Our Favourite Ingredients for Longevity
We’re still holding on to our New Year resolutions here at Hello Chef – mainly because they involve eating a lot of delicious food! We’ve made it our business to cook tasty dishes from healthy ingredients, and discovered that it isn’t hard at all. The options are endless!
However, we wanted to share our thoughts about some of our favourite ingredients that you might often come across on the Hello Chef menu. These ingredients are packed with nutrients. They are true cancer-fighters; full of fibre and antioxidants. Eating them helps with blood clotting issues and cell growth. They lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes.
With a wish for many more New Years to come for all of us, here are our favourite ingredients for longevity!
Green leafy vegetables, such as spinach and kale. Have one or two servings a day! You might help your body and mind: studies suggest that leafy greens help keep dementia at bay. Not to mention that they help deliver iron, calcium, and vitamin A (good for our eyes and our skin) to the cells. Folate is another plus, as it helps boost metabolism. Use leafy greens in curries, salads, stir-fries, soups, omelettes and sautéed for a side dish.
Black beans and lentils are great plant-based sources for protein, fibre, iron and omega-3 fatty acids. They have undeniable heart health benefits. Make black beans your favourite type of beans, and add them to your burger patties, Mexican dishes (quesadillas, tacos, burritos…) and soups. Also, keep in mind the nutritional benefits of lentils in mind when you browse the menu: we use lentils in many soups, curries and bakes.
Quinoa. When you’re trying to avoid a carbohydrate overload but want to enjoy some kind of grains, quinoa becomes your best friend. It’s a whole grain and a complete protein. Quinoa adds fibre to the diet, lowers heart disease and diabetes risk, and helps to build muscle and boost metabolism. That’s why we use it in
Sweet Potatoes. Dealing with high blood pressure? Try a serving of sweet potatoes per day! It might help lower the blood pressure and therefore reduce the stroke risk. Putting sweet potato on the menu is a breeze: it is as versatile as ingredients come. We’re baking sweet potatoes in the oven to healthier fries, mashing them to – well, mash, we’re cutting them to cubes, slices and sticks and adding them to casseroles, curries, soups… Yeah, I should stop now. You got the idea.
Broccoli and Broccolini – a full circle back to green vegetables! We can’t think of anything more convenient to eat as a side than broccoli. We love its flavour and texture when steamed or boiled to perfect crisp-tender consistency. As a cruciferous vegetable, it raises immunity and has anti-cancer benefits. It’s also heart-friendly as it’s loaded with fibre. Broccoli contains high levels of vitamin K and choline, which are excellent for memory. In addition to steaming or boiling broccoli, enjoy it in any stir-fry, curry, soup, stew, salad and omelette.
