Revolutionise Your Cooking With Doctor Rupy – If, like me, you are one of the 306,000 folk who follow Dr Rupy Aujla on Instagram (@doctors_kitchen) you’ll be pleased to know that he has just published another cookbook. This London-based doctor, specialising in General Practice and Emergency Medicine is also on a mission to reverse the tidal wave of preventable lifestyle disease one plate of delicious food at a time. He is completing a Master in Nutritional Medicine and is the Founder of Europe’s first Culinary Medicine programme for medical schools and doctors. COOKS by Dr Rupy is a collection of over 100 indulgent, delicious and easy recipes that put flavour and nutrition first. Each recipe is researched and developed to give maximum health benefits while being super simple and – take it from me – really enticing! Drawing on his Indian heritage, he blends the joy of cooking with the science of food as medicine.
Published by Ebury Press at £22, COOKS includes recipes for brunches, soups & broths, and delicious dinners from curries, traybakes and casseroles to healthy feasts and desserts. There are plenty of vegetarian and vegan dishes as well as gluten and nut-free options. Recipes you will want to cook on repeat include Lebanese-style Chicken Tacos, Miso Mushroom Donburi, Aubergine, Pea and Tamarind Curry and Spicy Halloumi Bake. What’s more, these recipes have been tested in over 1000 different home kitchens from across the world by his extensive global community assessing simplicity, flavour, timing, and accuracy.
Dr Rupy says: “I want food to be flavourful, every single day. It’s that intersection of flavour and functional benefits that I want to infuse into any recipe I create. When I speak to patients, I work hard to get them excited about food, and I apply that to the recipes you find in this book; I want that marriage of flavour and functionality. If food doesn’t taste good and it’s not easy to prepare, no matter how strong your willpower, you won’t keep eating it. And the aim of the game is to get people eating well every day, for life.”
To whet your appetite, here are a couple of recipes from COOKS
Spicy Halloumi Bake (V, GT) Serves 4 Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 40 minutes
1⁄2 butternut squash (300g), scrubbed and unpeeled, deseeded and cut into 2cm cubes
1 courgette (250g), cut into 2cm cubes
1 red pepper (200g), deseeded and roughly chopped
2 tsp cumin seeds
3 tsp ras el hanout or baharat spice mix
1 tsp chilli powder3 tbsp olive oil, plus an extra 1 tbsp to drizzle150g spinach, finely chopped
350ml passata
1 x 400g can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
200g halloumi, sliced 1cm thick
Substitutions: Kale: spinach, Swiss chard or spring greens
Kidney beans: borlotti or cannellini beans
“This is spicy, wholesome, warm and inviting, all in a dish. The beautiful spices of ras el hanout work super well in this simple traybake and you can easily substitute different vegetables for the squash and greens. A moreish dish packed with flavour that everyone will enjoy.”
Preheat the oven to a 200oC fan. Put the squash, courgette, red pepper and spices into a large roasting tin. Pour over the 3 tablespoons oil and season, then toss well to coat. Roast for 25 minutes, turning the vegetables halfway through the cooking time.
Remove the roasting tin from the oven and increase the temperature to 220oC fan. Scrape up any crusty bits from the bottom of the roasting tin for extra flavour, then fold in the spinach. Tip in the passata and kidney beans and combine them with the rest of the ingredients. Layer the halloumi on top, drizzle with the extra tablespoon of oil and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes until the halloumi is melted and charred in some areas.
Sticky Tangy Green Beans (V VG GF DF)
Serves 4 as a side Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 10 minutes
300g sugar snap peas, finely sliced
300g green beans, roughly chopped into 3cm pieces
300g cooked brown lentils 1 small red pepper (120g), deseeded and finely chopped
10g coriander, leaves and stalks finely chopped
10g mint, leaves only, finely chopped for the dressing
2 tsp tamarind paste
4 tbsp date molasses or coconut sugar
4 tbsp black vinegar or sherry vinegar
4 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
1 garlic clove, grated
Juice of 1 lime
“This sticky dressing is divine. I’m sure you will find many uses for it in your kitchen, but my favourite way is to simply drizzle it over crisp sugar snap peas and delicious green beans blanched in hot water.”
Mix the dressing ingredients in a pan over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 8 minutes or until reduced to a thick, sticky mixture that thickly coats the back of a spoon.
Meanwhile, blanch the sugar snaps and green beans in a large pan of boiling water for 3 minutes, then drain thoroughly.
Toss onto a large platter with the lentils and red pepper, drizzle the sticky dressing over the top and carefully toss through with tongs. Scatter over the herbs and serve.
The Seasoned Gastronome