5-2 Diet Update – and Asian Noodles
So my efforts at the 5-2 Diet continue. Yesterday I was overindulging again thanks to the Potato Council who treated me to an eight course potato tasting menu at L’Atelier de Joel Robouchon. So, today I decided to go hard core with the 5-2 diet and try consuming nothing but green tea and miso soup till dinner. Now, there are two schools of thought on how the 5-2 diet should be done. The hard core version of the 5-2 diet involves trying to fast for 24 hours. That’s achieved by not eating from when you last had a full non 5-2 diet meal until the same time the next day. The softer option which is what Michael Mosley did on Eat Fast and Live London. It’s also what I am still doing most of the time is to eat a small meal at breakfast or lunch and then make the calories up to your allowance of 500 or 600 calories with supper. You only really start eating again the next morning.
Anyway…this 5:2 diet recipe was a bit of a hybrid but I did eat rather less during the day than I have to date. And, by the evening, I wanted a warm spicy comforting meal. I suspect most people have their own version of this dish. Mine is simple, easy to adapt depending on what you have in the fridge and store cupboard and only really needs a few key ingredients. Noodles, Ginger, Chilli, Garlic, Soy and Coriander (or Cilantro if you are American). After than, you can make a vegetarian version of this dish or you can make it with beef, chicken or seafood. To make sure it is a low calorie dish, just use a tiny amount of oil for the initial frying and stick to the vegetarian, chicken or seafood version. The calories will vary depending on the ingredients you use, but should be somewhere between 300 and 400 cals. I worked out my chicken version was 320 calories per portion.
Asian Noodles with Chicken for the 5-2 Diet
Print recipe
| Serves | 2 |
| Prep time | 5 minutes |
| Cook time | 8 minutes |
| Total time | 13 minutes |
| Meal type | Lunch, Main Dish |
| Misc | Serve Hot |
| Region | Asian |
Ingredients
- 1 Nest of dried thin egg noodles
- 200g Chicken Breast (sliced into ribbons along the grain of the meat)
- 1 piece Ginger (Peeled and finely chopped)
- 2 cloves Garlic (Peeled and finely chopped)
- handful Green Beans (topped and tailed)
- 100g Chinese leaf or similar (Finely shredded)
- 150g Courgettes (sliced into batons)
- 1 Red Chilli (De-seeded and finely sliced (adjust to taste...use less if you want a milder version)
- 2 teaspoons Low Salt Soy
- 1 teaspoon Sunflower or Sesame Oil
- 1 handful Fresh Coriander
- 300ml Chicken or vegetable stock
Optional
- 1 teaspoon Coconut cream
Directions
| Step 1 | Heat the oil in the wok and cook the garlic, shallot, ginger and chilli for a minute or two |
| Step 2 | Now add the chicken and seal on all sides. |
| Step 3 | Add the courgette batons and cook for a minute or so. |
| Step 4 | Add the remaining vegetables and stir fry for a minute |
| Step 5 | Add the soy and stock, then stir through the noodles. |
| Step 6 | Cook until the noodles are soft (about 3 minutes) and then stir through most of the coriander and the coconut cream if used |
| Step 7 | Serve garnished with the remaining coriander leaves. |
I’m quite enjoying the 5:2 diet. For me the weight loss is quite slow, but I definitely feel less bloated and so far I’ve lost 2.5 kilos. And, with my current lifestyle, the 5:2 diet is the most practical way for me to at least try to slim down a bit.
Oh this is just up my street, love anything Asian and noodley. Thinking about it, I used to often have this for lunch and found it filled me up for hours. I could do with it now as I am feeling very bloated after 2 weeks of French food. My tummy is in need of a detox!