Happy gut, healthy you

British cook and winner of the BBCrsquos MasterChef competition in 2017 Dr Saliha MahmoodAhmed had plans of writing a book on digestive health and happiness right from her medical student days The lack of focus on food and nutrition in medical teaching was a source of irritation for her ldquoBeing an avid gastronome it bothered me As I became a doctor I realised that my patients wanted to talk about food and eating This cemented my desire to write a bookrdquo she tells usHer new book titled Foodology A Foodloverrsquos Guide to Digestive Health and Happiness has come at a time when eating right is key to leading a healthy life This is not a book about dieting in the conventional sense nor is it a didactic manual on how to make each and every food decision in life It is an unapologetic celebration of what she believes to be the most amazing organ of the body that will enhance the way you cook and eatDr Saliha has drawn on latest science and her own experiences as both a doctor and a cook to write this book ldquoQuite often we conceptualise eating lsquohealthilyrsquo and eating for lsquopleasurersquo as two separate entities I wanted to use science and my culinary prowess to bridge this gap You can eat good food that tastes amazing and nourishes the mind and body without harming your health Equally once in a while it is okay to eat indulgent food as well Itrsquos about finding an equilibrium that works for yourdquo she addsMiso date and dark chocolate cookiesWhile she is born and brought up in the UK Dr Saliha hails from a large KashmiriPakistani family ldquoFood was central to family life It featured in celebration as well as in sadness and mourning My mother worked as a fulltime doctor and still managed to put freshly cooked food on the table daily That just shows how deeply ingrained the desire to feed her family well was As a mother I find myself in the same position nowrdquoIn the book Dr Saliha offers 50 new simple delicious and mostly vegetarian recipes to help everyone explore their gut health and find their own gastronomic happiness But does she have a favourite we ask ldquoIt is very hard to pin down a favourite recipe because they are all close to my heart I am particularly fond of the recipes that feature in the chapter on lsquoUmamirsquo They are really very moreish and always leave me craving more I love the addictive miso date and dark chocolate cookies and always have a batch at homerdquoExplaining how certain foods make our mouths water Dr Saliha says that gastronomic happiness is significant in everyonersquos lives ldquoFood is central to 21st century life We have to decide what to eat for breakfast lunch dinner and snacks in between each dayPic CourtesyManjit RiyatAnd this is the reason why fostering a healthy relationship with food and finding gastronomic happiness is so important If you are harbouring negative emotions facing food so many times is a highly stressful experience Additionally we know that what we eat has a huge impact on our long term health and risk of developing certain diseases making food choices highly criticalrdquoSo how does the gut really work And how can one keep it happy ldquoThe gut is a very complex piece of machinery It is home to literally trillions of bugs What we eat influences the composition of gut bugs and certain patterns of gut bugs are considered healthier than others in terms of disease prevention We are discovering the links between the food we eat and how it influences gut bugs in a lot more detail now It is a fascinating and evolving body of research with huge potential for the futurerdquo she explains adding ldquoAll I want to say to my readers ismdashlove food in all its magnificent shapes and forms and cook cook and cook some morerdquoSharifrsquos keema spaghettiServes Four people generouslyIngredients1 tablespoon olive oil1 white onion finely diced500g lamb mince not too lean1 tablespoon minced garlic1 teaspoon dried oregano12 teaspoon turmeric1 heaped teaspoon garam masala1 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds1 teaspoon red chilli powder1 teaspoon hot paprika3 ripe tomatoes diced1 beef stock cube dissolved in 500ml boiling water200g carrots diced200g frozen peas defrosted350g dried spaghetti250g potatoes skin on dicedVegetable oil to fry the potatoesSalt to taste1 tablespoon grated parmesan optionalBottle of tomato ketchup mandatoryMethodPlace a large nonstick saucepan over a medium heat Add olive oil to the pan followed by onion allowing it to soften and take on a gentle golden hue Add minced lamb and using a wooden spoon break it into smaller chunks Crank up the heat to the highest setting and brown the mince off You want it to release its own fat and fry off rather than stew in its own juices Resist the temptation to keep stirring the mince needs time to brown on each sideWhen the mince looks sufficiently brown turn the heat down to medium and add garlic oregano turmeric garam masala cumin seeds chilli powder and paprika You want the spices to release their aroma but not burn which is why turning the heat down a bit is necessary Add the tomatoes followed by the beef stock Allow the mixture to simmer over a mediumlow heat for around 3045 minutes or until most of the water has evaporated and a rich fatty slightly moist spiced mince remainsTaste the mixture and add salt the stock cube you added previously is full of umami notes or should I say commercial MSG and will season the mince so be cautious of adding too much salt at this stage Add the carrots and peas to the mince and allow them to cook through for a further 5 minutes The idea is that they retain their colour but lose their crunch and soften slightly Be wary of the mixture becoming too dry and catching at this stage Just add a few splashes of water from the kettle if things in the saucepan start looking too dry Once prepared remove the mince from the heat and set asideBoil the spaghetti in heavily salted water and according to manufacturerrsquos instructions to achieve an lsquoal dentersquo consistency This usually takes around 68 minutes Drain the pasta keeping a little aside Shallow fry the potatoes in vegetable oil until the potato chunks are nice and golden This takes approximately 57 minutes Drain on kitchen paperAssemble the dish by tossing the pasta into the minced lamb with about half a cupful of pasta water to moisten everything Stir really well to combine You want every bit of the spaghetti to be coated Tip the tumbling cascades of spiced spaghetti on to a large serving platter and top with the chunks of fried potato and if you wish some grated Parmesan Serve with ketchup this condiment is mandatory