Tomato and Tuna Pilaf
The cost of food continues to rise - increasing by 0.9% between May and June this year, according to the Office of National Statistics. As a result, students preparing for university must learn how to make healthy meals at a cut price.
It is possible to make dinner for £1.50 per portion or less, without compromising on its nutritional content. Students need healthy, balanced meals, because it is diet that provides the brain with plenty of nutrients and the body with enough energy to cope with an essay crisis or a big night out.
Using canned food is an easy and affordable way to improve a student’s diet. It is often cheaper than fresh equivalents, but still contains plenty of vitamins and nutrients.
Canned salmon, for example, contains more calcium than fresh salmon fillets, while canned tomatoes are a better source of the antioxidant lycopene.
What’s more, the ingredients are cooked in the can once it is sealed, locking in nutrients that would be lost over time with fresh food left in the fridge.
Tomato and Tuna Pilaf
Serves: 2-3
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
185g can tuna, drained and broken into large pieces
227g can chopped tomatoes
75g green beans, halved
½ small red pepper, roughly chopped
25g butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 small red chilli, finely chopped (optional)
150g Basmati rice
200ml vegetable stock
1 Tbsp coriander or parsley, for garnish (optional)
Method
- Heat the butter and oil in a pan.
- Add the chopped onion and fry until it is softening, then add the pepper and chilli (if using) and continue frying for two minutes.
- Add the rice and mix well to coat it with the butter and oil,
- Then add the tomatoes and vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, reduce the heat and simmer very gently for about 15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is cooked.
- Heat a pan of boiling water, plunge the beans into the water, then boil for a minute and drain.
- Gently stir the beans and tuna into the cooked rice mixture, replace the lid and leave to cook through for five minutes.
- Delicious served garnished with chopped parsley or coriander.
Hints and tips
You can replace the green beans with frozen peas. For an even healthier dish, replace tuna with canned oily fish such as salmon, sardines or mackerel, which contain Omega-3 fatty acids. Use sustainable canned fish when possible.
Tagged in Recipes