AN UNDERRATED vegetable is the secret to meeting your protein goal for the day – and it can be used in the perfect spring pasta.
Most people are quick to munch down on eggs or meat when they’re looking to up their protein intake.
Edamame is the underrated veg packed full of protein[/caption]
Jamie Oliver has a simple 10-minute spring pasta recipe using the vegetable[/caption]
You can follow Jamie Oliver’s recipe in just a few simple steps[/caption]
But the humble edemame, packed full of nutrients, actually offers nearly THREE times the amount of protein in a single egg.
A single cup of edamame – immature soybeans – delivers 18.4 grams of protein.
The superfood – which has a mild, buttery flavour – is also low in calories and packed with vitamins and minerals.
It can be added to soups, stews, salads, rice dishes and casseroles to add an extra protein punch – or just boiled and eaten from the pod with a sprinkle of sea salt for a snack.
To introduce edamame to your diet, TV chef Jamie Oliver recommends a simple pasta from his “one-pan wonders” cook book.
The recipe only uses a handful of flavourful spring ingredients to create a bright and fresh pasta perfect for warmer days.
The best part? It only takes 10 minutes to make from prep to cooking.
First up, you’ll need to boil the kettle, then cut 125g of fresh lasagne sheets into random 5cm shapes to make stracci (rags).
Next, peel and finely slice a clove of garlic before snapping off the ‘woody’ ends off three stalks of asparagus.
Then finely slice the stalks, leaving the tips whole, pick a sprig of mint leaves, and finely grate 10g of Parmesan cheese.
After that, pop a frying pan on a high heat and put a little drizzle of olive oil into the pan once hot with the garlic and asparagus.
When the garlic is lightly golden, add 40g of both frozen peas and edemame beans, then scatter the pasta and mint leaves into the pan.
Carefully pour in enough boiling kettle water to just cover the pasta – about 300ml and let it bubble away for four minutes, or until the pasta has absorbed most of the water and you’ve got a simple sauce.
Finally, turn the heat off, crumble in 10g of feta, stir in the Parmesan, and season to perfection. Finish with a splash of extra virgin olive oil, if you like.
