8 Expert-Recommended Cooking Tips That Can Help You Follow A Healthy Diet

Ever since the lockdown has been in place with almost no availability of house helps or ready-to-order foods, the domestic chores have become a major share of our day right, from cleaning to cooking. If you are active on social media, chances are you might have been flooded with so many recipes tried out by your friends or family and there might be a possibility you'd have done it too. But, if you belong to that lot which doesn't really enjoy cooking or finds it really tedious to keep up with ingredients or the method, here's a saviour guide for you. 

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Cooking tips for a healthy diet 

1. Overnight breakfast

If you struggle to wake up each day and are in a rush for your breakfast always with absolutely no motivation to cook, you can simply soak some oats in milk (soy or almond milk if you avoid dairy), top with some chia seeds and refrigerate overnight. Next morning, just add some freshly cut fruits and your overnight soaked oats will be ready in no time.

Also read: Healthy Breakfast Tips: Rujuta Diwekar Answers Most Common Queries

2. Smoothie it up

Too lazy to cook but feeling hungry at the same time? Blend in your favourite fruits like mango, banana, strawberry, blueberries, melon with some milk and oats. Add some nuts and seeds, you can add dates for natural sweetness. Pour and enjoy a quick smoothie.

3. Quick flattened rice

You can soak some flattened rice (poha) in milk for 15 minutes and then add a little bit of jaggery and freshly cut fruits, top with nuts and seeds. This meal is a perfect balance of healthy carbs, fats, and some protein.

Poha is another quick and healthy breakfast option made with flattened rice
Photo Credit: iStock

Also read: 8 Myths About Rice You Should Never Believe

4. Legumes to the rescue

Legumes like chickpeas, kidney beans, and black beans are storehouses of plant-based protein and don't require too much of preparation. All you need to do it soak them for 4-6 hours, boil, and add your favourite seasonings. You can consume these in the form of chaat, salad, soup, or with rice.

5. Smart snacking

Keep a batch of roasted makhana or roasted black chana ready with you. It is a one-time preparation with the least efforts and you can store them in an air-tight container. Whenever you feel hungry, just grab a handful to keep hunger pangs at bay. The same preparation can be done for nuts & seeds to make your very own trail mix by combining almonds, walnuts, cashew nuts, pistachios with pumpkin seeds, melon seeds, and flaxseeds.

6. Instant one-pot meals

Lentils, beans, chicken, rice, noodles, vegetables, wheat pasta, and tortilla soup - all of these can be prepared in an instant pot. So many options to choose from with the minimum of efforts.

7. Steamed savouries

Healthy steaming just requires the preparation of the batter and once it is loaded for steaming, you don't need to check or stir it again and again. You can make healthy dhoklas or idlis with the least efforts. Just prepare the batter and load it up for steaming. These can last you the entire day and can be eaten throughout.

Idli with sambar makes for a nourishing and filling breakfast option
Photo Credit: iStock

Also read: Cooking Tips You Must Try To Make Your Meals Healthier During Lockdown

8. Healthy desserts

Do you often crave something sweet and end up loading yourself with sugar-laden stuff? Well, preparing a healthy dessert isn't too challenging especially when you have limited resources available. For a quick banana ice-cream, just freeze a ripe banana, blend it with some honey or jaggery powder, and top with a pinch of cinnamon powder. You can also make quick and healthy popsicles with watermelon, peach, avocado, or mango. Just blend and pour into popsicle moulds and let it freeze. Your healthy desserts will be ready in no time.

(Nmami Agarwal is nutritionist at Nmami Life)

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