This week’s tip involves a basic Chicken Biryani recipe I’ve taken and added an array of fresh veg. The take away from this is to think about how you can possibly add more veggies to the types of meals that don’t usually contain veg. Think about curries, slow cooked dishes, pasta sauces and dishes such as Shepherd’s Pie or lasagne.

Here is the recipe for the Chicken Biryani, remember you don’t have to use exactly these veggies, substitute with whatever takes your fancy.

Chicken Biryani
1/2 tsp saffron
400ml coconut milk
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 green chilli, chopped (optional)
2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 tsp cumin
1/2 head cauliflower, for cauliflower rice
1.2kg chopped chicken
1 zucchini, chopped
1 leek, chopped
3 sticks celery, chopped
1/2 red capsicum, chopped
10 mushrooms, chopped
2 bunches broccolini, chopped
bean shoots
1/4 head cauliflower, roughly chopped into small pieces.
300g pumpkin, chopped
1/2 bag spinach leaves

Heat 1/4 cup of the coconut milk in a saucepan and add the saffron. Leave to infuse.

Heat coconut oil in a large fry pan and saute onion over low heat til soft. Add spices and cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn heat up slightly, add chicken and cook til browned. Add coconut milk, saffron mixture and chopped vegetables, leaving out the pumpkin, broccolini, spinach and bean shoots. Place the pumpkin in a bowl and microwave for about 1 minute to just slightly soften, then add to pan. Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Meanwhile cook the chopped cauliflower with some coconut oil and salt for a few minutes to make the cauliflower rice.

Add the broccolini towards the end of cooking as it doesn’t take a long time to cook. Add the bean shoots and spinach right at the end, season with salt and pepper and stir through. Serve with the cauliflower rice.