Tasty healthy food to cook up?

[takingchase]

Lately I've been trying to eat a lot healthier to counterbalance how unhealthy my smoking and sitting on the couch has been. I've mostly been making white rice stir fry with peppers and mushrooms but it's getting old. I need new ideas.

[j4m35]

try adding some chicken to that, it'll be good

[goraiders]

i like to grill tomatoes onions and mushrooms and put them in an egg scramble with some avacado on top

or yeah chicken and basically that same grilled stuff over rice

also brown rice!! healthy!

[bryneyancey]

Sweet potatoes.

[flicker]

why are you cooking?

thats woman's work.

[flicker]

ooooooopppppppppssss

unintentional burn.....

[desensitizedbyu]

Damn dude, cold..

[divaface]

stirfry with tofu and brown rice, make your own pizza with lots of veggies and whole wheat crust, omlettes, garden salad with grilled steak or chicken, turkey burgers, turkey tacos

[mcm1610]

I make this veggie mix that I enjoy.

Pan-cook/fry a mix of veggies, i often use broccoli, carrots, and peppers, mixed with some sort of spice mix that includes cumin, crushed red pepper, and chili powder.

[Guest afsdan]

I've mostly been making white rice stir fry with peppers and mushrooms but it's getting old.

try eating brown rice, not white. incorporate lots of beans with the brown rice.

[Guest adam526]

Seams like an obvious answer, but salad is quick and easy. Salads don't have to be those boring free ones with a meal at Denny's, make it to fit your tastes.

Using stuff like roasted corn, shallots, and snap peas can make for a good salad.

[tanukichu]

This is my favorite vegetarian chicken. Better for you than real chicken (that's what the package tells me). It's got the same texture and taste as real chicken...I've fooled many a non-vegetarian friend. I cook with this all the time. Like a lot of people have mentioned, stir fries are good. I use the Quorn stuff and veggies and it's a simple meal and the veggie chicken keeps you full.

For a snack or a breakfast, get some silken tofu, frozen fruit and some orange juice, throw it in a blender, and you have awesome smoothie.

[takingchase]

Tons of good ideas. Thanks a bunch guys.

[kirbypuckett]

Lately I've been trying to eat a lot healthier to counterbalance how unhealthy my smoking and sitting on the couch has been. I've mostly been making white rice stir fry with peppers and mushrooms but it's getting old. I need new ideas.

Anything with fresh veggies should do the trick.

Make some interesting salads, pitas -- Sunday my lady and I made pitas and then toasted some pita chips up to dip in some delicious hummus. Try some different spices, tofu, and a few other things to change flavors. Also, get jasmine rice or switch to brown.

[headtowall]

white rice is awful...gotta go brown

[cosmonaut]

Also, get jasmine rice or switch to brown.

Is jasmine rice somehow different than regular white rice? I thought they were basically the same, i.e., that jasmine was a kind of white rice.

Love that stuff.

[sgoodcore]

Go with brown rice if you like the taste as a general rule. If you want simply stir fry up some veggies, add them to a basic tomato sauce and throw that on some wheat pasta.

I like to do the stir fry with some veggies and sometimes tofu, ground turkey, or some sausage and add them in to a baked potato.

[drabley]

I make this fairly frequently. It's delicious, simple, and is pretty hands off since it is a slow-cooker recipe. Do all the prep and combining the night before, refigerate over night, turn it on the next morning and let it go. Delicious, nutritious meal awaits you when you get home.

I usually serve it over brown rice or cous cous.

Vegetable and Chickpea Curry

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=701091

Nutritional Information (Excluding Rice/Cous Cous)

Calories:276 (23% from fat)

Fat:7.2g (sat 1.9g,mono 2.3g,poly 1.3g)

Protein:10.9g

Carbohydrate:44.7g

Fiber:10.6g

Cholesterol:0.0mg

Iron:4.3mg

Sodium:623mg

Calcium:107mg

I'm the chef of my house -- don't know if that's unusual or not. I'd say my wife cooks at most 1 meal per month.

[drabley]

Also, get jasmine rice or switch to brown.

Is jasmine rice somehow different than regular white rice? I thought they were basically the same, i.e., that jasmine was a kind of white rice.

Love that stuff.

There isn't a variety of rice called "Brown" or "White". Many varieties of rice come in brown or white form. Brown rice is just less refined than white rice and still contains a "shuck" of sorts on the exterior which is comprised of bran and germ and gives it the slightly nutty flavor.

Jasmine rice is an aromatic rice of Thai origin. It is a less expensive alternative to Basmati rice which is grown in the Himalayas. Both Jasmine and Basmati are available in their Brown or White forms.

Jasmine rice is slightly higher in calories than what we tratidionally refer to as "white rice". I've seen differing opinions as to the rest of the nutritional information, but it seems pretty much the same. So I wouldn't make the switch to Jasmine for "nutritional" purposes, but if you want to add a mild floral overtone to a meal, go for it. It's really great with that curry dish

I posted above, actually.

You can learn more about the many different varieties of rice by clicking the link below. A lot of these varieties are available in bulk at Asian markets or finer grocery stores.

http://www.foodsubs.com/Rice.html

[cosmonaut]

^ Thanks, man. +1 for droppin' the rice knowledge.

[casey]

This is my favorite vegetarian chicken. Better for you than real chicken (that's what the package tells me). It's got the same texture and taste as real chicken...I've fooled many a non-vegetarian friend. I cook with this all the time. Like a lot of people have mentioned, stir fries are good. I use the Quorn stuff and veggies and it's a simple meal and the veggie chicken keeps you full.

For a snack or a breakfast, get some silken tofu, frozen fruit and some orange juice, throw it in a blender, and you have awesome smoothie.

I've noticed that since I became veggie several weeks ago that the meat substitutes definitely keep me full longer. I'm not fat, but I have a gut and it's noticeably working itself off.

[drabley]

Mango, Chicken, and Chorizo Quesadillas

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1687640

I also make these for something quick. They're good for finger food when entertaining as well -- just cut them into smaller wedges.

You could swap out the Chicken and Chorizo with vegetarian friendly substitutes -- or pretty much anything else, for that matter.

"Healthy" doesn't need to be just vegetables and rice. The key is moderation and portion control. Chorizo, in and of itself, is terrible for you. But diced up and mixed in with other ingredients, you get all of the enjoyment from the food without the fulll repurcussions of eating, say, a link on its own.

People often attempt to omit things like fats and carbs from their diets because of the negativity surrounding them. A healthy diet should be balanced. Your caloric intake should be broken down so that roughly one third of your calories are from carbs, one third from fats, and one third from proteins. Doing this requires a lot of pre-planning and dedication. There are some free online resources -- www.fitday.com is one. Just take the time and plug in what you eat on a usual day and see where you stand.

I'd also strongly reccomend a multi-vitamin. Your body can't perform properly if it doesn't have all the fuel it requires.

[sgoodcore]

The one thing I've noticed with things like veggie burgers and other tofu-based substitutes is a ton of sodium. Its not a big deal for some but it is for others. Certainly something I would suggest you look out for when buying food.

[drabley]

The one thing I've noticed with things like veggie burgers and other tofu-based substitutes is a ton of sodium. Its not a big deal for some but it is for others. Certainly something I would suggest you look out for when buying food.

Agreed.

I absolutely love pickles, but they're incredibly high in sodium.

One piddly little pickle -- about 20 calories -- has on average a whopping 1000 - 1200mg of sodium -- about 45 - 50% of the reccomended daily intake.

Sodium and potassium are what regulate your body's fluid levels and balances. So excess sodium = excess/imbalanced fluid = more jiggly bits.

Not to mention the risks of high blood pressure and heart disease.

[headtowall]

This is my favorite vegetarian chicken. Better for you than real chicken (that's what the package tells me). It's got the same texture and taste as real chicken...I've fooled many a non-vegetarian friend. I cook with this all the time. Like a lot of people have mentioned, stir fries are good. I use the Quorn stuff and veggies and it's a simple meal and the veggie chicken keeps you full.

For a snack or a breakfast, get some silken tofu, frozen fruit and some orange juice, throw it in a blender, and you have awesome smoothie.

def the best veggie chicken