Food can be a powerful expression of love. When couples with a chronic condition, it can be one of the most wholesome ways to care for a loved one. In honour of Diabetes Week, we invited Deborah from @firstserve to share a recipe very close to her heart from her country, Ghana, West Africa inspired by her mother-in-law. Deborah’s mother-in-law is diabetic, so this recipe is adapted to her needs. As a result, it's delicious, spicy, full of flavour, antioxidants, fibre, and greens AND helps you regulate your blood sugar.
This diabetic-friendly dish is called egusi stew in Ghana, West Africa.
Egusi Stew Recipe:
Ingredients
- tomatoes
- onions
- ginger garlic paste
- green chillis
- red palm oil
- kale/palak
- watermelon seeds
- chilli powder
- curry powder or masala seasoning of choice
*Optional
- add tuna
- cracked egg over the sauce
- cooked chicken or cooked mutton
- dried shrimp
Method of Preparation
“The star of the recipe is the watermelon seeds that we put in the blender,” says Deborah. “Add some water, and blend that up really nicely. Then put some palm oil to heat up in a pan. Add that mixture in and fry until the oil settles on top. Then add your chopped onions and chilli and mix that up together. Put some tomato and red capsicum into a blender and blend it up smoothly. Add this to the mix. At this point, you can add your ginger and garlic paste and stir it up nicely. Then add some salt, curry seasoning or masala mix of your choice.”
“Definitely add some chilli powder for a KICK” Deborah insists. But for the faint, we’ll keep this optional. “Then get your green leaf. I am using kale, but you can use spinach, Palak, or any leafy green of your choice. Stir that up real nice until it becomes soft. And if you're non-veg, you can definitely add some tuna, meat, chicken, or any protein of your choice. You can eat that with some quinoa, or in this case, I made buckwheat chapati”
Last, and our favourite step: Savour your first bite!
Deborah hopes to ensure everyone can enjoy their meals without the fear of spiking their blood sugar. If you try this recipe, don’t forget to tag @sova_health so we can drool with you. For more information on diabetes management or diabetic-friendly nutrition plans, visit sova.health
About the Author
Deborah is a Ghanaian/Serbian home chef, food artist & self-taught baker based out of Bangalore
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/firstserves/
