Midweek Meals: Five dinners with a sneaky portion of veg perfect for fussy eaters

If you can't face fighting your fussy eater this week, make one of these secretly healthy dinners 

Midweek meals that are secretly packed with veg.

Hidden vegetable pasta sauce

recipe by:Derval O'Rourke

This sauce is really versatile. It can be used as a base for bolognaise, lasagne or even burritos. It freezes well and it is worth making in a big quantity and dividing up into portions

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped

• 1 celery stick, finely chopped

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 1 red pepper, deseeded and diced

• 3 garlic cloves, crushed

• 400g tin tomatoes

• 1 tbsp dried oregano

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.

Method

1. Add the carrot, celery, onion, pepper, oregano and garlic and cook for about 6 minutes, add a dash of water if the pan becomes dry.

2. Add in the tomatoes and 300ml of water.

3. Simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and puree the sauce until it is smooth.
   
   Photo by Greta Hoffman from Pexels

Nasi goreng

One of the best ways to use up leftover rice, there are lots of variations of nasi goreng but this is our favourite

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Indonesian

Ingredients

• spray oil

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 bundle of asparagus, woody ends removed, and chopped into thirds

• 1 shallot, finely chopped

• 2 chicken breasts, chopped

• 3 tbsp soy sauce

• 1 tsp garlic granules

• salt

• pepper 

• 320g cooked rice

• 2 tbsp mirin

• To garnish:

• 2 fried eggs

• 1 scallion, sliced

• sesame seeds

Method

1. Spray a frying pan or wok with some oil and heat. Add in the garlic, asparagus and shallot and fry off, then add the chicken, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, garlic granules and salt and pepper and cook until the chicken is browned.

2. Next add in the cooked rice.

3. Mix the mirin with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce in a cup and add into the rice and chicken, stirring well until the rice is completely coated. Get your fried eggs cooking so they’re ready for the garnish.

4. Pop half of the mix into a little bowl, and tip it out onto a plate, to give you a nice little ‘sandcastle’ of rice.

5. Top with a fried egg and sprinkle over the scallion slices and sesame seeds. Repeat with the remaining mix.
   This recipe is from Gina and Karol Daly's The Daly Dish Rides Again, published by Gill Books.