Hello team!
This week has been one of those weeks where my to-do list has been as long as my arm, which has meant I’ve been leaning on speedy, fresh lunches to fuel me and get me through the days. I don’t want to faff in the kitchen for a long time, but I want a lunch that satisfies me. It has to feel as fun to eat as a sandwich, but loaded up with considerably more veg.
This desire has brought me to this week’s recipes - speedy lunchtime salads! You’ve got a fresh and tangy chickpea chaat salad, as well as a tuna crunch salad. Both involve minimal cooking, but maximum flavour/texture for a nice lunchtime treat.
I’ve also got the run-down of my top 10 store-cupboard heroes that enrich my cooking (and my life).
Enjoy!
Sophie x
The Recipes
Chickpea Chaat Salad
This is a salad I find myself craving often in the summer months, largely because it is incredibly quick to prep, and uses ingredients that I almost always have kicking around. The chickpeas can be cooked in advance, and stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Serves 2
400g chickpeas
1 tsp garam masala
200g tomatoes
½ cucumber
¼ red onion
½ lemon
300g thick greek yoghurt
4 tbsp tamarind sauce (I like the Maggi one)
handful of fresh mint leaves
salt and olive oil
Heat your oven to 180°C fan.
Drain your chickpeas and pat them dry, then pour them into a small baking tray. Add your garam masala, a pinch of salt and a little olive oil, then toss it all together. Bake them for 25 minutes, tossing them halfway through, or until they are crispy and golden.
Whilst the chickpeas cook, prep the veg. Very finely dice the red onion, and add it to a bowl. Halve the cucumber, scoop out the seeds, and dice it into 2cm chunks. Chop your tomato into 2cm chunks, and get both of these in with the red onion. Add the juice of your lemon and a pinch of salt.
Spoon your yoghurt onto plates, and spread it around with the back of your spoon. Drain any excess liquid off your veg, then spoon the veg on top of the yoghurt. Add your crispy chickpeas, then drizzle over your tamarind sauce. Sprinkle over the mint leaves, then serve it up.
Tuna Crunch Salad
Tuna salads I still don’t feel are getting the hype that they deserve, even though the popularity of tinned fish seems to be on the rise. Consider this my formal application to make tuna salads chic. I like tuna best when paired with lots of lemon and crunchy veg, though the crunch in this salad also comes from croutons, because croutons improve all salads.
Buy the best quality tinned tuna you can find/afford for this - I like Ortiz.
Serves 2