I remember we had decided to eat out at a Hawker Centre that evening. (For those of you reading this overseas, a hawker centre is a cheap and quick way of eating out in Singapore, in an open-air space which can be hot and sweaty sometimes.) It can also be rather unhealthy.
Torn between having the husband eat another meal outside with white rice (read: processed grains with zero nutrition) and having to chop and cook and clean after a long day, I came up with an idea. Not the best for sure, but certainly a quick and relatively healthy fix when one is absolutely drained after a long day, and when it’s pouring outside!
With a bit of imagination pulling a few items from the cupboard and fridge, I was determined not to use the stove, and still prepare a high-fibre diet for the Hungry Husband. Many of us aren’t aware of this, but we require 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day for a healthy diet. And if we aren’t conscious about it, this usually goes unmet. While many of us are aware of the short-term down-sides of not having enough fibre such as constipation, many may not know about the long-term implications- colon cancer, which is the commonest cancer worldwide, and also a lack of essential vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants from power-packed fruits and vegetables.
And so… some ten minutes later…
… with some fresh salad from the fridge, a cob of corn (leftovers from visiting our parents the night before, such are the perks of living close to your folks!), a can of tuna sitting somewhere in the cupboard, and some assembling…
Was a black pepper tuna cheesy multigrain open-faced sandwich,
sprinkled with roasted chilli flakes,
with sides of fresh garden salad, corn and tortilla chips,
and a happy husband!
Heh, I did cheat a little- as you can see, I also bought some low-sodium baked tortilla chips as a small side for Cliff- it’s one of his favourite things! As I always say during the healthcare talks I give, if you must have something a little unhealthy, then control the quantity of it and balance it out with plenty of heart-healthy goodness.
The best part was that this took under fifteen minutes, without needing to wash pots and pans.
As we both sat at the dinner table, we were both grateful as it rained cats and dogs outside- Cliff, grateful for a hot and spicy home-prepared meal, and myself, utterly touched that he had gone to the hawker centre anyway in the rainstorm to buy me a hot meal of vegetables and fish for dinner.
“I can’t believe you went to buy me dinner in the rain, sweetie!”
“I can’t believe you made such a yummy meal for me, Wai Jia!”
“But it’s POURING outside! It’s not pouring in here!”
“But there’s a new invention called THE UMBRELLA!”
Ever thankful for the meals we can have together.
What quick & healthy meals have you had to whip up in times of desperation?
Enjoy!