Three simple healthy meals | easy recipes! | contest entry

These are three of my favourite healthy meals so I wanted to share them with you! I’m also entering these meals into a foodie contest: https://steemit.com/contest/@cryptokraze/contest-or-usd25-sbd-to-win-or-bring-out-your-best-3-healthy-meals so wish me luck! ;)

All of these meals are easy to make and require minimal ingredients. They are also oil-free and salt-free but full of flavour. :) My diet consists of whole plant-based foods, like fruit, vegetables, and grains. These whole foods provide us with all the necessary nutrients we need, and then some! Eating this way is always satisfying and nourishing. I'm never left hungry after meals but instead I am energised. I hope my meals and photos inspire you to incorporate colourful fruits and veggies into your diet. :)

My first meal is oatmeal. Oatmeal is my favourite breakfast because it’s easy to make and filling. I use a ratio of 1 cup of oats to 2 cups of milk or water. Currently, I prefer a 50/50 mix of soy milk and water. Almond milk is nice too. I heat 1 cup of soy milk and 1 cup of water on the stove top along with a few shakes of ground cinnamon. Once the milk starts to steam, mix in the oats and lower the heat until it starts to simmer. Keep stirring and lower the heat even more if it starts to bubble up too much. Once the oats thicken and most of the liquid has been absorbed, turn off the heat and keep stirring. Transfer to a bowl and decorate with your favourite fruity toppings.

In this photo, I also topped my oatmeal with cacao nibs. Cacao nibs are the crushed shells of the cocoa bean, so you get a crunchy chocolately topping without added sugar. The texture is very nice and I prefer the dark chocolate taste of the nibs to milk chocolate. Coconut flakes, chia seeds, or hemp seeds make nice toppings as well.

My second meal is oil-free sautéed veggies with brown rice and avocado. This is currently my favourite lunch meal as it's simple to make and super cheap. In general, rice is one of the cheapest staples and fresh veggies like carrots, onions, and zucchini are easy to come by.

First, cook the rice. I use a 1:4 ratio of brown rice to water. Adding in a bay leaf as the rice cooks is nice too. Heat the rice and water in a large pan until boiling. Once boiling, stir well and lower the heat until it simmers. Let simmer for a while (at least 20 minutes, though I never keep track) and stir occasionally. You know the rice is almost done when most of the water has been absorbed. At this point, remove the pan from the heat and cover. Let the rice steam for at least 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook your veggies. Lately, I prefer red onion, mushrooms, carrot, peppers, green beans, and zucchini. Feel free to use any veggies you like. Heat up a large pan on high heat and add a cup of water to the pan. Once it starts to simmer, add in diced onion, tomato paste, and any spices you like. Tomato paste is essential for me. The tomato paste plus spices plus the juice from the veggies make a delicious, savoury sauce. Try oregano, thyme, paprika, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne.

Once the onions are translucent, add sliced mushrooms, carrot, peppers, and green beans. Stir occasionally. The mushrooms will let off quite a bit of liquid. Add a splash of water if anything starts to stick. Once the carrots are nearly done (give them a taste to make sure), add the zucchini. Keep stirring. Zucchini cooks quickly so it won’t take much time. Turn off the heat and enjoy with brown rice, fresh avocado, and tomatoes. Don’t forget fresh lemon juice and chili flakes for your avocado. ;)

For my last healthy meal idea, I choose veggie sushi. Making sushi at home is fairly easy once you get the hang of it! It takes some practice but is fun to learn. You don’t need to use special sushi rice either, any rice will work just fine. I prefer jasmine rice in my sushi. I simply cook the rice, let it cool to room temperature, and start rolling. For me, 2 cups of dry rice yields 10 rolls. Avocado and cucumber are my favourite fillings.

I’d like to think the sushi I make at home is healthier than sushi made at a restaurant because I know exactly what goes into it. My sushi rice is simply plain jasmine rice without oil, vinegar, salt or anything extra added. Not that these ingredients are unhealthy in small amounts, but I try to avoid them when I can. Sushi tastes great with only veggies and rice, so I don’t feel the need to add anything to it. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll whip up a dipping sauce made of tamarind concentrate, light soy sauce, coconut sugar, and lime juice.

If you’d like to see how easy it is to make your own veggie sushi at home, check out my how-to video:

As far as shopping for these ingredients, I buy all of the produce I need from a local frutería down the street. I purchase the cheapest brown rice I can find at the Carrefour supermarket. Tomato paste is also available at Carrefour or Mercadona. Nori sheets for sushi can be tricky to find but most large supermarkets carry them in their international section. Alternatively, small Asian markets will have them, usually for a cheaper price than the big box stores.

Thank you for reading! If you have any questions about these meals or would like healthy eating advice, please let me know. I’m always happy to help. :)

—Lisa