Charred Cumin Green Beans with Raita

These green beans were inspired by some fancy sugarsnap peas I had at a restaurant called Gjelina in Los Angeles some years ago now, but still one of the best places I have ever eaten, full of vibrant veg-based dishes that sang with flavour, and a price tag to match. I have recreated them here for an absolute fraction of the cost, which is a thing I like to do. They’re a brilliant side dish for a barbecue, or you can mix them with some fresh spinach or salad greens for a delicious salad, or top with black beans, white beans or protein of your choice for a more substantial meal.

Serves 4

200g green beans, fresh or frozen

1 tablespoon oil, sunflower or groundnut, plus a little extra to serve

1 teaspoon cumin seeds or ground cumin or garam masala

2 fat cloves of garlic, finely chopped

a few sprigs of mint

150g natural plain yoghurt

a fistful of parsley or coriander, to serve

zest of ½ lemon or 2 teaspoons bottled lemon juice, to serve

a pinch of chilli flakes, to serve

If using frozen green beans, rinse them thoroughly with a blast of cold water and pop them in the microwave for 2 minutes to warm through. Pat dry and set to one side.

If using fresh beans, top and tail them.

Heat the oil in a frying pan, or better still, a griddle pan if you have one.

Toss in the green beans and cumin or garam masala and cook over a high heat until the beans are softened and charred in places.

Meanwhile, peel and finely chop the garlic.

Finely chop the mint leaves. Stir the garlic and mint into the yoghurt.

Roughly chop the coriander or parsley, discarding any tough stalks.

Serve the beans atop your chosen herb, with the yoghurt drizzled over, a little extra oil, a grating of lemon zest or a dash of juice, and a scattering of chilli flakes.

This recipe was first published in A Year In 120 Recipes, available here.

This site is free and always will be, because health should be accessible to all, but it does of course incur costs to run, research and pay writers and contributors, so if you find it useful and can contribute, feel free to pop something in the tips jar or subscribe on Patreon. Thankyou – every little helps!

Every Body

Healthy On A Bootstrap is currently commissioning writers with experience in navigating, living with or treating a variety of physical health conditions, intolerances and allergies, the challenges faced in maintaining a ‘traditionally healthy’ lifestyle, self-care, what works for you and what doesn’t. If you would like your work to be considered, write to healthyonabootstrap@gmail.com with the subject header ‘Every Body’. Thankyou!

This site is free and always will be, because health should be accessible to all, but it does of course incur costs to run, research and pay writers and contributors, so if you find it useful and can contribute, feel free to pop something in the tips jar or subscribe on Patreon. Thankyou – every little helps!

Every Mind

Healthy On A Bootstrap is currently commissioning writers with experience in navigating, living with or treating a variety of mental health conditions. If you would like your work to be considered, write to healthyonabootstrap@gmail.com with the subject header ‘Mind’. Thankyou!

This site is free and always will be, because health should be accessible to all, but it does of course incur costs to run, research and pay writers and contributors, so if you find it useful and can contribute, feel free to pop something in the tips jar or subscribe on Patreon. Thankyou – every little helps!

The ‘Bootstrap Healthy’ Recommended Reading List

These are some of the books that I find invaluable in helping me plan and discover new, nourishing, delicious ideas. They’re all clickable – and you’ll notice that a couple of them are mine so I should probably declare that I get a small amount of commission on them! 🙂 These are all books that I have in my own home and cook from and read regularly. You don’t have to get them all at once – or even any of them – but if you want some recommendations for further reading, here are mine.

How to Eat Brilliantly Every Day

by Abel and Cole is a simple, approachable book aimed at getting more veg into you in a simple way. It is based around the Abel and Cole veg boxes, which I have subscribed to periodically in the winter to make sure I am getting fresh fruit and veg to my front door even during mental health episodes or arthritis flare-ups. It isn’t the cheapest option out there, admittedly, some supermarkets offer wonky veg box schemes, and some greengrocers do too, or if you are organised, simply compile your own in a home delivery shop at a cheap delivery time every week. Notwithstanding how you get your vegetables through yout front door, this book is a brilliant way to use them. There are two others in the series, the Abel and Cole Veg Box Companion is also a favourite.

Sarah Raven’s Garden Cookbook

is my favourite ever cookbook, and I based my own A Year In 120 Recipes’ on the concept. Sarah takes you through the seasons, ingredient by ingredient, in alphabetical order, making it an encyclopaedia of goodness and inspiration. The photographs by Jonathon Buckley are fresh and vibrant and soothing; I read this book in bed like a novel, dip into it like a Bible, and can always, always find a use in here for whatever fruit and veg I have kicking around the fridge. You can adapt these recipes easily to use tinned, frozen or fresh fruit and veg, and I frequently do.

How to Lose Weight Well: Keep weight off forever, the healthy, simple way

is a no-nonsense approach from Operation Ouch’s better-looking twin doctor (sorry Chris!) and the first ‘diet’ book I picked up that didn’t leave me filled with self-loathing and despair. Want to skip breakfast occasionally? You’ll get no lectures here. Want to stuff your face? Fine. Want a healthy weight-loss book with cheeky charm and brio, and no sense of shame? Dr Xand has it for you.

Hungry? The innocent recipe book for filling your family with good stuff

was one of the first cookbooks I bought myself and used a lot when I was a single parent on benefits, trying to feed a young child. It’s non-pious, funny, irreverent, and delicious; you may recognise some of the recipes as being rehashed into my own, such was their influence on teaching me to cook.

A Girl Called Jack: 100 delicious budget recipes

is a very good book, I hear! I couldn’t write a reading list without adding this one; the recipes in this book are taught at food banks and community centres up and down the country, and when starting to put this website together I leafed through it and found that almost every recipe in here fit the bill. The only changes I have made to the ones I have transcribed onto this site have been to reduce the amount of oil used for cooking, and some other minor tweaks, so it’s a pretty good starting point.

A Year in 120 Recipes

is the follow-up book to A Girl Called Jack, cooking simply and seasonally, and still healthily and on a budget. It is a diary of my year in food, most of it pretty healthy and veg based, but still a lot of it cooked from tins and frozen veg, in simple language, with very little kitchen equipment.

I’ll add some more to this list soon so, keep checking back!

This site is free and always will be, because health should be accessible to all, but it does of course incur costs to run, research and pay writers and contributors, so if you find it useful and can contribute, feel free to pop something in the tips jar or subscribe on Patreon. Thankyou – every little helps!

COMING SOON 🌱💚

Hi folks! ‘Healthy On A Bootstrap’ is a new venture from Jack Monroe, food writer and bestselling author over on http://www.cookingonabootstrap.com

It’s a bit basic right now while I do all the behind-the-scenes work, but it’s going to be good healthy recipes, simple ideas, and a commonsense approach to taking care of yourself – physically and mentally – without any bodyshaming, woo or dubious claims about odd and hard-to-find ingredients.

As someone who has been a single mum on benefits, and who still watches every penny like a hawk while living with physical limitations and mental illness, I know that eating well and looking after yourself can be exhausting. The ‘diet industry’ is littered with misinformation and snake oil salespeople, making quick bucks out of shame and promises. I’m not going to do that. This site will be free, realistic, and accessible. I am launching it in a few weeks time, so to keep updated, simply hit ‘subscribe’ and you’ll get an email when it goes live.

Love,

Jack. x

 

This site is free and always will be, because health should be accessible to all, but it does of course incur costs to run, research and pay writers and contributors, so if you find it useful and can contribute, feel free to pop something in the tips jar or subscribe on Patreon. Thankyou – every little helps!