It’s a bit of a buzz phrase, but Meat Free Monday is becoming quite a ‘thing’.
While you might feel nervous about giving up that Monday roast or sausage and mash supper, there are some great ways that you can swap out meat, and not only do the environment a favour but your health and wellbeing too. We have a couple of easy recipes that you might like so much, that you might start to go meat free more often.
Spicy noodle salad
This is an easy-to-make, nutritious, colourful Japanese noodle salad that warms with you with the spices and leaves you with a glow. To feed you and your friends or family, you will need:
150g of udon noodles
6 tomatoes
6 stems of broccoli (boiled or steamed)
A handful of sugar snap peas (boiled or steamed)
50g of red cabbage
¼ cup of edamame beans (boiled)
1 cup of mixed salad leaves
½ tbsp of peanut oil
1 large carrot, sliced
1 onion, grated
2cm of peeled ginger
80ml of olive oil
50ml of dark soy sauce
50ml of rice vinegar
1tbsp of honey
Bring a pot of water to the boil and cook the noodles for around seven minutes. As the noodles cook, add a cup of cold water to the pot once or twice to improve their texture. Once cooked, drain the noodles and rinse with cold water, then mix with peanut oil and put them in a bowl.
For the dressing, place the carrot, onion, ginger, olive oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey into a food processor and mix until smooth. Slice the tomatoes and add these and the salad leaves to the noodles before you pour on the dressing. For added taste add sesame seeds, thinly sliced spring onions and additional vegetables or tofu for added goodness and protein
With this one, make sure no one eating has a peanut allergy, and if they do swap for a different oil
Spicy Carrot Laska
Curries are a fantastic way to get a nutrient-rich meal without meat appearing and this is a favourite for us. You will need:
600ml of water
1 vegetable stock cube
4 tablespoons of Malaysian Laksa Paste (you will find this in most supermarkets)
400ml tin of coconut milk
200g of brown rice noodles
200g of carrots, grated
300g of courgettes, grated
200g of green beans, finely chopped
½ a red chilli, finely chopped
Bring the water to the boil in a large saucepan and dissolve the stock cube before adding the Laksa paste and coconut milk and let the mix simmer. Next add the noodles and stir for several minutes, followed by the vegetables. Simmer for another five minutes so the flavours marry for a few minutes before dividing among bowls. Scatter the chilli over each serving, along with a little chopped coriander. Grate over some apple and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. If you want an earthy twist, add some celeriac, parsnip or even beetroot and enjoy a delicious meat free meal.
Root Veg Stew
Who doesn’t love a hearty stew in the middle of winter? This one is super easy to make, really tasty to eat and if you batch cook you will have meat free leftovers for lunch. For this veggie treat, you will need:
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, sliced
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
1 apple, grated
2 red peppers, sliced and deseeded
2 large tins of tomatoes
1 tin of lentils
150-200ml of vegetable stock
Smoked paprika
Oregano
Cumin seeds
Coriander seeds
Sage and Thyme
Put all the vegetables, except the tomatoes in a pan and sauté for a few minutes on a low heat with the spices of your choice – we have suggested some that work well in our list, but go for maybe two or three.
Next add in the tomatoes and lentils, season with salt and black pepper and taste to check it’s ok.
Now leave to simmer for around half an hour and then eat with jacket potatoes or toasted sourdough bread.
Got a meat free recipe we need to know about – send it over, we are keen to add more to our meat free list.
Team Pure Beauty