Looking for healthy, yummy family-friendly meals? Then you're going to LOVE these Joe Wicks recipes...
He’s won legions of fans with his philosophy 'eat more, exercise less', and even more new followers with his live PE lessons, but did you know he also does cookbooks?
Packed with recipes for healthy breakfasts, lunches and dinners, to more indulgent desserts, Cooking for Family and Friends: 100 Lean Recipes to Enjoy Together has an array of sumptuous meals from warming curries and sticky ribs, to heaps of ideas for summer barbecues and dinner parties.
Joe says: "I’m super excited that this book encourages people to socialise with their loved ones whilst staying lean.
"The questions I get asked most often by my followers is: 'How can I stay lean and still go out, go to a party, hang out with friends?' So I’ve developed over 100 recipes that prove you can eat delicious food, impress your mates and stay lean at the same time".
Sounds good, right? Well here are three of our favourite lean Joe Wicks recipes...
Joe Wicks' lamb madras curry
Joe says: "There’s nothing better than a night in with good friends and a home-cooked curry. This one is really easy to make and lamb makes a nice change from the usual chicken."
Ingredients:
-
11⁄2 tbsp coconut oil
-
2 onions, finely diced
-
3 tsp jarred garlic puree
-
3 tsp jarred ginger puree
-
120g madras spice paste
-
1.25kg lamb neck, trimmed of fat and then cut into 3cm chunks [or replace with Quorn, sweet potato chunks or butternut squash]
-
250ml chicken stock – optional
-
100g cashew nuts
-
1 small cauliflower, florets only (large florets cut in half)
-
125g ready-to-eat puy lentils
-
260g baby spinach
-
Large bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
Method
-
Melt the coconut oil in a large saucepan over a medium to high heat. Add the onions and stir for 4 mins until soft. Stir in the garlic and ginger puree and fry for another minute. Then pour the spicy paste in and 50ml of water. Stir-fry for 2 mins, adding another splash of water if necessary.
-
Add the lamb chunks and stir-fry for 1 minute. Pour in 250ml of stock or water and bring to the boil.
-
Put a lid on and simmer for 1 hour, until the meat is just tender. Regular check and add a little more water if necessary during cooking to avoid sticking.
-
Meanwhile, make the cashew cream. Place the cashews into a bowl, cover them with boiling water and leave to sit for 30 minutes, then drain, discarding the water. Tip the cashews into a blender and blitz until smooth. Keep to one side until needed.
-
After one hour, when you are happy that the lamb is tender, stir in the cauliflower florets and lentils, and add a little more water if necessary. Simmer the curry uncovered for 25 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender.
-
Stir in the cashew cream, spinach and chopped coriander, and serve.
MAKE IT VEGGIE Replace the lamb with Quorn pieces, sweet potato chunks or butternut squash. And use vegetable stock rather than chicken.
Watch: Love Island's Luke T and Siânnise Fudge on finally getting a full English breakfast
Joe Wicks' chicken, chorizo and cauliflower tray bake
Joe says: "This is one of those meals that is well worth the wait. It tastes incredible and everything gets thrown in the same tray."
Ingredients:
-
2 tbsp olive oil
-
4 chicken breasts, skin-on
-
1 cauliflower, florets only (roughly 500g)
-
1 red onion, cut into 12 wedges
-
150g cooking chorizo, cut into 1cm pieces
-
4 sprigs of thyme
-
16 cherry tomatoes, preferably on the vine
-
2 large handfuls of baby spinach
Method
-
Preheat your oven to 190°C (fan 170°C/gas mark 5). When the oven is hot, pour the oil into a roasting tray and place into the oven for 10 mins.
-
Once the oil is hot, carefully slide the tray out of the oven and lay the chicken breasts in it, skin-side down. Arrange the cauliflower florets around the breasts and roast for 10 minutes.
-
Remove the tray and scatter over the red onion, chorizo and sprigs of thyme. Roast for a further 15 minutes.
-
Take the tray out again, flip over the chicken breasts and give all the vegetables a stir.
-
Place the tomatoes on top of the mixture and give the whole lot one more 10-minute blast.
-
Remove from the oven, add the spinach and carefully stir it through so it wilts a little in the heat. Serve.
MAKE IT VEGGIE Replace the chicken breasts with Quorn fillets and add a vegetable of your choice instead of the chorizo.
Read more:
Food appliances that'll make your work from home lunch ideas so much better
Create a zen working from home environment with these easy to care for houseplants
Joe Wicks' chicken and leek gnocchi bake
Joe says: "Gnocchi is becoming my new favourite carb source. I can’t work out if it’s a potato or a pasta but I don’t care because it tastes so good. The kids and adults will all enjoy this one."
Ingredients:
-
500g fresh gnocchi
-
100g kale, hard stalks removed
-
1 chicken stock cube
-
1⁄2 tbsp coconut oil
-
1 tbsp butter
-
1 onion, diced
-
2 leeks, cut into 5mm rounds
-
500g skinless chicken breast, cut into 3cm chunks
-
200g mushrooms, brushed clean and roughly sliced
-
25g plain flour
-
1⁄2 tsp English mustard powder
-
25g parmesan, grated
-
1⁄2 bunch of parsley, roughly chopped
-
Salt and pepper
-
3 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
-
Steamed vegetables, to serve – optional
METHOD
-
Bring a saucepan of water to the boil and preheat your oven to 190oC (fan 170°C/gas mark 5).
-
Add the gnocchi to the boiling water and cook for two mins, then add the kale and cook for another two mins. Carefully use a mug to scoop out 300ml of the cooking liquid. Add the chicken stock cube into the mug, stir, and set aside. Drain the gnocchi and kale.
-
Melt the coconut oil and butter in a large frying pan over a medium to high heat. Add the onion and leeks and fry for 3 minutes. Crank up the heat to maximum and add the chicken and mushrooms to the pan. Stir-fry for a few minutes.
-
Reduce the heat to just below medium and stir in the flour. Stir-fry for 1 minute, then gradually start adding the stock. Stir in slowly to avoid lumps.
-
Bring to the boil, then take the pan off the heat and stir in the mustard powder, parmesan and chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper.
-
Tip the drained gnocchi and kale into the pan and gently stir everything together. Tip the mixture into a baking dish, sprinkle the breadcrumbs all over the top and then slide it into the oven. Bake for 20 minutes or until the breadcrumbs are golden.
-
Serve on its own or with a big bowl of steamed vegetables.
MAKE IT VEGGIE Replace the chicken with gnocchi
This article first appeared on Closer on 14 July 2017.