Convenience and healthy don't always go hand in hand but there are some exceptions
Half the country are in the midst of getting back in to a routine now that the kids are back at school. A big part of this concerns how and what we eat. It's back to packed lunches. Slow cookers are being dusted off and there are Autumnal vibes in the air. I can almost smell the casseroles and hot pots.
There is a general opinion that convenience foods generally equate to being unhealthy. In our family there are certain convenience foods that actually do quite the opposite though. Foods that as a whole help us to move towards a healthier diet for the whole family. Foods that save time, add flavour and make life easier in many ways.
Here are some of my favourites.
- Frozen Vegetables. At first it was just a bag of frozen peppers that I was popping in to Spaghetti Bolognaise or a curry. These days I find myself buying frozen diced onions and frozen garlic too. I am more inclined to make things from scratch when I don't have twenty minutes of chopping in front of me. I had no idea that the ingredients are literally 100% onions or 100% peppers and they are frozen at optimum nutritional value so offer the same health benefits that fresh vegetables do. I use one or all of these daily and it saves me time chopping as well as saving me on the washing up too. The best part is they are cheap as chips and you just use what you need.
- Microwaveable rice and quinoa. I've tried to make quinoa now a few times. I know how many health benefits it has. It's always either under-cooked and too nutty or overcooked and stodgy. I've cut my losses and started buying the pre-made one that you pop in to the microwave. Some of them have a little oil and seasoning but they make life so much easier midweek. We buy microwavable brown rice too and it makes me more inclined to use the brown one as that tends to take twice as long to cook. Healthier and time saving so it's a win win.
- Hot Smoked Fish. We love fish in this house but I'll admit that it is a bit of a fiasco between not dripping the “fish juice” on the counters and floor, disposing of the packaging without it stinking up the kitchen & just the general cooking. Mid-week when we are both working we turn to hot smoked salmon one of the days. It has all of the meatiness of a beautifully cooked fillet of salmon and is so versatile with pasta, vegetables, rice or salad. We have it at least once a week now and find that as a result we are eating more fish than before.
- Passata and tins of chopped tomatoes that have added herbs and garlic in them already. OK so it's only saving a couple of milliseconds but it means I can dump it in to the slow cooker with mince and vegetables and it's the quickest mid-week spaghetti that everyone enjoys!
- No Added Sugar Cordials. So I know these aren't shine-your-halo healthy but they are not fizzy drinks and they actually encourage us all to drink more water.
Written by Tracey, mummy blogger and staff writer at www.familyfriendlyhq.ie.
Check out her own blog at www.loveofliving.ie
