Warm Winter Salad

Warm Winter Salad

In the summer I love to eat a salad, but during winter, when my stomach is colder due to the weather, I tend to find salads harder to digest. Winter is on its way and I have been looking for an alternative. I spoke to a friend who also loves cooking. My friend told me about frying my greens and I thought this would help me.

Raw vegetables can be hard to digest due to the insoluble fibre content. The body has difficulty breaking it down so even a little cooking can help to soften the fibre in the vegetables. Then it makes it easier for the body to digest the vegetables.

As well as cooking, the body finds it easier to digest greens when they are cut into small bits. It’s harder for the body to digest larger bulky pieces of food so cutting it up helps the body to digest the goodness from the vegetables.

Plus eating slowly and chewing every mouthful will help the body to digest its dinner. In order for the body to get the full impact of the vegetables on the plate it needs the mouth to turn the food into liquid. I am trying to chew my food at least 20 times to aid my digestion. For me, chewing and eating slowly is a work in progress. When I slow my eating down and remember to chew. I feel better, especially when eating a meal like this one.

Serves 1

Equipment

Warm Winter Salad

• Sharp knife
• Chopping board
• Frying pan
• Plastic brush
• Saucepan
• Teaspoon

Ingredients

• Spring onions x 4
• Garlic x 1 clove
• Spinach x 1 handful
• Chard x 2 leaves
• Pak choi x 1 bulb
• Kale x 1 handful
• Cherry tomatoes x 10
• Quinoa x 75g
• Cumin seeds x 1 tsp
• Olive oil
• Lime x 1/2 juice (optional)
• Avocado x 1/2 (optional)
• Roasted Chickpeas and Cumin Seeds x 1/2 portion (optional)

Method

• Firstly, put a saucepan of hot water on a high temperature on the hob.
• Add the quinoa, bring it to the boil and leave to simmer.
• Start by slicing the spinach, chard, pak choi and kale thinly.
• Next cut the tomatoes in half and set these aside.
• Remove the tails from the spring onions and slice into 1/2 centimetre pieces.
• Peel and slice the garlic.
• Put the frying pan on a high heat and add the olive oil.
• Spread the oil across the base with the plastic brush.
• When the frying pan is hot, add the spring onion and cumin seeds and fry for about 2 minutes.
• Add in the garlic and fry until they both soften.
• Now add in the tomatoes and fry until these start to soften
• Once these ingredients are soft add in the greens and fry until they wilt in the pan.
• Check the quinoa and if it’s cooked add it to the frying pan.
• Mix all of these ingredients together.
  • If the quinoa is not cooked wait until it’s done then add it to the frying pan.
• It’s optional but I like to squeeze the juice of half a lime over the top to add a little bit of flavour.
• Also you can add my roasted chickpea and cumin seeds recipe with half an avocado.
• Then serve and enjoy.

Warm Winter Salad

Warm Winter Salad is a great salad to eat on a cooler Autumn day. Although if you are new to eating greens then I would recommend you start with one or two on your plate and move up from there. Too many greens, if you don’t or haven’t eaten any for a while may cause constipation and bloating. So it’s always best to start with a few. However you decide to eat this dish, as always, enjoy.

Do you eat salads and what are your favourites? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like, comment or subscribe. Thank you. xxx