Sign up to IndyEat’s free newsletter for weekly recipes, foodie features and cookbook releasesGet our food and drink newsletter for freeGet our food and drink newsletter for freeOur guts are doing far more behind the scenes than we often give them credit for. The trillions of microbes that live in the gut don’t just help with digestion – they play a role in everything from immunity and heart health to mood and brain function. Which is why, this Love Your Gut Week (15-21 September), it might be time to show yours a little extra care.The good news? Supporting your microbiome doesn’t have to mean complicated supplements or restrictive diets – just flavour-packed meals made with the right ingredients. To prove it, the experts at Love Your Gut have created six easy recipes designed to feed your gut as well as your appetite.Each dish is built around microbiome-friendly hero ingredients – think fibre-rich pulses, fermented foods, crunchy vegetables and antioxidant-packed herbs – all shown to help diversify and strengthen the bacteria in your gut. And there’s plenty of variety too, because eating a wide range of plants is one of the simplest ways to keep your gut happy.There are savoury pancakes with cottage cheese and broad beans to brighten up breakfast, a one-pot chicken lasagne for fuss-free weeknights, and even a creamy baked quinoa rice pudding that proves comfort food can be gut-friendly too. Alongside them sit dishes inspired by global flavours – from a Burmese-style chickpea tofu to a vibrant poke bowl with miso aubergine and kimchi.So, whether you’re in the mood for something nostalgic, nourishing or a little adventurous, these recipes are a reminder that looking after your gut can be as easy – and delicious – as what you put on your plate.Pea, broad bean and cottage cheese pancakesopen image in galleryA savoury stack that proves breakfast can be both protein-packed and microbiome-friendly (Love Your Gut)These savoury breakfast pancakes pack in plenty of whole food protein thanks to cottage cheese, eggs and three types of legumes – peas, broad beans and chickpeas – in the form of flour. Fresh herbs push up the plant count even more. Delicious served with just a squeeze of lemon and some pea shoots, or accompanied with your choice of roasted tomatoes, sliced avocado, poached eggs or smoked fish.Gut-friendly hero ingredient: Vegetables such as broad beans help to keep the gut healthy because they contain an abundance of polyphenols, a type of antioxidant. Broad beans are also a particularly good source of flavanols, which help keep the balance of microorganisms in the gut healthy by inhibiting the growth of various pathogens and increasing the populations of beneficial bacteria.Serves: 4 | Makes: 8 pancakes (8cm in diameter/1cm thick/60g batter per pancake)Prep time: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 15 minutesIngredients:150g cottage cheese 1 medium egg 50g gram (chickpea) flour ½ tsp baking powder 100g frozen peas, defrosted 100g frozen baby broad beans, defrosted 3 spring onions, chopped 15g basil, chopped 15g flat leaf parsley, chopped 1 lemon, zest finely grated 1 tbsp olive oil To serve:50g pea shoots 1 lemon, cut into wedges (the one that has been zested for the recipe is fine) Plus roasted tomatoes, sliced avocado, poached eggs or smoked fish (optional) Method:Put the cottage cheese, egg, chickpea flour and baking powder in a blender. Season to taste and blend until smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides if necessary. Add the peas, broad beans, spring onions, herbs and lemon and pulse until finely chopped and evenly mixed. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan, then use half the mixture to make the first four pancakes, spreading each to about 8cm in diameter with the back of a spoon. Cook over a medium-low heat for 2 minutes or until the pancakes have browned underneath and are starting to set around the edge. Flip the pancakes with a palette knife or fish slice and cook the other side until golden brown and springy to the touch. Keep the first batch warm while you cook four more pancakes, adding a little more oil if needed, then serve with pea shoots, a squeeze of lemon and any other accompaniments you fancy. Cook’s tip: If you’re serving fewer people, freeze any leftover cooked pancakes. They can be re-crisped from frozen in an air-fryer (180C/8 minutes) or defrosted and warmed in the oven (180C/160C fan/gas mark 4 for 10 minutes).Poke bowl with sticky miso aubergine and kimchiopen image in galleryA rainbow in a bowl – fibre-rich grains, sticky aubergine and live kimchi for a gut-loving lunch (Love Your Gut)Poke bowls, with their mix of colourful vegetables, are always a nutritious choice, but this recipe boosts the gut health benefits even more. We’ve replaced half of the sushi rice with mixed colour quinoa to increase the fibre content of the poke base. As well as boosting the variety of fibres, different colours and varieties of the same plant contain different polyphenols, which fuel the microbiome. The aubergine is cooked with miso paste and sprinkled with sesame seeds and we’ve also added a generous spoonful of kimchi. Serve with a rainbow of salad vegetables.Gut-friendly hero ingredients: Fermented foods like kimchi can support gut diversity, with research showing that a diet rich in these foods can increase microbiome diversity and improve immune responses in just 10 weeks.Sesame seeds contain sesamol, a compound with anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce gut inflammation.The different colours in a rainbow of salad vegetables correspond to different nutrients and phytochemicals. These bioactive plant compounds modulate gut bacteria and enhance gut barrier integrity.Serves: 4Prep time: 15 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutesIngredients:125g sushi rice 125g white, black and red quinoa 25ml rice vinegar 1 tbsp caster sugar For the aubergine:2 medium aubergines, cut into 5cm cubes 2 tbsp sunflower oil 2 tbsp white miso paste 1 tbsp rice vinegar 2 tbsp maple syrup 1 tsp sesame oil 2 tsp sesame seeds 1 red chilli, finely chopped To serve:Salad vegetables of your choice: avocado, radishes, peppers and thinly sliced red cabbage all work well 175 g kimchi – look for kimchi from the fridge aisle that says ‘live’ to make sure it contains good bacteriaMethod: Preheat the oven to 230C (210C fan/gas mark 8) with a roasting tin inside. Put the rice and quinoa in a bowl and rinse with several changes of cold water until the water stays clear. Drain well and transfer it to a medium saucepan with 300ml water. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Line the hot roasting tin with greaseproof paper, add the aubergine and drizzle with the sunflower oil. Roast for 25 minutes, turning once or twice. When all the water has been absorbed by the rice and quinoa, take the pan off the heat and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Mix the miso with the vinegar, maple syrup and sesame oil. Once the aubergine is soft and golden, toss it with the miso mixture and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Return to the oven for 5 minutes or until sticky and bronzed, then sprinkle with chopped chilli. To season the quinoa rice, heat the vinegar with the sugar and salt to taste until dissolved. When the quinoa rice has rested, drizzle over the mixture and carefully stir it through. Divide the quinoa rice between four bowls. Top with the sticky miso aubergine and serve with colourful vegetables and a big spoonful of kimchi. Cook’s tip: The quinoa rice mixture is also delicious cold, so it’s ideal meal prep for packed lunches. As soon as it’s cooked, spread it out on a large plate and cover with damp kitchen paper. Leave to cool, then store in the fridge for up to 24 hours.One-pot chicken, leek and spinach lasagne with bean bechamelopen image in galleryLasagne night, upgraded – a creamy bean béchamel adds extra fibre without any fuss (Love Your Gut)This super convenient one-pot dish is a satisfying and healthy midweek meal option. The humble canned haricot bean makes a velvety and nutritious alternative to a traditional bechamel sauce and doesn’t require any pre-cooking, making it perfect for this speedy one-pot dish. The beans, sweet leeks and earthy spinach increase the fibre content and plant count.Gut-friendly hero ingredients:Canned pulses like haricot beans contain protein, lots of dietary fibre and are low in fat, as well as providing a significant source of vitamins and minerals such as iron, zinc, folate and magnesium. Dietary fibre has two important roles in the gut: it helps digested food pass through the gut by bulking the stool, and feeds the bacteria in the colon, aiding gut health. The vitamin C from the oranges in the accompanying side salad helps your body absorb more of the iron from the beans and spinach. Serves: 4Prep time: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutesIngredients:30g butter 1 large leek, finely chopped 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 500g chicken mince 450ml chicken stock 250g spinach, stalks removed, leaves roughly chopped 1 tbsp cornflour 250g fresh lasagne sheets 400g canned haricot beans, drained and liquor reserved 1/8 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated 50g Parmesan, finely grated, plus a little extra for the top 125g mozzarella (drained weight) For the salad:2 oranges 1 small clove garlic, crushed 1 tbsp sherry vinegar 2 tbsp olive oil 4 red chicory, separated into leaves and halved if large 30g roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped Method:Heat the butter in a shallow 26cm cast-iron casserole dish and fry the leek and thyme for 8 minutes or until soft and sweet. Add the garlic and fry for 2 minutes, then add the mince and fry for 5 minutes or until it starts to colour. Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer, then add the spinach in batches, allowing it to wilt down into the sauce each time. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix the cornflour with 1 tbsp cold water, then stir it into the sauce. Reserve 3-4 lasagne sheets for the top, trimming to size with scissors. Tear the rest in half, then slip each one into the same pan, moving them around with a spoon in between, to make sure they don’t stick together. Lay the reserved sheets on top, pushing them down briefly to flood the top with stock, then simmer gently for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the grill. Tip the beans into a blender and add 100ml of the bean liquor, the nutmeg and Parmesan. Blend until smooth, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. When the lasagne sheets are cooked al dente, spread the bean bechamel evenly over the surface of the lasagne. Tear the mozzarella into small pieces and scatter over the top with a little more grated Parmesan. Transfer the dish to the grill and cook for 5 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and bubbling. Transfer to a heatproof surface and leave to settle while you prepare the salad. Cut the top and bottom off the oranges, then slice away the peel. Cut out the orange segments into a salad bowl, then squeeze over any remaining juice from the membrane that’s left behind. Add the garlic and sherry vinegar to the bowl with a pinch of salt and whisk with a fork to combine, then incorporate the olive oil. Toss with the chicory leaves and hazelnuts and serve with the lasagne. Cook’s tip: You can use any canned or jarred white beans to make the bechamel, including cannellini and butterbeans. These bigger bean varieties can be slightly softer, so reduce the amount of bean liquor to 50ml.Burmese-style chickpea tofuopen image in galleryCrispy, colourful and full of fibre, this plant-based twist is a feast for your gut bacteria (Love Your Gut)Chickpea flour is used by many different cultures to produce a polenta-like mixture, which can be set in a mould. In Myanmar, it’s known as Shan tofu and is often served sliced as a salad or deep-fried with a dipping sauce. We’ve paired the tofu with some typical Burmese-style salad ingredients, which happen to be high in both prebiotic soluble fibre to feed your microbiome, and insoluble fibre to aid digestion and help you feel fuller for longer.Gut-friendly hero ingredients:Chickpeas are a significant source of dietary fibre, which acts as a prebiotic by feeding the beneficial bacteria in your gut Turmeric has an anti-inflammatory effect and studies have shown that it can be beneficial for the gut microbiome. Serves: 4Prep time: 15 minutes (plus cooling) | Cooking time: 10 minutesIngredients:100g chickpea (gram) flour ½ tsp mild paprika ¼ tsp turmeric For the salad:½ white cabbage, very thinly sliced 1 large carrot, peeled into ribbons 250g cherry tomatoes, sliced 50g pickled sushi ginger, drained weight 2 tbsp fresh coriander, leaves roughly chopped 2 tbsp crispy onions 2 tbsp crispy chilli oil, or to taste For the dressing:1 lime, juiced 2 tsp caster sugar 1½ tbsp Thai fish sauce, or use tamari to keep it vegan and gluten-free 1 clove garlic, crushed Method:Grease a small loaf tin or baking dish (approx 10cm x 20cm) and set aside. Sieve the flour and spices into a bowl, then stir in 160ml cold water and season to taste with black pepper to make a batter. Heat 375ml water in a medium saucepan. Once it starts to simmer, whisk in the chickpea batter, then continue to stir over a medium-low heat until it thickens. Continue to simmer for 8 minutes to cook out the flour, stirring often, then scrape the mixture into the prepared tin and leave to cool completely. The tofu can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days if needed. To make the salad, arrange the cabbage, carrot, tomatoes, pickled ginger and coriander on a serving platter. Mix together the dressing ingredients and drizzle over the salad. Turn out the set tofu and cut into 5 mm slices. Arrange over the salad and garnish with crispy chilli oil and crispy onions. Cook’s tip: Any leftover cubes of the cooled chickpea tofu can be brushed with a little oil and then cooked in the air-fryer. After 12-15 minutes at 200C, they puff up, turning crisp on the outside with a tender centre. Serve with your favourite Asian dipping sauces.Roast hake with walnut salsa verdeopen image in galleryHerb-flecked salsa verde and crunchy walnuts bring a microbiome boost to this simple fish supper (Love Your Gut)Walnuts have long been associated with good heart health, but they’re also beneficial for the gut. In this recipe, they add a lovely crunch to salsa verde, a vibrant dressing made with a mixture of polyphenol-rich herbs and olive oil.Gut-friendly hero ingredients:Walnuts are a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, which can help reduce inflammation and improve the gut lining and clinical trials have suggested that adults who eat walnuts every day have healthier gut bacteria.Herbs are an easy way to help keep your gut healthy. People who eat more than 30 different plant types per week (including herbs) have a more diverse range of bacteria living in their gut than those who eat 10 or fewer types of plants per week. Serves: 4Prep time: 15 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutesIngredients:400g beetroot, peeled and halved (or quartered if large) 600g carrots, halved lengthways (or quartered if large) 3 tbsp olive oil 4 x 150g hake portions (or other white sustainable fish) For the walnut salsa verde:25g flat-leaf parsley, leaves finely chopped 10g basil, leaves finely chopped 8 mint leaves, finely chopped 40g walnuts, chopped 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 tbsp baby capers, rinsed and drained 5 green olives, stoned and finely chopped 1 lemon, juiced and zest finely grated 4 tbsp olive oil Method:Preheat the oven to 230C/210C fan/gas mark 8. Place the quartered beetroot in a microwaveable dish. Add enough water to come halfway up the sides and cover with a vented lid or pierced film. Cook on high for 8 minutes, then drain well. Toss the carrots and beetroot with 2 tbsp of the oil and arrange, cut side down in a roasting tin. Season with salt and pepper and roast for 30 minutes, turning halfway through. While the vegetables are roasting, make the salsa verde by stirring all of the ingredients together. Season to taste, then set aside. 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, heat the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil in an ovenproof frying pan. Season the hake, then fry, skin side down for 3 minutes or until golden and crisp. Turn the hake, transfer the pan to the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6. Roast for 5 minutes or until it flakes, but is still juicy in the centre. Divide the vegetables and fish between four plates and serve with the salsa verde spooned over. Cook’s tip: The salsa verde also pairs really well with oily fish like mackerel, barbecued lamb or griddled asparagus.Baked quinoa rice puddingopen image in galleryA nostalgic classic, reimagined with quinoa, nuts and apricots to keep your gut – and sweet tooth – happy (Love Your Gut)A gut-friendly revamp of the nostalgic comfort food classic baked rice pudding, this recipe swaps traditional rice for quinoa. We’ve also broken with tradition to use almond milk, which complements the pistachios and apricots used to flavour the pudding, plus it makes the pudding suitable for those following a vegan diet. We’ve given instructions for a hands-free long slow cook, as well as a speedier version that requires a little more attention.Gut-friendly hero ingredients:Quinoa has nearly four times the amount of fibre compared to short grain rice and less than a third of its carbohydrate content. This, in combination with its higher protein levels, also means the carbohydrate is absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream than the rice version, reducing the likelihood of sugar spikes.Eating a variety of plant-based foods, including fruits like apricots, can support the gut microbiome – as they are rich in fibre. Serves: 4Prep time: 5 minutes | Cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes (or 25 minutes – see tip)Ingredients:150g quinoa 75g pistachio nuts, chopped 75g dried apricots, chopped 400ml almond milk 400ml tin light coconut milk 60g caster sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract ¼ tsp nutmeg, freshly ground 1 tbsp apricot jam 1 tbsp lemon juice Method:Preheat the oven to 170C/150C fan/gas mark 3. Put the quinoa in a bowl and cover with cold water. Give it a good stir, then drain through a sieve. Rinse and drain a few more times until the water runs clear, then drain well and return to the bowl. Reserve 25g of the pistachios for the topping. Add the rest to the bowl with the dried apricots, almond milk, coconut milk, sugar, vanilla and nutmeg. Stir well, then pour the mixture into a 1 litre baking dish (approx 20x25cm), ensuring the apricots are evenly distributed. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the pudding has set with a slight wobble in the middle. Leave to stand for 15 minutes. Warm the apricot jam and lemon juice together in a small pan until runny, then drizzle over the pudding. Crush the reserved pistachios and sprinkle over the pudding before serving. Cook’s tip: If you’re short on time (and don’t mind sacrificing the traditional golden skin!), the pudding can be cooked in a saucepan: simmer gently for 25 minutes, stirring every few minutes to ensure it doesn’t stick.For more recipes, information and useful resources, visit www.loveyourgut.com
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Six gut-friendly recipes to boost your microbiome and gut health
