This is a great, quick, healthy meal made from simple ingredients that you can whip up within 15mins and when paired with a big plate of greens it’s highly nutritious too. It also makes a good meat free dinner/lunch option and is handy for when you haven’t been shopping in a while as we all tend to have some oats and beans tucked away somewhere in the cupboard.
I love using beans in cooking, they are such a nutritious cheap ingredient and are so versatile. I love the combo of chilli and lemon as it’s refreshing and full of flavour which is what you need to perk up plain beans.
To add more flavour I’ve created a creamy harrissa dressing, If you’ve never used harrissa before then you’re really missing out, It’s a spicy paste similar to chipotle which I’ve paired with creamy tahini/yogurt (choose your favourite) to create a lovely silky dressing for these nuggets which you definitely won’t want to leave out as it gives much needed moisture to the dish.
Recipe (serves 2)
-1 can (235g) white beans-drained (I used haricot)
-zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
-2 Tbsb oil (I used chilli infused oil)
-1 Tbsp lemon juice
-4 Tbsp oats
-salad and dressing
Dressing
-2 Tbsp tahini* or yogurt
-Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)
-1 to 2 tsp harissa paste
*Splash boiling water if tahini is too thick
Note: If you can’t find harrissa in your supermarket then you can use 1 tsp chipotle or your favourite hot sauce and just adjust it to your tastes
Directions
-Add all of the ingredients for the nuggets into a bowl, stir it, then using a hand blender or masher (this is harder) break down the mix until chunky but not totally smooth, you can also use a food processor and process until combined
-Heat a frying pan with some oil over a medium heat
-Scoop out roughly 2 teaspoons of the mix and shape into nuggets by flattening with the palms of your hands, repeat until the mix is all used up
-Fry each nugget in the pan for approx 3-4 mins on each side then serve up with your salad and dressing
-To make the dressing, simply mix all the ingredients together, use boiling water from the kettle to thin out the tahini to your desired consistency. Squeeze over some fresh lemon juice & chilli flakes if desired
