Meat Free Simple Suppers!

Like most households these days we are trying to include more meals in our weekly dinners that rely heavily on veggies rather than meat. Now I’m a committed carnivore but for many reasons it makes sense to bring more variety in our meals. My key to including more veg forward meals is to bring both colour and demanding flavour to the table. This week’s recipes do just that. A cauliflower curry that despite its long list of ingredients (mainly pantry essentials) is rather easy to throw together and leaves you with stonking spice and really vibrant colourful end results that just draw you to the dinner table. Cauliflower takes centre stage with a simple method that deserves a hat tip to Susan Jane White for her genius move of roasting the florets until they turn golden and just a little crisp. Stirred through an aromatic curry sauce and served with saffron rice and quick pickled onion, it will make you look at your Saturday night takeaway curry in a whole new light!

There are certain dishes I turn to for lighter eating, particularly after a period of gluttony, gorging and guzzling. Don’t roll your eyes, but a vegetarian chilli consisting of quinoa, lentils and kidney beans is one of them and despite it all sounding terribly boring it’s a spunky recipe that always surprises. The secret to its success lies in the simple little extras which bring the required final flourishes to the stew. A twist of lime, a smokey charred corn salsa and creamy avo, brings the shimmer to the deep spice of this chilli and is exactly why this recipe gets a regular spot on my meat-free dinner table.

Lastly a really exciting method to bring all the best bits of what makes Thai food so delicious to the mighty aubergine. A vegetable that has been the saviour of mediocre veggie meals since the beginning of time is the perfect vehicle for that essential Thai combo of salty, sweet, spicy and sour, delivered in the form of fish sauce, sugar, chilli and lime juice. In this quick pan fried supper, sliced aubergine melt away in the pan until they are quiveringly tender and lip puckeringly delicious. Served with rice and fresh herbs it’s a meal in minutes that makes veggies the star of the show.

All of these recipes are perfect for batch cooking and meal prep if you fancy getting ahead this weekend making the week ahead veg powered.

Follow these links for the recipes in the photos:

Roast Cauliflower Curry with Saffron Rice

Super Power Veggie Chilli with Charred Corn Salsa

Thai Style Sticky Aubergines with Jasmine Rice

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