Apologies, yet again, for another lengthy absence, however I have been away in southwest France with limited internet, but I have come back now and have plenty of new recipes which will be uploaded over the coming week, starting with this little number.

This dish is adapted from Madhur Jaffrey recipe from foodandwine.com, follow the link for the original post. All credit goes to Madhur Jaffrey as this is her recipes, the only thing I changed was the oil, I used olive oil (not extra virgin) instead of vegetable oil, as per the original. Initially the recipe is fairly rapid so it helps to have all the ingredients prepared before you start the recipe, if you don’t do that already.

Don’t let the small list of spices fool you, it is very tasty. The recipe is great as a paleo side dish or as a main meal if you fancy a purely vegetarian night, indeed it is a great recipe if you have to entertain vegetarian guests without sacrificing taste or eating paleo. I personally served it with Cauliflower Rice as it was a vegetarian night and they complemented very nicely. Once again Cauliflower Rice has surprised non-paleo eaters. Success!

Swiss Chard with Ginger & Cumin

Preparation to Plate: 20 minutes

Serves 3-6 people

Consume within 2 days

Ingredients:

700g-1kg Swiss Chard, rinsed

1 Red Chilli, finely chopped

1½ tbsp Fresh Ginger, minced

½ tsp Cumin Seeds

1½ tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice

Olive Oil

Salt

Recipe:

Cut the stems of the washed Swiss chard into roughly 1cm pieces and tear larger leaves in half if necessary; like spinach these leaves cook down into nothing so don’t be put off if your pan is overflowing with Swiss Chard once you put it in. Before you add the Swiss chard, add a good amount of oil, roughly 2-3 tbsp, into a deep skillet (or deep frying pan) and place over a high heat. Once the oil is hot add the cumin seeds and fry until darkened and fragrant; this takes normally around 10-20 seconds. Add the chilli and ginger and stir in until fragrant.

Turn the heat down low and add the Swiss chard leaves to the pan; these don’t need to be completely dry as the water which clings to them will help them cook in the pan, there is no need to add extra water. Add a pinch of salt to the Swiss chard, cover and cook over the low heat, stirring occasionally, until tender; this took me about 10-12 minutes but the best way is to test it as pans/stoves all differ in cooking times.

Once tender uncover and turn the heat up high to evaporate any of the water left in the pan. Add the lemon juice and a pinch more salt to taste and serve.

Additional Service Suggestions:

If you were to serve it as a side dish it would go well with a paleo curry or a nice piece of lamb. You can quite easily serve this, as I did, with more vegetables, in this case Cauliflower Rice, but it works well on its own as a main dish.