The Hairy Dieters: How to Love Food and Lose Weight (17 page)

LAMB, SPINACH AND POTATO CURRY

This is a low-cal version of Dave’s favourite curry – saag gosht – because he couldn’t bear to give it up. If you are running short of time, cut out the fresh garlic, ginger and chilli – the curry will still taste great.The recipe contains potatoes so there is no need to serve it with extra rice.

SERVES 6

600g lamb leg steaks (about 4 steaks)

1 tbsp sunflower oil

2 large onions, roughly chopped

4 large garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

25g chunk of fresh root ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

1 plump fresh red chilli, roughly chopped (deseeded if you like)

75g medium or mild curry paste (depending on your taste)

400g can of chopped tomatoes

350g potatoes, preferably Maris Pipers, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks

450ml water

2 bay leaves

1 tsp flaked sea salt, plus extra for seasoning the meat

1 tsp caster sugar

3 ripe medium tomatoes, quartered

100g young spinach leaves

freshly ground black pepper

293 calories per portion

Trim the lamb of any hard fat and cut the meat into rough chunks of about 3cm. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a teaspoon of the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and fry the lamb in 2 batches until lightly coloured on all sides. Transfer the lamb to a plate as soon as each batch is browned.

Heat the remaining oil in a large flameproof casserole dish and add the onions. Cook over a medium heat for 6–8 minutes until they’re softened and lightly browned, stirring regularly. Turn down the heat, add the garlic, ginger, chilli and curry paste and cook for 5 minutes more, stirring frequently.

Remove from the heat and blitz the onion mixture with a stick blender until blended to a purée. Or you can let the mixture cool for a few minutes, then blend it in a food processor before tipping it back into the casserole. Return the casserole to the hob over a medium heat. Preheat the oven to 190°C/Fan 170°C/Gas 5.

Add the browned lamb to the spiced onion purée in the dish and cook over a gentle heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring. Add the canned chopped tomatoes, potatoes, water, bay leaves, teaspoon of salt and the sugar. Bring everything to a gentle simmer, then cover with a lid and place the casserole in the oven for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until the lamb is tender and the sauce has thickened. Check after 1 hour and give the contents of the casserole dish a good stir.

Take the dish out of the oven and remove the lid. Stir in the quartered tomatoes and spinach leaves. Cover once more and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft and the spinach has wilted. Serve hot with some spoonfuls of fat-free yoghurt if you fancy.

CHICKEN JALFREZI

A culinary triumph for curry-loving dieters – what’s not to like? We’ve reworked this classic to encourage your ever-decreasing waistline, so get shopping and chopping.

SERVES 4

6 long green chillies

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tbsp sunflower oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

3 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tbsp caster sugar

1 tsp flaked sea salt

200ml cold water

2 tbsp low-fat natural yoghurt

1 medium onion, cut into 12 wedges

1 green pepper, deseeded and cut into rough 3cm chunks

2 tomatoes, quartered2 tsp cornflour

1 tbsp water

279 calories per portion

Finely chop 4 of the chillies – deseed a couple or all of them first if you don’t like very spicy food. Split the other 2 chillies from stalk to tip on 1 side without opening or removing the seeds. Cut each chicken breast into 7 or 8 bite-sized chunks.

Heat a tablespoon of the oil in a large, fairly deep, non-stick frying pan (or wok) over a high heat. Add the garlic, chopped chillies, chopped tomatoes, cumin, garam masala, turmeric, sugar and salt, then stir-fry for 3–4 minutes until the vegetables soften. Don’t let the garlic or spices burn or they will add a bitter flavour to the sauce.

Next, add the chicken pieces and whole chillies and cook for 3 minutes, turning the chicken regularly. Pour over the 200ml of water, stir in the yoghurt and reduce the heat only slightly – you want the sauce to simmer. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until the chicken is tender and cooked through and the sauce has reduced by about a third. The yoghurt may separate to begin with but will disappear into the sauce.

While the chicken is cooking, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a clean pan and stir-fry the onion and pepper over a high heat for 3–4 minutes until lightly browned. Add the quartered tomatoes and fry for 2–3 minutes more, stirring until the vegetables are just tender. Mix the cornflour with the tablespoon of water to form a smooth paste.

When the chicken is cooked, stir in the cornflour mixture and simmer for a few seconds until the sauce thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat, add the hot stir-fried vegetables and toss together lightly. Serve immediately. And just in case you were wondering – don’t eat the whole chillies!

COCONUT PRAWN CURRY

This is an adaptation of one of our Keralan favourites. A lot of curries tend to be very rich because they are thickened with coconut milk or cream, but there are alternatives and we’ve found good reduced-fat coconut milk. A little goes a long way too, so you can get away with using less than usual but still get the flavour.

SERVES 2

2 tbsp medium curry paste

2 tbsp cold water

1 medium onion, halved and finely sliced

1 orange or yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into rough 3cm chunks

1 tbsp mango chutney

3 large ripe tomatoes, quartered

200ml half-fat coconut milk

2 tsp cornflour

200g cooked or raw peeled king prawns, thawed if frozen

100g baby spinach leaves

254 calories per portion (without rice)

Put the curry paste, 1 tablespoon of water, onion and pepper in a large non-stick frying pan. Cook over a low heat for 4–5 minutes, stirring regularly until the onion is softened.

Add the mango chutney, tomatoes and coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally until the tomatoes are soft but still holding their shape. Mix the cornflour and 1 tablespoon of water to make a smooth paste. Add this to the coconut sauce and cook for 30 seconds or so, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.

Stir in the prawns and spinach leaves and cook for 2–3 minutes or until the prawns are hot and the spinach is softened, stirring regularly. If you’re using raw prawns, make sure they are completely pink before serving.

Serve the curry with a small portion of freshly cooked basmati rice.

VERY EASY THAI CHICKEN AND COCONUT CURRY

We like our curry spicy and hot, so cut the curry paste to level tablespoons if you prefer your food a little milder. Don’t be tempted to leave out the nam pla. It might sound funny but it adds that authentic Thai flavour to the curry and you can find it in most large supermarkets and delis now.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp sunflower oil

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin slices

1 large red pepper, deseeded and cut into thin strips

1 large yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into thin strips

400ml can of half-fat coconut milk

250ml cold water, plus 2 tbsp

2 heaped tbsp Thai green or red curry paste

6 dried or fresh kaffir lime leaves

4 tsp nam pla (Thai fish sauce)

1 tsp caster sugar

150g mangetout peas, trimmed

2 tbsp cornflour

small handful of fresh coriander, roughly torn (optional)

small handful of fresh basil leaves, roughly torn (optional)

286 calories per portion (without rice)

Heat the oil in a large non-stick saucepan, frying pan or wok. Stir-fry the chicken and peppers for 1 minute. Pour over the coconut milk and add the 250ml of water, curry paste, lime leaves, fish sauce and caster sugar. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

Add the mangetout and return to a simmer. Mix the cornflour with the remaining 2 tablespoons of cold water and stir into the pan. Cook for another 2–3 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the spiced coconut milk has thickened, stirring frequently. Serve the curry in deep bowls, scattered with fresh coriander or basil if using. By the way – don’t eat the lime leaves.

Top tip:

Serve this curry with jasmine rice or basmati rice. Aim to cook no more than 50g per person, so 200g in all. Press the freshly boiled rice into a 200ml metal pudding basin or dariole mould that you’ve oiled lightly and lined with cling film, then turn out into the bowls before adding the hot curry. You only need 1 basin or mould as you can reuse it for all the servings