Non-veg no bar this summer

Seasonal delights

For those who love non-vegetarian food, summer can’t be a deterrent. Hard core non-vegetarians have to have their daily share of egg, fish, chicken and mutton. The ill-effects of such foods, though, appear on your health only later. Feeling bloated, nauseous and having an upset stomach can result from an overdose of non-vegetarian food.

So how does one make

Non-veg fare easily digestible as well as tasty these few hot months? Metrolife finds out.
Master chef, Indyaki – Radisson Blu Hotel, Dheeraj Mathur says, “Firstly, avoid any kind of stale meat. In summer, meats become the perfect place for bacteria and molecular insects to incubate. So make sure that the meat you purchase is absolutely fresh. Try to cook your meat at home instead of getting non-veg preparations from hotels, restaurants and worst of all, take-aways.”

“Secondly, keep red meats like beef and mutton away from your platter and instead go for eggs, chicken, fish and other sea food. This is because red meat takes far more time to digest than white meat. Even in chicken, specific cuts like the breast cut is best to have in summer. Further, the way you cook your chicken can determine how easy it will be on your stomach.”

Dheeraj says don’t roast or grill your chicken. The reason being that we apply oil from outside to grease the chicken and then the meat releases its own fat while roasting and grilling. This results in a high fat and cholesterol meat dish at the end. Instead, marinate your chicken in a low fat oil like olive, canola or sunflower oil and then grill it over charcoal rather than a hot plate.

Microwaving the chicken or making stews is also a good idea. Dheeraj says, “The Oriental way of cooking chicken – frying it very lightly and then cooking in stock – is a good way of minimising harmful fats. Also add lots of seasonal vegetables the way they do it in Thai and Chinese chicken dishes, South Indian dish Currymean and North Indian dishes Palak murgh and Subzdegh.”

Talking of regional dishes, chef Dheeraj says the Bengali cuisine has a rich stock of fish recipes suitable both for occasions and daily consumption, “As much as Bengal’s gravylicious ilish-maach, their patla maccher jhol (fish in thin gravy), most suitable for summer, is also popular. Just put in  saunf and dhaniya powder instead of much garam masala to make it easier on your system.”

“Lastly, do remember to pair your meats with lots of onion rings and cooling chutneys. The chutney can be made of yoghurt, mint or even raw mango. All go down well with the stomach.” Happy non-veg food in summer!