Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Environment

Not sure what to make for dinner? Here are recipes to help you eat sustainably

Food being prepared and presented during vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli hosted H&M Home Breakfast in 2017 in New York.
Donald Bowers
/
Getty Images
Food being prepared and presented during vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli hosted H&M Home Breakfast in 2017 in New York.

Climate change is affecting our food, and our food is affecting the climate. NPR is dedicating a week to stories and conversations about the search for solutions.


Deciding what to make for dinner can be stressful, especially if you're tight on time. Meanwhile, finding meals that are good for you, your wallet and the environment is a whole other puzzle.

Advertisement

But we're here to help. We've pulled together a few recipes to make sustainable choices even easier.


Weeknight chili

This America's Test Kitchen recipe gets around the protein deficit by adding red kidney beans. Plus, the folks at Morning Edition have already taste-tested it and share their thoughts.

➡️Full Recipe: Weeknight Meaty Chili

Advertisement

Vegetable Pot Pie

Striving for a meatless Monday? Or another veggie friendly meal to add to your rotation? The folks at Life Kit connected with Tracye McQuirter, a public health nutritionist and author, who recommends this hearty meal you can store in your freezer for up to three months.

➡️Full Recipe: Vegetable Pot Pie


A new take on 'Fish & Chips'

Tamika R. Francis shared this sustainable alternative to traditional fish & chips with her local station WBUR Boston.

As Francis explains, while in Saint Lucia she "worked with a cooperative of women fish vendors and learned fish can be consumed from its guts to its skin, and that the consumption of shark meat and other unsuitable seafoods varieties are usually rooted in pre-commercial artisanal practices. With education, more sustainable options can be found. It was there that I learned about dogfish as a sustainable white fish to replace the overconsumption of mako shark and other shark species."

The variety is plentiful in the Atlantic, making it a great alternative if you're near the East Coast.

➡️Full Recipe: Island-style fried cape shark


Seasonal eating-friendly roasted root vegetable salad

One way to make your eating habits more mindful of climate demands is to eat what is in season (tomatoes in the summer, apples in the fall, greens in the spring.) Here & Now's resident chef Kathy Gunst shared this recipe for a winter vegetable-heavy meal that can even be made ahead of time to help with the evening crunch.

➡️Full Recipe: Roasted Cabbage With Chive-Mustard-Caper Vinaigrette

Plus: 3 recipes to help you relish tomato season

Plus: Savor the end of summer while using up your seasonal veggies

Plus: Fall in love with 3 pumpkin recipes this autumn

Copyright 2024 NPR