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Quinoa

I still get some eye rolling when I mention quinoa to my colleagues! But quinoa in all its coloured varieties is a really worthwhile addition to your diet. It’s good value and widely available, it’s easy to cook and it has a better nutritional profile than rice, bread or pasta (higher in protein, with more vitamins and minerals 186), plus we even produce some right here in the UK! It contains all essential amino acids and the dark varieties possess even more antioxidants than the white.

It has been labelled as a potential ‘functional food’, because it may help reduce the incidence of high blood pressure, metabolic syndrome and stroke. 187This is quite a claim to make, given the lack of human studies testing these theories, 188but is certainly an area to watch.

Note, however, that these potential benefits don’t extend to every product just because it has quinoa in it. If a chocolate bar has some sprinkled puffed quinoa grains on top, this does not automatically make it a protein-rich, blood-pressure-reducing functional food! I recommend cooking with whole quinoa, and using it in both savoury and sweet dishes.

Extra-virgin olive oil

A cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet, the popularity of this polyphenol-rich fat has fluctuated in recent years, as it has found itself caught up in the battle of opinion on what constitutes a healthy plate, but I use good-quality olive oil liberally.

In the context of a low-sugar, nutrient-dense diet, olive oil has been shown to potentially be protective of heart health 189and, importantly, makes food so much more enjoyable. ‘EVOO’, as it’s affectionately called by health bloggers, is thought to reduce oxidative stress because of its good fatty acid content 190and rich diversity of phenolics. 191The role of oxidation and inflammation in heart disease has become well recognised in the medical community, so it’s probably the antioxidant effect of EVOO that makes it a heart-healthy ingredient.

It’s a staple in my store cupboard and fat of choice for lightly sautéing food, dressing dishes and making pestos. It remains stable (the chemical bonds do not break down) up to reasonable cooking temperatures around 170°C 192and the difference in taste between poor- and high-quality EVOO is noticeable to even the least refined of palates. Spend a few extra pounds on organic, cold-pressed 193olive oil – your heart will thank you for it.

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