HealthMatters/September, 2014
7
Pineapple Stir-fry Chicken (Serves 2)
2 Chicken Breasts, cut into thin strips
2 tbsp of Sunflower Oil
1 Garlic Clove, crushed or finely chopped
1 (heaped) tsp of finely chopped root Ginger
1 large Onion, diced
1-2 tbsp reduced-salt Soy Sauce
2 Spring Onions, cut into small rings
1/3 can of Pineapple Rings in bite-size chunks
OR
1/4 of Pineapple in bite-size chunks.
1. Pour the oil into a medium-large pan on a medium-high heat and wait until hot. To test if its ready, drop a small piece of spring onion into the pan and see if it sizzles fast.
2. Add the garlic, ginger and spring onions into the pan and fry them for a 30-45 seconds, keeping them moving in the pan.
3. Add in the onion and fry for 2 minutes. Keep everything moving in the pan.
4. Add in the pineapple chunks, chicken strips and soy sauce and stir- fry for 3-5 minutes. To check if the chicken is cooked, take the thickest strip and cut it open. Once there is no pink in the center, it’s ready. If you’re at all unsure, it is better to continue cooking it until there isn’t a hint of pink.
5. This can be served with rice or noodles cooked as you wish. You can also add some coriander leaves and fresh pineapple chunks on top if you want. If you would like to add in other vegetables, such as baby sweet corn, peppers or mushrooms, the general rule is to add them to the mix in the order of toughest to softest. However, if you like your peppers crunchy, you should hold off and put them in slightly later.
Oat Muffins (10 muffins)
50g Oatflakes
110g Wholemeal Flour
50g soft Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
50g butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
175ml buttermilk
1. Grease a deep muffin tin to make 10 muffins,
or place 10 paper cases in a muffin cases in a
tin and set aside.
2. Preheat the over to 200 degrees Celsius
(180 for a fan-assisted oven).
3. Mix the oats, flour, sugar and bicarbonate of soda together.
4. Stir in the melted butter, followed by the beaten egg and the buttermilk. Stir until mixed, don’t beat any further.
5. Spoon the mixture into your tin and bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve warm with a spread of your choice, such as jam or honey.
The Importance of College Cooking
It is important to note that these recipes are just guidelines. The best part of cooking is taking a recipe and adding or removing things to suit your own tastes. The more you cook, the more you will develop this skill, so it is important to experiment when you cook. There are countless recipe websites and tutorial videos for cooking everything and anything you can imagine that can help guide you through this process, with new and interesting flavours and textures on every page.
Cooking is a skill that you will need during and after college, so we would encourage everyone to take up your spatulas no matter what year you’re in and no matter what stage in life you’re at. Burning things to the bottom of a pan, burning cookies to a cinder, and setting off fire alarms are all part of the learning process and you should never leave it dampen your drive. On top of this, nutrition and routine is extremely important in your college years and as some of the older students will know, it is very easy to fall into a routine of fry-ups, chicken rolls and soft drinks. What you eat and when you eat it can affect your sleep cycle, your ability to study and your weight, so it is important to try to have balanced meals each day at regular times. We realize that having a set dinner time can be impossible in college with lab work, essays and reports, however if you manage to stay away from the cycle of eating late and skipping breakfast, your body and mind will thank you for it!
For another
easy example
here's a Jamie
Oliver omlette
reciepe!
If you would like to keep up-to-date with Sláinte Society, UCC’s Wellbeing and Healthy Living Society, then check us out on Facebook or get in touch by email at [email protected] and we will add you to our mailing list. We’re always open to new ideas and projects from students who are interested.