Today, 22 April is Earth Day 2023. Given that 7,000 litres of water is needed to produce a single pound of beef, compared to only 147 litres per pound of vegetables, one person going meat-free for one day a week can save 500 litres of water per meal! Look no further for some unique salads to spice up your veggie intake, straight from the horn of Africa.

Dinish: Potato, cabbage, and carrot stew

Serves 4

• 2 onions, finely diced
• Oil, for cooking (any oil without a strong taste is fine)
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh garlic
• 1 Tbsp ground turmeric
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 5 potatoes, peeled and diced (if large)
• 1/2 head green cabbage, shredded
• 1 tsp salt, or to taste
• 2 green chillies

Sauté the onion in a saucepan with just enough oil to stop it sticking. When the onion starts to brown, add the garlic and sauté for another minute or so.

Add the turmeric and stir, then add a bit of water so the mixture looks like paste.

Add the carrots and cook for 5–10 minutes until they are al dente. Then add the potatoes, stirring throughout to ensure even cooking. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the shredded cabbage, salt, and the whole green chillies. Cook until the cabbage starts to wilt.

It will continue to cook once you take it off the stove. Be careful not to overcook the potatoes, as you will end up with mash instead of Dinish.

Hot tip: In Africa, Dinish is served as part of a vegan platter, and is sometimes the first solid dish babies are started on. It’s also a great vegan replacement for potato salad.

Salata dakwa: Peanut butter salad

Serves 2

• 2 tomatoes, diced into 1cm cubes
• 1 cucumber, peeled or skin on, diced into 1cm cubes
• 200g mixed leaf salad, finely shredded
• 1/2 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

For the dressing

• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 1/2 Tbsp smooth peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp water

Place all the dressing ingredients in a bowl and mix until you achieve a mayonnaise-like consistency. Season with salt.

Combine the salad ingredients, add the dressing, and mix well to serve.

Hot tip: This is great to complement spicy dishes due to the creaminess of the peanut butter. If you’re vegetarian, adding a hardboiled egg makes it a meal in its own right.

Get the latest Canberra news, sport, entertainment, lifestyle, competitions and more delivered straight to your inbox with the Canberra Daily Newsletter. Sign up here.