Food & Nutrition
Health & Fitness
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Parenting Preparedness
Long gone are the days of a family spending time together during meal time and leisure. Be they elderly, parents, or children, everyone is busy in their respective lives. While the elderly have their get-togethers and spiritual way of leading life, parents are too busy raising kids, working, and taking care of the family. And even the children have back-to-back classes throughout the day.
As a result, when it is time to sit down for a meal together, as a family, the food must be filled with nourishment and energy, to fulfill their bodies’ needs. Here are some easy, nutritious and delicious strength-giving meals for the whole family. Dishes that are tasty and appealing to both children and grandparents are few, but these meals will surely tantalize the taste buds of a teen kid and a strict grandma at the same time.
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Strength-Giving Meals For The Whole Family
1. Khichdi
Khichdi is an Indian dish that has been a quick and easy favorite among children and parents alike, thanks to its nourishing and satiating qualities. While the dish can be made more appealing by the addition of proteins like meat, egg, or paneer, it tastes simple and is best when made with dal lentils like moong, masoor, and matar, rice, whole Indian spices, and clarified butter like ghee. The result is a humble dish that can be fed to babies, the sick, and the healthy to boost their immune systems and provide them with the strength and nourishment to get through the day.
2. Fruit custard
Fruit custard is a sweet treat to end your family’s meal with, without going overboard on the calories and ensuring some antioxidants and nutrients still make their way into their body. To make a healthy version, use low-fat milk, custard powder, honey, and fresh fruits for a delicious and refreshing dessert that will appeal equally to the different generations under one roof. Always remember to add the fresh fruits to the custard after it has chilled in the fridge overnight. If you feel generous, add a moderate sprinkle of dark chocolate chips or crushed nuts for a fun taste and texture.
3. Curd rice with fritters and poppadoms
Curd rice is a South Indian summer staple. Not only does the dish rejuvenate the consumer’s body, but also strengthens it with carbs, protein, vitamin D, calcium, bioactive peptides and good cholesterol. Pair it with some delectable and slightly spicy fritters made from lentils, vegetables, and a batter made of chickpea flour that has been mildly spiced with green chilies, curry leaves, ginger paste, and asafetida for a nourishing meal. Roast some poppadoms with a sprinkle of salt and pepper to add a crunchy contrast to the dish.
4. Burrito Bowl
Burrito Bowls are a delicious Mexican dish that will blow the minds of the older generation, when made at home, due to its similarity with many Indian dishes. The intersection of diverse cultures and their coming together as a global food village is an exciting development for any food-lover, as well as a chance to include these items in their own home’s menu. Make your elderly parents and grandparents give the refreshing bowl a try, while it is filled with rice, fresh pico de gallo, sour cream, tortilla chips, kidney beans, shredded cheese, vegetables, and protein of choice, like meat, eggs, soya chunks, and paneer. A wholesome, nutritious meal in one bowl, this strength-giving meal is bound to be approved by every taste bud.
5. Panta Bhat
Panta Bhat is a traditional Bengali dish, popularly made in Assam, Bengal, Jharkhand and Bangladesh. Panta Bhat is leftover rice soaking in water overnight. Next morning, the rice and water, the latter of which is now known as Torani, are mixed with lime juice, onions, and chilies for an explosion of flavor in the mouth. Panta Bhat is usually paired with spicy mashed potatoes, char-grilled fish, or homemade pickles. A significant part of history, culture, and society, this dish was mainly consumed by those who worked long hours in the blistering heat and open fields, to imbue them with immense strength, nourishment, and energy. The carb-rich meal seeks a small nap after consumption; to help cool the body, digest food, and give you strength and energy to race through the rest of the day, it depends on the consumer’s choice.
Conclusion
You cannot win every heart with a meal. Neither children nowadays always appreciate traditional dishes, nor do most of the elderly want to try a bite of new foods. Everyone is not impressed the first time they try a dish and that’s okay! As long as they keep an open mind, their taste buds will interact and identify foods to their liking over time. All that must be ensured in the meantime is their health and nourishment. And these easy-to-make, nutritious, and delicious strength-giving ideas for the whole family will maintain the balance between taste and nourishment.
The views expressed are that of the expert alone.
