Healthy and Easy Multicultural Meal

As an expat in a country where familiar things were not accessible until recently, I had to get creative with what I had. Today, I would like to share a healthy and easy multicultural meal that works for our family.

Healthy and Easy Multicultural Meal title imageI have never been very skillful when preparing meals. I don’t really enjoy cooking to the extent that I feel adventurous. And, I am often in a hurry because I am not in the habit of prepping food in advance. So, when my children were born, I gathered together various recipes from different cuisines and created quick and easy recipes that were adapted for my taste. This meal consists of a tomato stir-fry, cooked amaranth, a green salad, and rice. It’s super-healthy and super-easy to make.

Tomato Stir-Fry

The first dish in this multicultural meal is a tomato-and-egg stir-fry. My recipe is a version of a popular and well-known Chinese dish.

Ingredients

2-3 tomatoes

7-8 medium size eggs or 6 large ones

1/3 cup light soy sauce

1/3 cup water

a couple of tablespoons of oil

mashed garlic (optional)

Method

  1. Beat the eggs. Then, warm up about one tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and scramble the eggs, so they are not too watery but also not too dry. Set aside.
  2. Warm up another tablespoon of oil. Add chopped tomatoes, soy sauce, and water. Stir on high heat for 30 seconds. Then, stir for an additional 2-3 minutes on medium heat until water begins to evaporate. Let it simmer for another minute, but don’t let the mixture get too dry.
  3. Mix the eggs in with the tomato mixture. And, voila, you are good to go!

Cooked Amaranth

The second dish in this multicultural meal is cooked amaranth. I call this dish mchicha, which is the Swahili word for both spinach and amaranth. As many people know, these leafy greens are a great source of iron and many other essential vitamins.

Ingredients

Around 300-400 grams of amaranth

A bit of vinegar

1/3 onion finely chopped

1-2 cloves of garlic mashed or finely chopped

About 1 tablespoon of oil

Spices of choice: turmeric, coriander (a teaspoon of each)

Black pepper and salt to taste

Method

  1. Soak the amaranth leaves in some water and vinegar for about 5 minutes. Rinse the leaves several times until the water is clean.
  2. If you are cooking for a very young child, snap off the hard parts. (You can cook them separately for yourself or other family members.)
  3. While the oil is heating, chop the amaranth. Then, add the onion, garlic, and spices to the hot oil and stir until golden.
  4. Add the amaranth, cover, and cook on medium-low heat. As the mixture cooks, its volume will decrease by half or more. Once it is mushy, it’s ready. If you prefer a drier dish, simply boil off some of the excess water.

This video shows how I make this dish. It’s in Russian, so feel free to mute the sound.

 

Green Salad

A fresh garden salad is always a welcome addition to any meal. This recipe includes some of my favorite (and readily-available) fresh veggies.

Ingredients

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Avocado

Olive oil, salt, and lemon juice (optional)

Method

  1. Decide how much of each ingredient you need depending on your preferences and how much you love salad!
  2. Chop up all the veggies. Then add the oil, salt, and lemon juice. (Balsamic vinegar works too!)
  3. Enjoy!

Rice

My final dish for this meal is a side of rice. I have many different rice recipes and generally use a rice cooker. If you’re looking for something different, try my recipe for Persian tadig rice.

Rice takes about 20-30 minutes to prep, so consider starting your rice dish first. You can also soak the amaranth while preparing the tomato and egg stir-fry.

For more easy recipes, check out my blog. If you are like me, and you are looking for super-easy ways to cook for your family, these recipes are for you! They will not necessarily produce Instagram-ready photos, but they will offer healthy meal options for the people you care about most. And be sure to let me know how they worked for you!

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Varya blogs at CreativeWorldOfVarya.Com . She is a mom to 3 children, an educator, a childhood neuropsychologist, an early development specialist, a baby massage and perinatal fitness instructor, aromatherapist and a breastfeeding counselor. Varya has been living in China for over 20 years working and raising her multicultural family.
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