Have your curry and eat it
You can have your curry and eat it, according to Nottingham’s Curry Lounge, following its results from a six month project that has significantly reduced the number of calories on its menu.
The Nottingham restaurant is set to launch new dishes as part of a wider campaign to promote the health benefits of Indian cuisine, as it is often deemed as high in fat and calories in today’s ever-increasing health conscious society.
The Tandoori Salmon starter for example, is now 90 calories due to its steaming and tandoor cooking methods, followed by the Lamb Seekh Kebab at 174 calories per portion.
Lamb Rogan Josh has a calorie decrease of 21 per cent, now containing 372 calories, whilst the Chicken Tikka Masala is just 285 calories per portion - a decrease of 20 per cent compared to the dish before the clamp down on energy values. Chicken Korma also underwent a 20 per cent decrease, now at 405 calories per portion.*
Not only have the main menu ingredients and cooking methods been tweaked where possible, the Curry Lounge has also added a healthier low-fat section of mains, cooked with zero butter and only a miniscule amount of olive oil – all for the more mindful diners and exercise buffs that may be on a diet or following a healthy eating plan.
The research, testing and final outcomes were undertaken by students from Nottingham University’s food research team, who were asked to measure the calorific and nutritional values on the entire menu.
“It was a really interesting exercise, and one that we all took very seriously, especially as being in the kitchen with such fine Indian food makes for larger waistlines!” said Arfan Razak, owner of the Curry Lounge.
“I’m pleased to say that we’ve succeeded in lowering the calorie content in most of our dishes, but more importantly, we haven’t lost any of our tremendous flavours, or compromised on the use of quality, fresh ingredients, or even altered our traditional cooking methods - so now we can offer our health conscious customers a better, informed choice.”
As a result of this project, the restaurant was also able to compare and contrast its dish suitability with the mainstream Indian and Western ready meals that are available from major supermarkets.
Notoriously indulgent and creamy, the Chicken Korma ready meal came out at 356kcal in Asda for 450g; 618kcal in Somerfield for 450g; 703kcal in Sainsbury’s for 400g; and 720kcal in Tesco for just 350g. Interestingly, Sainsbury’s Be Good to Yourself Chicken Korma meal contains 403kcal, due to the skimmed milk and low-fat yoghurt and fromage frais – a similar value to the Curry Lounge’s 405 calories.
“The supermarket findings were a real shock, particularly when you scrutinise the nutritional information and come to realise that the average meat content is only 22 per cent of the whole dish – so it seems that you certainly get more meat for your pound sterling when dining out!” Raz concluded.
To find out more about the Curry Lounge, visit currylounge.co.uk.
* All Curry Lounge calorie values are based on a 400g portion to provide direct comparison with the supermarket products. Actual portion sizes may vary in the restaurant.
