing of tasty processed food products at attractive and affordable prices. Consumers rarely pay attention to the nutritional facts of these food items that flood our grocery stores.

Even though there is a lot of ongoing research happening and some information is readily available in the public domain, people tend to disregard the alarming health concerns surrounding it. The primary cause of most of our health issues is a poor diet and unhealthy choices.

Pre-packaged food has a high level of risk since it often contains a range of tastemakers, other additives, and preservatives. In most countries, it is mandatory to indicate on the package the key ingredients used in the product and the country of origin of the product. It is often the case that we do not understand the chemicals added as preservatives and other taste-making additives. Studies show that long-term consumption of these ingredients may lead to several minor and major health problems.

Are there any health risks associated with products with a longer shelf life?

Processed food items are often prepared to be consumed instantly with little or no cooking. For their longer shelf life, these foods are often packaged and preserved with different types of oils, chemicals, or salt. The excessive use of these items over the long term can affect our health and also damage body organs. There is enough research data to suggest that certain commonly seen diseases are triggered by our routine food habits.

Some of the commonly known diseases are diabetes, obesity, heart disorders, and cancer. Awareness and a careful approach to our food choices might help reduce the risk of these diseases:

Added Sugar: For artificially sweetening food, often extra sweeteners like sugar, concentrated fruit juice, or artificial sweeteners are added.
Artificial flavours: These are taste makers that are mostly chemical substances. MSG (monosodium glutamate) is one of the harmful agents commonly used in food.
Artificial Preservatives: Chemicals added to food for a longer shelf life
Food texture: chemicals or ingredients like corn starch are added to the food to give it a particular consistency or texture.
High in Carbohydrates: Processed carbohydrates can cause quick blood sugar and insulin levels in the body.
High in trans fats, trans fats as a food additive are usually made by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil or fat. Studies have shown an increased risk of heart disease due to trans fats.
Less Fibre in Food: Often packaged food has less fibre, which causes the body’s sugar level to go up and down quickly. This results in more frequent eating for the body to maintain a consistent energy level.

Overall wellness depends primarily on the health of our physical bodies. Choosing a healthy diet is important to provide our body with adequate nutrition and energy to sustain a healthy body and mind.

Shopping tips:

Avoid food that contains artificial flavours or preservatives.
Choose food that contains mostly natural ingredients.
Make sure trans fat or saturated fat are at reasonable levels.
Avoid foods with artificial sweeteners.

Choose foods with less sodium (salt).
Avoid foods that contain MSG (monosodium glutamate). MSG is used as a taste-making salt substitute mostly in Chinese and Asian cuisines.
Avoid foods that are high in sugar.

NOTE: Read the ingredients on the label to make sure it is not harmful to the body or at excessive levels.