Maria Nasir
Before Ramadan we make elaborate plans and promises to actually refrain from indulging in lavish food and keep are sehr and iftar diet as simple as possible. Come Ramadan, we forget all about those resolutions, gorging on pakoras, parathas and all-you-can-eat buffet iftars.
On the other extreme, the preachers of healthy eating make fasting sound more like a penance than a blessing. No-one can keep eating bland, boring and tasteless food under the banner of healthy for too long. So why not incorporate some delicious flavours in your Ramazan menu – the sort of food that wouldn’t clash with a sensible, nutritious eating plan and taste good too!
Whenever I think of combining taste with nutrition, I go for colourful, savoury, spicy chaats and juicy, crunchy, sweet and sour fruit salads. From traditional South Asian style aloo channa chaat to fusion experiments like my spicy ripe papaya salad the choices are infinite, fulfilling and delicious.
Here I have made a collection of a few of my favourite fruit and vegetable combos, loaded with chutneys or drizzled over with flavourful dressings – easy to make iftar snacks you will look forward to.