As we are slowly coming to the end of lockdown (fingers crossed!) we’ve brought together our favourite healthy evening meal recipes, so that no matter whether you’re getting ready to return to work or if you will still be working from home, you can eat healthy meals that are quick and easy to make. There are even some healthy alternatives to take-aways.

1 – Thai Basil Chicken – Serves 4 (240 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

Low-calorie cooking spray
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 fresh chillies, finely diced (leave the seeds in if you like extra spice)
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
500g skinless chicken breast, finely chopped
2 medium peppers, deseeded and diced
3 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp fish sauce
2 tsp granulated sweetener (adjust to taste\0
250g frozen green beans
60g fresh basil, roughly torn
50g fresh spinach, roughly torn

Method

Spray a large frying pan or wok with low-calorie cooking spray. Place over a medium heat, add the onions, chillies and garlic and fry for 5 minutes to release the aromatics and soften the onions slightly. Add the chicken and peppers to the pan with the oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce and sweetener. Fry for 5 minutes over a medium heat util the chicken has cooked through. Add the frozen green beans to the pan and fry for a further 5 minutes until they are cooked through.
Remove from the heat and stir through the basil and spinach until it wilts. Serve with an accompaniment of your choice.

This can be cooled and frozen

2 – Curried Cod – Serves 4 (296 calories per serving) BBC Good Food

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp medium curry powder
Thumb-sized piece ginger, peeled and finely grated
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
400g can chickpeas
4 cod fillets (about 125-150g each)
Zest 1 lemon, then cut into wedges
Handful coriander, roughly chopped

Method

Heat the oil in a large, lidded frying pan. Cook the onion over a high heat for a few mins, then stir in the curry powder, ginger and garlic. Cook for another 1-2 mins until fragrant, then stir in the tomatoes, chickpeas and some seasoning.
Cook for 8-10 mins until thickened slightly, then top with the cod. Cover and cook for another 5-10 mins until the fish is cooked through. Scatter over the lemon zest and coriander, then serve with the lemon wedges to squeeze over.

3 – Turkey Curry – Serves 4 (333 calories) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

500 g cooked turkey meat skin removed and cut into 2cm chunks
2 medium onions peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic peeled and crushed
2 tbsp mild curry powder
1 chicken stock cube
500 ml boiling water to combine with stock cube
1 tbsp tomato puree
4 cooked roast potatoes, approx 40g each cut into 2cm chunks
150 g cooked Brussels sprouts cut into quarters
50 g cooked fine green beans halved
50 g cooked frozen peas
200 ml coconut dairy free milk alternative
100 g fat free Greek yoghurt
Salt and pepper to taste
Low-calorie cooking spray
A few sprigs of flat leaf parsley to garnish (optional)

Method

Spray a large saucepan with low calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat.
Add the onion and fry for 10 minutes or until softened and golden, stirring occasionally.
Lower the heat, add the garlic and curry powder, and cook, stirring, for a further 2 – 3 minutes.
Add the stock, tomato puree, turkey and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and simmer over a low heat for 10 minutes.
Add the potatoes and coconut dairy free milk alternative, cover and simmer over a low heat for a further 5 minutes.
Add the Brussels sprouts, beans and peas, cover and simmer over a low heat for 1 – 2 minutes, until the vegetables are hot, but are still bright green and not overcooked.
Make sure that the curry is piping hot, then remove from the heat and stir in the yogurt until evenly mixed.
Garnish with a sprig of flat leafed parsley if wished and serve.

4 – Pizza Pasta – Serves 6 (390 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

300g dried pasta
Low-calorie cooking spray
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 red pepper, deseeded and diced
1 yellow pepper, deseeded and diced
1 green pepper, deseeded and diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 x 500g carton passata
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
60g sliced pepperoni
7g fresh bail, chopped plus a few extra leaves for garnish
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
140g reduced-fat mozzarella
80g reduced-fat cheddar

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan 180°C/Gas Mark 6)
Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, drain and leave to one side.
While your pasta is cooking, spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and fry the onion over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until translucent. Add the peppers and garlic and continue to fry until the peppers are soft. Pour in the chopped tomatoes, passata, oregano and Worcestershire sauce and stir until combined.
Dice 30g of the pepperoni and add to the sauce along with the chopped basil. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
Tip the cooked pasta into an ovenproof dish, pour over the sauce and stir until the pasta is coated. Sprinkle the pasta with the mozzarella and cheddar and add the remaining sliced pepperoni to the top of the pasta.
Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes until the cheese is golden and bubbling and the pasta heated through. Once the pasta is cooked, sprinkle with the fresh basil leaves and serve.

How to batch: Cool within 2 hours of cooking, without the basil garnish, then divide the cooked recipe into individual servings and freeze immediately.

5 – Creamy Tuscan Chicken – Serves 4 (264 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

Low-calorie cooking spray
500g cherry tomatoes, halved
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minces
4 medium skinless chicken breasts
600ml chicken stock (1 chicken stock cube dissolved in 600ml boiling water)
1 tsp dried basil
¼ tsp dried oregano
180g reduced-fat cream cheese
80g fresh spinach, roughly torn

To accompany:

80g steamed vegetables (+38 calories)

50g uncooked pasta per portion, cooked according to packet instructions (+174 calories per 100g cooked serving)

Method

Preheat the oven to 240°C (fan 220°C/Gas Mark 9)
Line a large baking tray with foil and spray with low-calorie cooking spray. Place the tomato halves on the baking tray in a single layer, cut side up. Spray with more lo-calorie cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes until they have wrinkled a little. Remove and set aside.
Whilst the tomatoes are cooking, spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and gently fry the onions and garlic over a medium heat for 5 minutes until they have softened a little. Add the chicken breasts, stock, basil and oregano to the pan. Over a medium heat, cook the chicken on one side for 10 minutes. Flip the chicken over, loosely place a lid on the pan and cook for another 10 minutes. It will be ready when the chicken is cooked and white throughout, and the stock has reduced down. You can cut the thickest part of the chicken breast on the underside to check.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cream cheese until it has melted in. If the sauce seems too thin, reduce it over the heat for a bit longer. If it seems too thick, mix in a little water.
Stir the spinach into the sauce so that it wilts slightly, then stir in the roasted tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve with an accompaniment of your choice.

How to batch: Cool within 2 hours of cooking then divide the cooked recipe into individual servings and freeze immediately.

6 – Mushroom Bhaji – Serves 4 (91 calories per serving) Olive

Ingredients

1 tbsp vegetable oil
500g chestnut mushrooms, quartered
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
Thumb-size piece of ginger, finely grated
A small bunch of coriander, stalks finely chopped, leaves roughly chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbsp tomato purée
½ lemon, juiced
cooked basmati rice to serve

Method

Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan and fry the mushrooms for 5-10 minutes over a medium-high heat until all the moisture has evaporated, and the mushrooms are starting to caramelise. Scoop out of the pan. Turn the heat to low, add another drizzle of oil to the pan and cook the onion with a pinch of salt for 10 minutes until soft, then add the garlic, ginger and coriander stalks, and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Tip in the spices and tomato purée, and cook for a few minutes before adding 100ml of water and the mushrooms back to the pan. Simmer gently for 10 minutes, then season and stir in the lemon juice and coriander leaves. Serve with basmati rice and naans.

7 – Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta – Serves 4 (276 calories) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

280 g chicken breasts cut into strips
160 g spinach washed and chopped
2 lemons juiced
30 g light spreadable cheese
30 g fresh parmesan cheese grated
1 chicken stock cube
250 ml boiling water
¼ tsp turmeric
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 clove garlic peeled and chopped
½ tsp dried thyme
150 g dried tagliatelle pasta
low calorie cooking spray

Method

Spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and fry the chicken for 5-10 min on a medium heat, until golden brown.
Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Stir the stock cube into the boiling water then add to the pan along with the turmeric, lemon juice, thyme and cook for 3-5 minutes.
While the chicken is cooking, cook the pasta according to packet instructions and drain. This can be from 9-12 minutes depending on the brand.
Add the light spreadable cheese to the stock and mix well.
Then add the spinach, black pepper, pasta and mix into the sauce. Cook for a further minute.
Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Sprinkle with parmesan before serving.

8 – Lemon and Tumeric Rice – Serves 4 (215 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

240 g basmati rice cooked as per packet instructions
1 lemon juiced
1 lime zested
½ tsp red pepper flakes
½ tsp mustard seed
1 bay leaf fresh or dried
10 g coriander chopped
1 tsp turmeric
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
low calorie cooking spray

Method

Spray the wok with low calorie cooking spray, and place on a medium heat. When the wok is hot, add mustard seeds.
When the seeds start to crackle and pop, add the red pepper flakes, bay leaf and turmeric. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 10 seconds then add the lemon juice, lime zest and cooked rice. Mix well.
Cook the rice for 5 minutes then add the coriander and mix well.
Turn off the heat, cover the pan with the lid (use tin foil if you do not have a lid). Leave for 2-3 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper before serving.

9 – Creamy Roasted Red Pepper and Chicken Pasta – Serves 6 (293 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

For the sauce:

200 g red onion peeled and sliced
4 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
300 g roasted red peppers in vinegar (drained weight) roughly chopped
500 g passata
90 g Philadelphia Lightest or other low fat cream cheese
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 vegetable stock pot added without water
1/2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried basil

For the pasta:

200 g dried pasta
3 skinless chicken breasts cubed into 2cm pieces
300 g mushrooms sliced
low calorie cooking spray
salt and pepper to taste

Method

For the sauce:

Add the onion, garlic and red peppers to a saucepan and gently fry over a medium heat for 10 minutes, or until the onions have softened and cooked through.
Add the rest of the sauce ingredients, stir to combine and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

For the pasta:

Add the dried pasta to a saucepan of boiling water and cook for 10 minutes until tender (or follow the cooking instructions on your pasta packet as times may vary slightly).
While the pasta is cooking, add the chicken into a frying pan. Spray with low calorie cooking spray and cook gently over a medium heat for 5 minutes until the outside of the chicken has turned white.
Add the sliced mushrooms to the frying pan and cook for 2 minutes until softened slightly.
Add the blended sauce to the frying pan and simmer for a further 5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked and white throughout.
When the pasta is cooked, drain the water off and mix the pasta with the chicken and sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

10 – Chilli (Slow-Cooker) – Serves 6 (253 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

500g 5% Fat Minced Beef
1 Onion diced
2 Bell Peppers deseeded and diced
3 cloves Garlic crushed
1 – 2 tsp Chilli Powder, depending on how hot you like it
1 – 2 Fresh Chillies deseeded and diced, depending on how hot you like it
4 Mushrooms sliced
1 Courgette diced
3 Carrots diced
2 tins Chopped Tomatoes
2 Beef stock cubes
200 ml Boiling Water to make up stock cubes
2 tsp Italian Mixed Herbs
2 tbsp Tomato Puree
1 tin Kidney Beans
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Bovril optional (you could use any beef or yeast extract)
Low Calorie Cooking Spray

Method

Sauté the veg in a frying pan with a little low-calorie cooking spray. When the veg starts to soften add the mince and cook until it starts to brown. Stir in the chilli powder, Worcestershire sauce, Italian herbs and cook for another minute or so.
Add the tomato puree and chopped tomatoes, stir well. Pour in the made-up stock, then throw in the remaining veg and stir. Transfer it to your slow cooker and cook for about 3 hours (on medium to high).
After 3 hours, add the washed and drained kidney beans and adjust the seasoning if required.
Allow to cook for another hour or so, then serve with whatever you fancy.

11 – Sausage Casserole (Slow Cooker) – Serves 6 (468 calories per serving) Pinch of Nom

Ingredients

250ml chicken stock made up with 1 stock cube
600 grams chicken sausages
2 onions, peeled and diced
2 peppers any colour, deseeded and diced
5 medium carrots peeled and sliced into thick chunks
600g small potatoes peeled and cut into big chunks
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 tbsp tomato puree
Handful of fresh parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic crushed
½ tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
600g chicken sausages
1 x 400g tin butter beans drained
1 beef stock pot
Pinch of fresh herbs

Method

Put all the ingredients except the sausages, butter beans and stock pot into the slow cooker. Stir well.
Add the sausages and give another quick stir.
Cook on High for 5 hours, or Low to Medium for 6-8 hours.
Check to make sure all the veg is cooked through. Stir in the butter beans and stock pot. Check the seasoning and add some salt and freshly ground black pepper if needed.
Allow to cook for another 20-30 minutes to heat up the butter beans, then serve

How to batch: Cool the casserole within 2 hours of cooking, the divide the cooked recipe into individual servings and freeze immediately.

We hope you enjoy our selection of healthy meals and that they help to free up some time in the evenings!

Much Love

Caroline & Hannah xx