View as List 6 Recipes That Will Transport You to Another Country
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Have you been hit by the travel bug but don’t have the time or budget to go international? Take a shortcut with one of these easy-to-prepare—and healthful—recipes. You’ll find yourself transported to China, India, Italy, Cuba, or France, sans the hassle of airport security and jet lag. Bon voyage!
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Tandoori-Style Chicken with Banana Raita
This Indian-inspired baked chicken recipe has plenty of garlic, which not only adds wonderful low-calorie flavor but also supplies various plant compounds that may be beneficial to health. The dish also relies heavily on yogurt, which serves as both a marinade for the chicken and the base for an Indian condiment/accompaniment called raita.
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Shiitake, Tofu, and Bok Choy Stir-Fry
Tofu is the main protein in this satisfying stir-fry. It’s derived from soybeans, a legume that was first cultivated in northern China about 3,000 years ago. Fun fact: The Chinese honored soybeans as one of five sacred foods essential to the existence of civilization (the others were rice, barley, wheat, and millet). If you can’t find bok choy for this recipe, you can substitute napa cabbage and Swiss chard.
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Chicken Chow Mein
This recipe preserves the textural contrasts of a typical chow mein (usually composed of meat, noodles, water chestnuts, and bean sprouts), but with some ingredient substitutions. It also uses “reduced-sodium” soy sauce, since most Americans take in way too much sodium. To further cut the sodium, use “low-sodium” soy sauce, which contains about 140 milligrams of sodium or less per teaspoon (reduced-sodium simply means 25 percent less than the typical product, which in the case of soy sauce is still high).
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Chicken Cacciatore
The American version of this Neapolitan dish retains the traditional tomatoes and herbs (particularly rosemary) but adds a new ingredient: mushrooms—in this case a half pound of creminis, also called brown or Italian brown mushrooms.
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Cuban-Style Tofu Stew
One of the advantages of tofu, in addition to its nutritional value, is the fact that it absorbs all the succulent flavors it’s surrounded by—here, a Cuban-inspired, slightly chocolaty sauce of onions, peppers, tomatoes, and dry red wine.
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Poached Salmon with Green Mayonnaise
The words “French food” tend to conjure up thoughts of heavy sauces. And while an authentic French green mayonnaise would indeed be fattening (plus include raw egg yolks), this one is made with nonfat yogurt and a bit of prepared mayonnaise. Fresh spinach adds body that would ordinarily be provided by the emulsion of oil and egg yolks. Note that you’ll need to chill the salmon for about an hour before serving.
