Singletrack’s resident Nigel Slater brings you more tasty things to make and eat trailside, or as a post-ride reward.
Words Charlie, Photography Amanda
The world is changing. Veganism is a new normal, and the cost of food is getting higher than Keith Moon in platform shoes on a jump bike. So, let me show you one of my favourite cheap eats that is also turbo healthy.
This super fresh and vibrant meal comes with a word of caution. Don’t share a tent with anyone who has eaten this. If you are camping alone… leave the bivvy bag opening, open.
I make this up in advance, keep it in the fridge, microwave it, and then pop it in an insulated food flask. At the end of the day, whether that be back at the van or in a bivvy bag, I have a hot, healthy carbed-up meal without the bother of a stove and pans. (And that is why we sell Klean Kanteen food flasks in the Singletrack World merch store.)
Now you’ve ordered your flask, it’s time to get cooking.
Ingredients
The Garnish
- Pumpkin seeds
- Flaked almonds
- Bunch of fresh coriander (Chopped up stalks go in the dahl)
- Naan bread or similar.
The Veg
- Olive oil
- Butternut squash
- Mushrooms
- Cumin
- Curry powder
- Ground coriander
The Dahl
- Olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 5 cloves of finely chopped garlic
- 2 teaspoons of grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons of garam masala
- 1 teaspoon of ground turmeric, or grated fresh
- ½ teaspoon of chilli flakes, or chopped fresh red chilli
- Chopped up coriander stalks
- 200g of rinsed red lentils
- A handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
- 700ml-ish of vegetable stock
- A dash of salt
- A can of coconut milk
- 4 handfuls of baby spinach.
Directions
This is dead easy to make – just lob everything in and do the right thing, in the right order.
The Garnish
First up, gently toast the pumpkin seeds and flaked almonds in a dry frying pan (no oil required). Keep them moving around or they will catch. Once the seeds have popped and the almonds are a nice toasted golden colour set them to one side. Don’t nibble on them too much. You will, so allow for this and prepare extra.
The Veg
- Get the oven hot, about 180°C.
- Chop up your mushrooms into big chunky quarters. Chop up your butternut squash (discard the skin), in similar 2cm chunks. Then microwave the squash for 1 minute as they take a little longer to cook than the mushrooms.
- Mix up a teaspoon of ground coriander, cumin and curry powder.
- Mix up the spices and veg in a bowl with a dash of olive oil.
- Bung on a baking tray and pop in the oven for 20 minutes until golden.
Top tip: Meat eaters can also throw strips of chicken breast or leftover roast lamb into this veg mix.
The Dahl
- Bang a little olive oil in a deep pan
- Gently sauté the onion until it’s soft, but not brown
- Garlic goes in, stir.
- Then the ginger, garam masala, turmeric, chilli and the coriander stalks. Stir some more.
- Tomatoes and lentils next.
- Then gradually add the stock. Hold some back so you get the wetness right, stir a bit.
- Simmer away for around 20 minutes, adding more stock if needed. If it’s too wet, turn the heat up and keep stirring
- Test it, are the lentils almost soft?
- Great, now half a can of coconut milk and the spinach goes in for the last 5 minutes
- Taste it again… too spicy? Add more coconut milk if you want to mellow the heat.
Serve with the dahl on the bottom, then the veg and then sprinkle fresh coriander leaves over the top with the seeds and almonds. You will want a naan bread for scooping this up and cleaning the plate.
It will keep in the fridge for about three days, and also freezes OK. So don’t bin any leftovers, there is another big friendly meal in there.
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