I love cooking; the sheer joy of preparing something magical out of separate ingredients thrills me and it makes me very happy. As a Muslim I follow the halal way of cooking which means cooking without haram or impermissible ingredients according to the Islamic dietary guidelines. That is why I always have my go-to halal recipes at hand. This way I know I don’t have the hassle of trying to find substitute ingredients and let me tell you I have had some pretty funny situations which I will share in a future post.
Home cooking is slowly becoming popular again which is something I am grateful for. People have started to realize that cooking at home can be quick and convenient as well as wholesome and tasty. Especially these days, we’re lucky to have ingredients easily available and easy to keep at home so that we can always have them at hand, whenever we decide to cook. For me, being able to prepare traditional Muslim dishes at home is an uplifting experience, because it makes me proud of my heritage.
On my list of firm favourites are lamb tagine, beef stews with onions and potatoes, lamb meatball kebabs with yogurt sause and Cottage pie with beef. True the tagine and stews are slow cook meals but really once you have added all the ingredients and put it on a slow cooker your time is your own, you could go for a long and relaxing walk, attend to some housework, read or even leave it to cook while you go to work. These are also perfect dishes to prepare in advance as the flavours intensify with time. Also, don’t forget that they are easy to freeze and reheat later, perfect for when you want to invest the least amount of energy. The kebabs are very easy to make and tasty with a pre-made chutney or mint and yogurt.
While I usually do stick to the given halal recipes, I do love to experiment and add my own little twist to a dish, like adding extra pepper to add some heat. This is another perk of cooking at home. You can alter recipes to suit the specific tastes of you and your family.
I recently read an article that said that people who eat home cooked meals regularly are healthier because they consume less processed foods and happier as a result. When you cook at home you can use fresh and trusted ingredients and put only the best in to your dishes. It is easy now to find reliable halal recipes online. You can browse and bookmark ones that capture your interest. That’s how I started and it is very simple to access the recipes on my tab or phone when I start to cook, so that now for me cooking at home is pleasurable, a constant, a way of life. I hope I have inspired you to start cooking your meals at home, for a healthier and happier you.