By the time Friday arrives – everyone in the family is exhausted and excited. The body is exhausted after a whole week of working and exposure to environmental toxins. And the mind is excited as it looks forward to weekend activities that satisfy the soul.
So on Friday you want to cook something that heals the body – fortifies it against damage from cancer and disease and protects it from infections and hormonal imbalances.
But food for the body must never be cooked by enslaving and chaining the soul. So whatever you cook on Friday – must not keep you in the kitchen for too long – so that you can follow your heart and do what you really want to do.
And all of the above must be kept in mind when you plan the Friday menu
Challenges with planning the Friday menu –
- The meals of the Friday menu must have healing properties. They must be loaded with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory substances.
- It should not take too long to cook the meals – because the body needs rest after the whole work week
- The meals should have be fun and interesting to set the tone for the weekend.
- To avoid spending too much time in the kitchen – the snacks included should be made ahead on the weekend
Friday menu breakup
- A wholesome healing breakfast
- A hearty 11 am snack
- A packed tiffin that thrills
- A strengthening and soothing lunch
- A resuscitating 4 pm snack
- A rejuvenating restoring dinner
Weekly meal planning – Day 5 – Friday
This menu is designed by Simran Oberoi Multani with nutritional and parenting inputs from Dr Debmita Dutta
Breakfast – Dal chilla
10 am snack – Fruit salad with seasonal fruits, nuts and seeds
Lunch box – Paneer sandwich
Lunch – Mixed lentils dal with whole wheat ragi roti
Evening snack – Baked nippattu
Dinner – Keema and dal kebab with Biryani
Also read Monday menu , Tuesday menu and Wednesday menu, Thursday menu
The features on the Friday Menu
- The carbohydrates in the meals come from different sources
- Every meal is loaded with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory substances
- The recipes are loaded with fiber to clean out the gut
- The meal are loaded with high quality protein
- Three different fat sources have been included in the menu
- The meals are designed to heal the body, replenish the probiota of the gut and repair the cells that have been damaged through the week by wear and tear and exposure to toxins.
- One key ingredient is used to make the meals interesting and easy to cook.
Also read How To Plan A Balanced Diet For Your Child :10 Tips
The theme for the Friday menu
The key ingredient for Friday is a mixture of yellow and green moong dal. The moong dal is rich in antioxidants and high quality proteins that efficiently repair the cells of the body in preparation for the indulgences of the weekend and the stresses of the week ahead. Very little cooking is involved but the meals turn out absolutely delicious because of the recipe and menu design.
Recipes for Friday
Breakfast
Dal Chilla ( Mix of Green and Yellow Moong)
Ingredients
Green moong 1 cup
Yellow moong 1 cup
Chopped onions ½ cup
Chopped coriander ¼ cup
Ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
Ghee for shallow frying
Salt 1 tsp each.
Turmeric 1 tsp each.
Red chilly Powder 1 tsp each.
Method –
- Presoak the dals overnight
- Next morning grind them finely
- Add the rest of the ingredients, mix well.
- Make the cheela like you will make a dosa
- Add a bit of ghee
- Put a ladle of the batter on the pan
- Allow it to cook well
- And then flip to cook on the other side.
11 AM snack
Fruit salad with mixed seasonal fruits – peeled chopped and mixed with nuts and seeds
Lunch box
Paneer Sandwich
Ingredients
Paneer crumbled well 1 cup
Bread slices
Chopped onions ½ cup
Bell pepper chopped ¼ cup
Salt and black pepper to taste.
Method-
- Mix the paneer
- Onions, Bell pepper, Salt and pepper well.
- Fill it in between 2 slices of bread.
- Toast it lightly on the pan
- And eat.
You can add any other seasoning or even a touch of grated veggies like carrots.
Lunch
Mixed Lentils Dal (just add a more dal to the mixed presoaked ones already)
Ingredients
Gingelly/ Groundnut oil 2 tbsp
Jeera 1 tbsp
Chopped onions 1/2 cup
Chopped tomatoes ½ cup
Ginger, Garlic paste 1 tbsp
Dried red chilly (optional) 1
Asafoetida or Hing 1/4 tsp
Moong Dal ( Yellow, Green, or a mix ) 1 cup
Chana 1 cup
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder 1/4 teaspoon
Fresh coriander
Method-
- Put the dals in a pressure cooker.
- Add a bit of the oil,
- Then sauté the onions and tomatoes,
- Until they lose their rawness.
- Add the ginger garlic paste and saute.
- Then add the daals,
- Followed by about 3-4 cups water, salt, turmeric powder
- And cook the dals until they are done.
- This should be within 3-4 whistles.
- Then heat the remaining oil in a pan,
- Add asafoetida and jeera.
- Add this to the cooked dal and mix well.
- Cook for a couple of minutes, add coriander and serve.
Whole Wheat – ragi roti –
Ingredients
Regular whole wheat atta
With ragi flour 2-3 tbsp
Make the dough as you usually do
And then the chapattis.
4 PM snack
Baked Nippattu(with besan, ural dal and rice flour)
Ingredients
Besan 1 cup
Rice flour 2 tbsp
Ural dal ( grind finely) 2 tbsp
Curry leaves chopped finely a few
Red chilly powder or paprika 1 tsp
Salt as per taste
Chopped onions ½ cup
Hot water to mix
Oil 1 tbsp
Dessicated coconut 1 tsp
Method-
- Mix all the ingredients well
- And then slowly add the hot water
- To bring the dough together.
- Let the dough rest for 30 minutes
- Then cut into small discs
- And bake on a greased baking tray for 10-15 minutes until crisp
- At 180 degrees C.
- Cool off and store in air tight container.
Dinner
Biryani
Ingredients
Basmati or any other rice you prefer 1 ½ cup
Water as per instruction
Chopped onions ½
Ghee to caramelize the onions
Bay leaf 1
Elaichi 2 big
Small stick of cinnamon 1
Salt as per your requirement
Homemade biryani masala,
Haldi powder 1tsp
You can add precooked chicken (meat of your choice) / eggs or veggies to it.
Method-
- Fry the onions in the ghee to caramelize them.
- Presoak the rice and keep it ready.
- Add the bay leaf and sauté.
- Then add the rice,
- Pour water
- Add the rest of the ingredients
- And allow it to cook slowly.
- The biryani masala should be added just before you are about to switch off the flame.
Homemade biryani masala –
Method-
- In a tawa lightly roast
- Jeera 1 tbsp
- Dhaniya seeds 1tbsp
- Black peppercorns ½ cup
- Fennel / saunf 1 tbsp
- Big elaichi 2-3 big
- Small elaichi 2-3 l
- Cloves 2-3
- Cinnamon 1 small stick
- Dry grind in a grinder all the above.
This powder can be made and kept in a bottle.
Keema and Dal Kebab ( use the presoaked dal mix that as used for the dal chilla)
Ingredients
Dal mix 1/2 cup
Chicken mince or keema 1 cup
Homemade garam or goda masala 1tbsp
Red chilly powder 1 tsp
Ginger Garlic paste 1tsp
Salt as per your preference
Jeera powder 1 tbsp
Chopped onions ½ cup
Chopped fresh coriander ¼ cup
Besan 1tbsp
Method –
- Cook the dal until it is half done.
- Add it to the mince and mix well.
- If you want a smooth mix
- You can put it in the mixer.
- Add the spices.
- Add the onions and coriander
- And then the besan.
- If it seems too wet, add a bit more of the besan.
- Make kebab shapes
- And keep it in the fridge for a couple of hours.
- Shallow fry them in olive oil until the chicken cooks through.
- Serve hot.
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