Monday 7 November 2011

A brussel sprout is for life, not just for Christmas!

I was on the train the other day and spied a health magazine someone had left behind.  I had never seen it before but it is a free magazine called Natural Lifestyle (www.nat-lifestyle.com).  In the back of the magazine were some delicious looking recipes.....using brussel sprouts!  For me, picking up a bag of brussel sprouts in the supermarket is only ever done for the Christmas dinner and other than that they don't really feature very highly on my shopping list.  They are a notorious vegetable for being overcooked and all the flavour being drained out of them, but I went straight out and bought a bag so I could try one of the recipes!

I try to mix in vegetarian meals during the week and brussel sprouts are very are high in protein, for a vegetable! Mixing it with a whole grain seems to make it a perfect meat replacement.  They are also high in vitamin A and C for our winter defences!  The brussel sprout is high in fibre which can promote bowel health.  For additional brussel eating encouragement, there was an article in Optimum Nutrition magazine reporting that Leicester University had undertaken research into leafy greens and the prevention of type 2 diabetes.  The results were published in the British Medical Journal and stated that people who ate one and a half extra portions of leafy greens per day, reduced their chances of developing type 2 diabetes by 14%. (www.bmj.com)

So next time you are in the supermarket, grab a bag of the humble brussels and give this quick and yummy recipe a go....I altered it slightly from the magazine and, as always, add more chilli, garlic etc for your taste!

Stirfried sprouts with lemon and chilli on a bed of rice noodles
serves 2

8 peeled shallots - thinly sliced
2tbsp sesame oil
sea salt
ground pepper
350g brussel sprouts
2 clove garlic, finely diced
1 tsp chilli flakes
zest of a lemon
2 tbsp soy sauce (clearspring make a gluten free one)
packet of ready to eat rice noodles that you only need to soak (you can use dried ones but check the cooking instructions)

Before you start cooking, soak your rice noodles in boiling water to soften

In a wok or large frying pan; stir fry the garlic, shallots and brussels in the sesame oil.  Do this for approx 5 mins until sprouts are tender.

Stir through the lemon zest and soy sauce.

Drain the noodles and serve.

Zen Dog






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