Dr Rupy Aujla tells Chris Evans about his new cookbook: 'You can have indulgence and it can be healthy too'

Virgin Radio

18 Jan 2023, 11:52

Dr Rupy Aujla joined The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about his brand new cookbook.

New book, Dr Rupy Cooks: Healthy. Easy. Flavour, is out tomorrow (19th January), and features over 100 recipes, each containing three portions of fruit and vegetables per person, serving two people, all made in one pan. About what it takes for a recipe to make it into his new book, Dr Rupy told Chris: “It's got to be healthy, first of all. It's got to be easy, but it's also got to be flavourful… because when you have a pleasurable eating experience, what happens is that all the different senses, from your nose, your ears, your eyes are coalescing to the primary sensory cortices in your brain to create a behaviour that you want to repeat.

“So when you have that delicious… it might be a Sunday roast, or it might be a cake or whatever, all those experiences create that behavioural repetition pattern.”

Every recipe in the book has been researched and developed to give maximal health benefits. The NHS doctor said: “So, to develop a healthy eating habit, we need to tap into that pleasure centre of the brain. And so, whenever I talk about food, I don't just want to be talking about the health attributes of the ingredients; like if you have this broccoli, it's going to lower your cholesterol, it's going to improve your mitochondria. it’s going to improve your energy, that's all good and well, but if I don't also talk about the flavour, the tastiness of it, how we're going to create this broccoli that's going to have a bit of red wine vinegar, a bit of sharpness, a bit of salt on the top to marry the flavour of the tartness… if you don't lean into that, then that's not going to create that habit that you want to repeat. 

“When I'm describing things, I'm literally tapping into the medial orbital frontal cortex of your brain, your pleasure centre, to really get you excited about food, and so the flavour element is really, really important as well as it being easy.” 

Dr Rupy worked with over 1000 volunteers across the world to test every single recipe, assessing simplicity, flavour, timing, and accuracy. “Tray bakes, casseroles, stews, curries, those are the things that I really lean into, because you know when you're when you're busy, and I come back from from clinic or whatever, it's 7, 8pm, the last thing I want to do is have multiple pans on the hob and then create an absolutely mess. You want it to be super simple,” he explained.

The founder of The Doctor’s Kitchen added: “You don't even have to worry about the health effects because, I've got you covered. You just need to worry about making the recipes themselves. They're super easy, and you're focusing on the flavour and the enjoyment of them. And that's what this book is all about.”

Giving a few tips, the doctor said: “Definitely don't peel your vegetables, with exceptions, of course, like onions. You want to make sure you take all the outer hard shells off. But, with starchy vegetables, things like parsnips, carrots and sweet potato, please do scrub them properly, and then use them in cooking because they add a lot of flavour. Those plant chemicals concentrate in the skin so you're actually getting a lot more bang for your buck. And they taste wonderful when you cook them properly.” 

Dr Rupy told Chris that mushrooms are a “very good sources of vitamin D, particularly if you put them by the windowsill, and they will actually convert vitamin D from sunlight. If you put them with the gills facing upwards in front of the window, you can actually increase the vitamin D content.”

One of Dr Rupy’s recipes is “a deconstructed Cherry Ripe”, which is a take on the iconic Australian chocolate bar. “I wanted to recreate that, so I basically blended up fresh cherries that are not in season right now. So do this when it's in season. You add coconut flakes to that, some dried cherries and then you layer it on with dark chocolate on top with some pistachios. That is a perfect little after-dinner treat to have.” 

He continued: “One of the things in the book I'm quite proud of is the healthy feast section. So, I want food and healthy food to be part of celebrations. Because it shouldn't just be something that you do individually. It's not just something you do with your partner, something you want to do with the whole family to share with friends. And so a little dessert like this is a really good nod to how you can have fun, you can celebrate, you can have indulgence, and it can be healthy too.”

Dr Rupy Cooks is out 19th January.

For more great interviews listen to  The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky, weekdays from 6:30am on Virgin Radio, or  catch up on-demand here.