How to spice up your diet!

LOSING 3 st each in 2012 probably saved their lives. Now, as statistics reveal a higher mortality rate from coronavirus for those who are obese or have type 2 diabetes, Hairy Bikers Si King and Dave Myers reveal in the final day of our series how their new cookbook may help save yours . . .

THERE’S something quite celebratory about a delicious curry or luxurioustasting pudding, neither of which you need to go without when you’re trying to lose weight.

In fact, it’s incredibly easy to enjoy curries that are healthy and nutritious without compromising on flavour.

Meanwhile, some simple swaps create sumptuous desserts that end up being surprisingly low in calories.

Let’s look at curries first — of which we’re both big fans, which was something we knew wasn’t going to change no matter how determined we were to lose weight. And actually, it didn’t have to, because this is where cooking from scratch comes into its own — something we’re all doing more than ever before at

the moment, with the restaurants forced to stay closed.

When you cook your own versions of the meals you enjoy when eating out, you know exactly what’s going into them.

This means you can carry on treating yourself to favourite restaurant and takeaway-style meals without worrying about doing damage to your diet.

We have a saying, ‘There are no calories in flavour’. That’s down to the way spices are brilliant at bringing your cooking to life without making what you take pleasure from eating bad for you.

It’s ingredients such as ghee and the mounds of rice that you get with a takeaway or restaurant meal which make a curry seem like an unhealthy option. It doesn’t need to be that way.

Take tandoori meat marinades for example — made with fat-free yoghurt and spice mix, they’re actually the dieter’s great friend.

Think about it: a whole, average-sized chicken, with its skin removed, comes in at under 1,000 calories. Slather it with a tandoori marinade then bake it in the oven, and you can enjoy half a chicken with a plate full of salad without an ounce of guilt.

It’s so easy to make your own curry paste with fresh ingredients, including coriander, garlic, ginger and lemongrass. And satisfying, too, as your kitchen fills with the smell of herbs and spices.

You have to watch how you go with the rice — we weigh ours to avoid overdoing it with the portion sizes. Dave packs his into a ramekin and turns it out in a mound on the plate like they do in restaurants, which seems to make more of less!

Now for puddings. Like most people, we both enjoy a little something sweet now and again. Unfortunately, most treats are high in sugar and fat — not a good idea if you have diabetes or are trying to lose weight.

It’s best to stick mainly to fruit for dessert — for example, raspberries and strawberries taste delicious, but are also rich in nutrients and fibre while low in sugar. Grilled pineapple tastes amazing and is great for you, too.

And the good news is that the less sugar you eat, the less you’ll end up wanting it as your palate adjusts.

We found that reassuring to know — things really do get easier. But that’s not to say puddings must come off the menu altogether. We have several recipes that won’t disrupt your diet too much, yet still taste scrumptious. That’s why we’ve included them in our new cookbook Eat To Beat Type 2 Diabetes.

We’ve also come up with recipes for ice lollies that are really refreshing on a hot summer day yet are no more than 35 calories for a 50 ml treat.

And did you know that if you whizz up frozen bananas with a few low-calorie ingredients you can enjoy instant banana ice cream for 100 calories or less?

Honestly, losing weight doesn’t have to be miserable — successful dieting is all about moderation; spreading your calories out across the day and cutting back here and there if you decide you want to have a little splurge once or twice a week.

Today, in the final part of our series, we’re sharing some of our favourite curry and pudding recipes which all the family can enjoy. The tandoori chicken is delicious cold for a picnic, and there’s a Thai vegetable curry and a black-eyed beans and greens recipe for veggie days.