Herby Salmon with Roasted Tomatoes, Aubergine and Lentils

Healthy eating for PMOS does not need to mean cutting out carbs, following complicated food rules or cooking a completely separate “hormone-balancing” meal.

In fact, one of the most useful approaches is often much simpler: build meals around good-quality protein, plenty of vegetables, fibre-rich carbohydrates and healthy fats.

This colourful salmon traybake does exactly that.

It combines oily fish with lentils, aubergine, tomatoes, peppers, herbs and extra virgin olive oil to make a satisfying Mediterranean-style meal that delivers protein, fibre, omega-3 fats and a wide range of plant nutrients.

And because almost everything cooks in one roasting dish, it is very easy to make.

Herby Salmon with Roasted Tomatoes, Aubergine and Lentils

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 salmon fillets, around 120 to 140g each
• 2 aubergines, cut into chunks
• 1 tin plum tomatoes
• 1 red onion, cut into wedges
• 2 red peppers, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 x 400g tin green or Puy lentils, drained and rinsed
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• large handful fresh parsley, chopped
• small handful fresh basil, chopped
• black pepper

To serve

• 4 tbsp thick Greek yoghurt
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• squeeze of lemon
• fresh herbs

Method

• Heat the oven to 200°C fan.
• Place the aubergine, tomatoes, onion and peppers in a large roasting dish.
• Add two tablespoons of olive oil, the garlic, oregano and smoked paprika, season with black pepper and toss everything together.
• Roast for around 25 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
• Stir the lentils through the roasted vegetables.
• Place the salmon fillets on top. Mix the remaining tablespoon of olive oil with the lemon zest, half the lemon juice and half the chopped herbs, then spoon this over the salmon.
• Return to the oven for approximately 12 to 15 minutes, until the salmon is just cooked.
• Mix the Greek yoghurt with a squeeze of lemon and some black pepper.
• Scatter the remaining parsley and basil over the tray and serve with a spoonful of lemony yoghurt.

A useful template for other meals
One reason I like this recipe is that you can use the same basic formula well beyond this particular dish.

Think:

protein + fibre-rich carbohydrate + plenty of vegetables + healthy fats + flavour.

For example, that could be chicken with chickpeas and roasted vegetables, tofu with edamame and brown rice, or eggs with beans, vegetables and avocado.

There does not need to be anything exotic about eating well with PMOS.

Rather than asking whether an individual food is “good” or “bad for your hormones”, it can be much more helpful to look at the whole meal.

• Does it contain enough protein?
• Where is the fibre?
• Are there plenty of plants?
• What type of fat does it contain?
• And, importantly, is it something you actually enjoy eating?

Those are far more useful questions than trying to follow an ever-growing list of PMOS food rules.

If you like this recipe, why not check out more PMOS-friendly recipes in our Recipe Index.