Eating healthier in 2020

Fitness is one the topmost New Year’s resolutions for most people. Eating healthy, getting active, losing weight are the goals people look forward to  in the coming weeks. If you need a little hand-holding, celebrity chef Shailendra Kekade and corporate chef, Malaka Spice Group, Vikram Gakkan, tell you how you can eat healthy and stay fit.  

Eat natural and local 
According to chef Gakkan, healthy eating is about having food in its natural form. “Eating fresh is good. You need to incorporate it into your daily diet. Stay away from processed food and try to buy local. At Malaka Spice, we are lucky enough to enjoy fresh organic produce from our very own Cherish Farm,” says the chef who also enjoys running. “I run about 2-3 km every morning and have also participated in marathons. And whenever my busy schedule allows, I go on a trek,” he further says.

Speaking on how people are choosing healthier alternatives nowadays when it comes to food choices, Gakkan says, “With changing lifestyles and easier access to healthy alternatives, along with awareness and information available, people are switching to healthier food options. At our restaurants, we have also switched to cold pressed oil in all our recipes, except for the deep fried ones. Though expensive, we are happy making this switch.” 

Balance is the key 
To have a healthy body and mind, chef Kekade believes one must maintain balance, not just in food and drinks, but in all aspects of life. “I strongly believe maintaining a balance in everything we eat or drink, is the key. It is also important to understand that one must be mindful and knowledgeable of what food one is having and how to avoid excessive eating. That said, I am not a ‘diet’ person, however, I mostly prefer plant-based food. But being a chef, I cannot avoid tasting meat, so I prefer to taste gourmet specialities of non-vegetarian dishes.” 

Sharing his fitness mantra, he says, “I practise meditation, yoga and breathing exercises. Mindfulness helps one achieve a sound body and mind.” 

Pineapple Green Smoothie
Ingredients 
Unsweetened almond milk... 100 ml 
Non-fat plain Greek yogurt... 40 gm
Baby spinach... 30 gm 
Frozen banana slices (about 1 medium banana)... 60 gm 
Frozen pineapple chunks... 60 gm 
Chia seeds... 1 tbsp
Honey (optional)... 1-2 tsp 

Method 
Add almond milk and yogurt to a blender, then add spinach, banana, pineapple, chia and sweetener (if using), and blend until smooth. Serve.

Sun-Dried Tomato, Spinach and Quinoa Salad
Ingredients 

• Quinoa, rinsed in a fine-mesh colander...     150 gm 
• Sun-dried tomatoes...     40 gm 
• Roughly chopped fresh spinach or arugula...     40 gm 
• Sliced almonds..    . 20 gm 
• Olive oil...     ¼ tsp
• Salt to taste

Lemon dressing

• Olive oil...     2 tbsp
• Lemon juice...     2 tbsp
• Cloves garlic, pressed or 
• minced...     2 tbsp
• Dijon mustard...     2 tbsp
• Salt...     ½ tsp
• Red pepper flakes...     a pinch 
• Freshly ground black 
• pepper to taste

Method 
To cook the quinoa 

• Combine the rinsed quinoa and 2 cups of water in a medium saucepan. 
• Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. 
• Cook until the quinoa has absorbed all of the water, about 15 minutes, reducing heat as time goes on to maintain a gentle simmer. Remove from heat, cover, and let the quinoa rest for 5 minutes, which gives it time to fluff up.

To prepare the dressing 

• Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, mustard, salt and red pepper flakes. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.

To toast the almonds 

• Warm ¼ tsp olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat until shimmering. 
• Add the almonds and a dash of salt and cook, stirring frequently (beware, these burn quickly), until they are golden and fragrant. Transfer the toasted almonds to a medium-sized serving bowl to cool.
• Once the quinoa is cooked, fluff it with a fork and then transfer it into your serving bowl. 
• Drizzle all of the dressing on top and toss to combine. 
• Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and wait a few more minutes to add the spinach so that it doesn’t wilt completely. 
• Toss again, season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if necessary, and serve immediately.

Korean Green Salad
Ingredients 

• Star Fruit...     25 gm 
• Green apple, cut in small 
• cubes..    . 25 gm 
• Cucumber, cut in small 
• cubes...     25 gm 
• Red onion..    . 5 gm 
• Sesame seeds..    . 2 gm 

For Salad Dressing

• Soy..    . 5 ml 
• Jaggery...     3 gm 
• Korean Chilli Paste...     10 gm
• Rice vinegar..    . 2 ml
• Sesame oil..    . 5 ml
• Chilli paste..    . 5 gm
• Chilli flakes..    . 2 gm

Method 

• Cut the green apple, onion and green cucumber in triangle  shape. Slice the Star Fruit (if you are unable to find, replace it with water apples and pineapples).
• For the dressing, take Korean chilli paste, rice vinegar, sesame oil, jaggery, chilli paste, chilli flakes. Add all these ingredients in a bowl so that the dressing of your salad is ready. 
• Then put the green apple, onion, cucumber and Star Fruit in the dressing bowl and toss. 
• Sprinkle salt and pepper as per taste.
• Serve in a bowl and garnish with edible flowers.  

Laab Ped Salad 
Laab Ped, popularly dubbed as the national dish of Laos, is slow cooked roasted duck, veggies, herbs and lime juice — best had wrapped in lettuce! This salad is a part of the newly launched seasonal winter menu at Malaka Spice and is perfect for the cold winters of Pune. (Duck can be replaced with chicken)

Ingredients
For roasted duck

• Whole duck...     1
• Five spice powder..    . 50 gm
• Honey..    . 80 ml
• Chilli paste..    . 25 gm
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Oil...     100 ml

Salad dressing

• Roasting liquid...     100 ml
• Sweet chilli sauce...     15 ml
• Fish sauce..    . 10 ml
• Sambal...     10 gm
• Lime juice...     15 ml
• Chilli flakes...     5 gm
• Salt and pepper to taste

Assembling

• Onion rings..    . 15 gm
• Bell peppers.    .. 15 gm
• Mint leaves..    . 10 gm

Method

• Roasting the duck
• Mix all the ingredients for roasting the duck in a bowl and marinate the duck evenly. 
• It is important to have the marinade reach in between the skin and the meat.
• Leave the marinated duck overnight in the refrigerator.
• Next day remove from refrigerator and allow it to rest at room temperature for 30 min and rub the marinade again over the duck.
• Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven at 140 degrees C.
• Place the duck on a roasting tray and allow it to cook for about 2 hours.
• After 2 hours, check the duck if done. Check at the joints.

Assembling the salad

• Prepare the salad dressing by using the ingredients mentioned in the salad dressing section above and mix them well in a mixing bowl.
• Add about 150 gm or more as per your liking of the roasted duck meat, add in the onion rings, bell peppers and fresh mint leaves.
• Mix them well, and place in a bowl.
• Serve some crunchy lettuce by the side of the salad.
• Now relish it by rolling some duck salad in a lettuce leaf.  

(Recipes by chef Vikram Gakkan)