8 Healthy Meals You Can Cook
in 15 Minutes by Reliance College
On 1st September 2022, Reliance College hosted ‘8 Healthy Meals You Can Cook in 15 Minutes’ at The Ugly Mug Café from 2pm to 5pm.
This event, specifically curated to help busy students and working adults achieve a balanced diet and maintain a healthy lifestyle, kicked-off with a brief by Nigel Gan, CEO of Reliance College.
Nigel went on to explain about the consequences of indulging in regularly fast food and take-aways, and how participants can opt for healthier self-cooked meals by adopting a healthy meal mindset. This set the tone for the rest of the class.
After introducing cooking methods, and simplifying how healthy meals can be prepared and seasoned, the floor was passed to Chef Kent, who elaborated on proper food storage when living in humid and cold countries and nutrients of different food groups. Various recipes were then handed out to participants in the kitchen.
After explaining about the distinct types of diets, Chef Kent reiterated that participants should pick a diet that best suits them. He then spelt out how processed food is one of the worst food choices, because of how its structure, and nutrients are lost when storage period is extended. Chef Kent also shed some light on carcinogenic foods and how overheating food leads to it being cancerous.
A live cooking demo then followed. Participants were taught how to prepare rice, pasta, and quinoa.
According to Chef Kent, one pack of pasta usually serves around 8 to 12 people, and is more than enough for a small party, as pasta is usually served with other dishes. He also walked participants through the differences in cooking time of different chicken parts, indicating that chicken breast cooks faster than chicken thigh as it has lesser connective tissues.
How to cook chicken breast with butter and vegetable oil was then demonstrated, and all who attended were given the opportunity to sample the difference between the two, to determine their preference.
Half-way through the session, participants experimented with cooking on their own, according to the recipes given. Volunteers then helped distribute the ingredients and utensils to participants before the cooking session begin.
Among the recipes attempted were green curry with brown rice, penne carbonara with chicken, salad, sandwiches, wraps, and even noodles with chicken. Both Chef Kent and Nigel were giving detailed instructions and careful explanations while tutoring the participants personally to ensure their safety.
All present were then asked to prepare dishes using unconventional items, and to season the dishes according to their own preference, because as a student living abroad, one may not have proper cooking equipment.
Nigel went on to comment, “You’re not cooking for MasterChef, you’re just cooking for yourself. It doesn’t have to look pretty.”
Once everyone had finished cooking their dishes, participants tasted their own food. As many of them savoured their dishes, it served as encouragement for these students to be able to cook a healthy meal effortlessly on their own.
It is through interactive sessions like these that students can learn and grow while developing life skills.
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