We had a visitor over the weekend, and I had to plan a meal for Saturday evening that covered a mixture of dietary requirements – vegetarian, low salt*, cheese and moo-milk free. I came up with an Indian-inspired collection of dishes, so that there was some choice if something turned out to be unsuitable. The end result actually turned out very nice and everyone ate everything and leftovers were few and far between. These were the dishes I chose:
Onion flatbreads
I made my onion flatbread recipe, but I used the bread machine to make the dough so that I had my hands free to clean the house :) The dough setting works just fine; in my bread machine I have to put the water/yeast/oil mixture in the bottom of the pan and then pile the flour on top of it. I used about 0.5 teaspoons of salt for a low-salt version; there’s probably enough flavour in the onion flour to leave it out entirely.
Rice
Basmati rice boiled with just a sprinkling of salt.
Cumin potatoes
I made a simpler version of my original cumin potatoes recipe, by parboiling some homegrown new potatoes earlier in the day and then allowing them to cool. When it was time to make dinner I simply sliced them and sautéed them in sunflower oil with cumin seeds. I could have made about twice as many and they would all have been eaten – just like roast potatoes, it appears you can never have enough!
Warming carrot and chickpea casserole
I intended my ‘main course’ to be a vegetable curry, but in the end it turned out more like a casserole with an Indian flavour – it was very nice, so it didn’t matter.
To make it I simply chopped and fried onion and garlic, then added sliced carrots and the spices (garam masala, black pepper, cumin seeds, ground coriander, cinnamon and some paprika). After frying for a few more minutes I added a tin of chickpeas and one of chopped tomatoes. This concoction simmered until the carrots were cooked through, and then I adjusted the seasoning. I didn’t add any salt, and once I’d added enough spices it wasn’t missed.
*I am not qualified to say that this level of salt is low enough for any particular diet. All I can say is that this collection of recipes contained a lower amount of salt than I would normally use, and avoided processed foods that may have had far higher salt levels. It was an appropriate meal for us and my guest, but I am not a nutritionist :D