If you're tired of potatoes: 10 unusual side dishes for the holiday table

Broccoli with garlic

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Ingredients

• 450 g broccoli;
• 2–3 tablespoons olive oil;
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar;
• 6 cloves of garlic;
• 1 teaspoon salt;
• red pepper - optional;
• lemon slices - for decoration.

Preparation

Divide the broccoli into florets and cut into medium pieces (rough stems can be removed).
In a food processor, blend the olive oil, vinegar, garlic and salt until thickened. If desired, you can add red pepper. Toss the mixture with the broccoli and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake the dish in an oven preheated to 230 °C for 12–15 minutes. Serve cold or hot, garnished with lemon wedges.

Quinoa on the green side

Quinoa "National" consists of continuous advantages. White Quinoa National is grown in Peru. Quinoa tastes like unprocessed rice and is good as a side dish and for making porridges. Quinoa contains amino acids and a large amount of proteins.

Pour 200 g of washed quinoa with 400 ml of water, add salt to taste, bring to a boil, and cook covered for 20 minutes. At the end, pour in 1 tbsp. l. olive oil and stir. Grate 3 cm of ginger root on a fine grater and fry with a crushed clove of garlic. Divide the head of broccoli into florets, put it in a frying pan, pour in 3 tbsp. l. water and simmer until completely softened.

Combine quinoa with stewed broccoli, 100 g of green peas and season with sauce. We will mix it from lime juice, 1 tsp. grain mustard, 1 tsp. honey and a pinch of chili. Before serving, garnish the quinoa with pine nuts and raisins. As an option, this side dish can be offered with veal baked with aromatic herbs.

Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary

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Ingredients

• 900 g thin-skinned potatoes;
• 1 tablespoon olive oil;
• 1 tablespoon dried rosemary (or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh);
• 2 teaspoons salt.

Preparation

Wash the potatoes well and cut them into small pieces (no need to peel the tubers). Transfer potatoes to a bowl and toss with remaining ingredients. Make sure all pieces are coated with oil. Place them on a baking sheet lined with foil.

Bake at 220°C for 45–50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Serve the dish hot.

Vegetable salad as a side dish for chicken cutlets

Compound:

• lettuce - 100 g;
• cucumbers (fresh) - 0.3 kg;
• stalk celery - 30 g;
• tomato - 150 g;
• bell pepper - 0.2 kg;
• chicken egg - 2 pcs.;
• yogurt - 60 ml.

Calorie content of the dish per 100 g: 37 kcal.

Cooking method:

• Boil the eggs. After cooling in cold water, peel and cut into large cubes or small slices.
• Wash the vegetables and dry with a napkin.
• Cut the tomatoes and cucumbers into small cubes, cut the pepper into strips, after removing the seeds.
• Rinse the celery stalk well and remove any coarse fibers. Finely chop the petiole.
• Wash the lettuce leaves and shake well. Tear it with your hands.
• Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix them with yogurt.

Glazed carrots

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Ingredients

• 900 g carrots;
• 60 g butter;
• salt, ground pepper - to taste;
• 1 glass of orange juice;
• 2 tablespoons of sugar or honey;
• fresh thyme - for decoration.

Preparation

Cut the carrots into cubes about 5 cm long. Melt the butter in a large frying pan. When it warms up, add the carrots. Add salt and pepper and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the carrots begin to soften. The process will take 5–8 minutes.

Add juice and sugar or honey. Continue cooking for about 15 minutes until the liquid has reduced to a glaze. Stir the dish from time to time.

Finally, taste the carrots. If necessary, add more salt and pepper. Serve the side dish hot, garnished with fresh thyme.

Barley in hops

A little imagination, and now pearl barley turns into an original side dish. For this recipe we will need “National” Dutch grits. “Dutch” cereal “National” was simply created for this dish. Dutch groats are polished pearl barley; they perfectly retain their color and shape. But the most important thing is that it remains crumbly, grain by grain. This grain also cooks faster and better absorbs the aromas and flavors of other ingredients.

In a deep frying pan, fry a red onion and yellow bell pepper with the addition of 2 cloves of garlic. Pour in 200 g of washed Dutch oven and, stirring frequently, brown over medium heat for 5 minutes. Pour in 300 ml of light beer, salt and pepper to taste, cover with a lid and simmer over medium heat for half an hour. If the liquid evaporates ahead of time, pour in a little boiling water.

Add 1 tbsp to the prepared cereal. l. butter, cover the pan with a towel and let it brew for 10 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle the barley with chopped cilantro or dill. It will be an organic addition to baked beef steaks or spicy chicken wings.

Couscous with almonds

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil;
• 4 cloves of garlic;
• ⅔ cup chopped almonds;
• 1 teaspoon paprika;
• 2¼ glasses of water;
• 2 cups couscous;
• ¾ teaspoon salt;
• ⅔ cup chopped parsley leaves.

Preparation

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Fry the garlic and almonds until the garlic is fragrant and the nuts are lightly browned. Add paprika and cook for about 10 seconds more.

Next, pour water into the pan, bring the mixture to a boil, immediately pour couscous and salt into it and stir. Cover the pan and let sit for 5 minutes, then uncover the couscous and fluff it with a fork. Stir the dish with chopped parsley and serve.

Vegetable side dish

You can prepare a lot of things from vegetables for cutlets. We will consider one of the recipes later in the article.

Vegetables baked in a sleeve

• onion - 2 medium-sized pieces;
• potatoes - 3 medium size;
• carrots - 2 medium-sized pieces;
• bell pepper - 2 medium-sized pieces;
• broccoli - 0.2 kg;
• beans - 0.15 kg;
• cauliflower - 0.2 kg;
• canned corn - 0.25 kg;
• “Mivina” bouillon cube – 4 pcs.

Cooking time: about two hours.

Calorie content of vegetable side dish: 43 kcal/100 g.

1. Peel the onion and cut it into small pieces;
2. After peeling the carrots, it should be cut into large rings;
3. Bell peppers are also cut into large slices;
4. Broccoli and cauliflower should not be cut with a knife. It is recommended to carefully break off pieces of cabbage and place them in a separate container;
5. After peeling, the potatoes are also cut into large pieces;
6. Finally, open the can of corn and add the canned vegetables to the container. Moreover, you should not throw away the juice from the jar, it will be useful in the future;
7. Add Mivina cubes to the corn brine and slightly heat the resulting composition;
8. Pour all the vegetables into a baking sleeve and place on a baking sheet in the oven;
9. We tie the sleeve and pierce several holes on top for air to escape;
10. Set the oven temperature to 160-180 degrees and wait for the vegetables to boil. Then leave the dish to simmer over low heat for another hour. Ready! A bright and healthy dish on your table!

Zucchini for chicken cutlets

• zucchini - 3 medium-sized pieces;
• zest of one lemon;
• garlic - 3 cloves;
• sunflower oil - 50 g;
• chicken eggs - 3 pcs;
• greens - 0.15 kg.

Cooking time: about an hour.

Calorie content of zucchini side dish: 88 kcal/100 g.

1. To begin with, it is recommended to make a small marinade composition. To do this, you will need to finely ferment the garlic and fresh herbs. Mix everything with lemon zest and leave to infuse in a separate bowl;
2. Green zucchini is cut into slices at least 0.5 cm thick;
3. Beat eggs and salt until smooth;
4. Next, heat up a frying pan with sunflower oil. Circles of zucchini, which were previously dipped in eggs, are laid out on it. The latter prevent the oil from being absorbed into the vegetables. Fry the zucchini until golden brown;
5. The still hot zucchini, which is laid out on a plate, is immediately sprinkled with a mixture of herbs and zest. This way the dish is completely saturated with a pleasant aroma. Ready!

Spinach with lemon and ginger

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil;
• 1 heaped tablespoon of grated ginger;
• 680 g spinach;
• ½ teaspoon salt;
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper;
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Preparation

Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add ginger and cook over medium heat for about 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Divide the spinach into 2-3 batches and add to the pan one at a time. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

Potato, zucchini and cheese casserole

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Ingredients

• 220 g zucchini;
• 450 g potatoes;
• 3 tablespoons olive oil;
• 110 g goat cheese;
• salt and ground black pepper - to taste;
• ¼ glass of milk;
• 30–35 g grated parmesan;
• 1 tablespoon chopped basil or thyme leaves.

Preparation

Wash the zucchini and potatoes and cut them into very thin slices. Toss the vegetables with olive oil and divide into three parts.

Spread one portion evenly in the prepared baking dish. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle some goat cheese on top. Lay out the remaining layers in the same way.

Then pour milk over the casserole, sprinkle with grated Parmesan and cook in the oven at 200°C for 15 minutes. Before serving, garnish the dish with basil or thyme.

Buckwheat cutlets - basic cooking principles

• Buckwheat is washed until the water is clear and a viscous porridge is cooked. You can safely use the porridge that is left over from dinner or lunch to make cutlets.
• Then the porridge is cooled and twisted through a meat grinder. It is advisable to do this twice so that the mass is homogeneous. Along with buckwheat porridge, peeled onions, soaked and squeezed bread and garlic are ground in a meat grinder.
• Eggs, salt, aromatic herbs, fresh herbs, and spices are added to the resulting minced meat.
• Cutlets are made from the resulting mass, breaded, fried or baked in the oven.
• To prepare cutlets with minced meat, liver or cheese, combine the buckwheat mass with these products, having previously crushed them.

Brussels sprouts with sage and walnuts

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Ingredients

• 90 g butter;
• 6 large sage leaves;
• salt - to taste;
• 40–45 g walnuts;
• 1 medium onion;
• 680 g Brussels sprouts;
• ¼ cup water (can be replaced with chicken or vegetable broth);
• 2 teaspoons sherry or vinegar.

Preparation

Heat 60 g of oil in a small frying pan. Once the foam subsides, add the sage leaves and fry them for two minutes, stirring once. Transfer the sage to a paper towel, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and set aside.

In the same frying pan over low heat, toast the chopped nuts. Cook them for three minutes, then turn off the heat and set aside.

Heat the remaining butter in a large skillet or saucepan. Fry the diced onion on it (about 10 minutes over medium heat). Add thinly sliced ​​Brussels sprouts, stir, add water or broth and cook covered. After 10 minutes, remove the lid, increase the heat and evaporate the water. Finally add vinegar or sherry.

Transfer the dish to a bowl and mix it with the sage and nuts. Serve hot.

Cauliflower puree with sour cream

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Ingredients

• 1 head of cauliflower (weighing approximately 500–700 g);
• ¼ cup chicken broth;
• 2 large cloves of garlic;
• 25 g grated parmesan;
• salt, ground pepper - to taste;
• 2 tablespoons of sour cream.

Preparation

Divide the cauliflower into florets and remove the stem. Place it in a bowl along with the broth and peeled garlic and cook in the microwave, covered, for 10–12 minutes.

Transfer the cabbage and garlic to a food processor or blender. Add cheese, salt, pepper there and grind everything until smooth. This will take about a minute. Add sour cream to the puree and serve warm.

Eastern passions for bulgur

An interesting side dish for meat would be National bulgur. Bulgur “National” is prepared from durum wheat in a special way. The grains are soaked, steamed, naturally dried and crushed. Due to this processing, the cereal does not need to be washed and additionally soaked before cooking.

Fry the onion cubes in a mixture of butter and olive oil until transparent. Remove the membranes and seeds from 2 green hot peppers, chop into strips and pour into a frying pan. After 5 minutes, add 3 pureed tomatoes in their own juice and 50 g of thick tomato paste, simmer under the lid for 10 minutes.

Now add 200 g of bulgur to the sauce, mix, pour in meat broth so that it covers the cereal by a couple of centimeters. Salt and pepper the dish to taste, cover with a lid and simmer for 15–20 minutes. Spicy tomato bulgur can be served with pork knuckle or marinated beef.

Mushrooms with wine and thyme

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons of odorless vegetable oil;
• 230 g champignons;
• salt and ground black pepper - to taste.
• 1 small shallot;
• 50 ml white wine;
• 1 small clove of garlic;
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves;
• sour cream, toast (for serving) - optional.

Preparation

Heat the oil in a shallow frying pan, add the mushrooms and shake the pan to distribute them evenly over the surface. Fry them over high heat for about a minute, then shake the pan again to turn the mushrooms.

Add salt, pepper, chopped onion and stir quickly. After 30 seconds, pour in the wine, add the garlic and a teaspoon of thyme. Cook until the liquid has evaporated.

Serve the dish, garnished with leftover thyme, with sour cream and toast, or as a side dish for main courses.

Risotto with corn

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Ingredients

• olive oil - for frying;
• 3 medium ears of corn;
• 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth;
• 1 large leek;
• 195 g arborio rice;
• 50 ml dry vermouth;
• 60 g butter;
• 50 g grated parmesan;
• salt, ground black pepper - to taste.

Cauliflower with tomato ragout and olives

Recipe from the chef of the restaurant <<Kuznya>> Ruslan Zakirov

Ingredients: 250 g cauliflower, 2 tsp. olive oil, 2 tbsp. tomato salsa sauce, 2 tsp. lemon juice, 3 tsp. butter, 10 g olives, 4-5 pcs. capers, salt, fresh herbs.

For tomato salsa sauce: 30 g chicken broth, 20 g butter, 5-6 pcs. capers, 20 g green olives, 2 medium tomatoes, salt, pepper, garlic to taste.

Instructions. First, prepare the sauce: grate fresh tomatoes, season with salt, pepper, and garlic to taste. Finely chop the olives and mix with the tomatoes. Add chicken broth, butter and capers. Next, tackle the cauliflower: Blanch the cauliflower and roast in the oven or grill with a drizzle of olive oil for 6 to 8 minutes. When ready, puree some of the cauliflower: to do this, beat it in a blender with the addition of butter. Place the remaining cauliflower on a bed of puree, top with tomato salsa and drizzle with lemon juice. Garnish with olives and capers.