“Food wasn’t meant to me hard.” Leah Itsines’ recipes combine love of food and healthy living to nurse ‘bad’ relationships with food back to health. It’s good food, made simple.

Chicken katsu and soba noodle salad

Serves 2 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 20 mins

• 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1/3 cup (50g) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 2/3 cup (50g) panko breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 3 tsp shiro miso paste
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp grated ginger
• 2 tsp honey
• 1/2 bunch garlic chives, finely chopped (Or regular chives + 2 crushed garlic cloves)
• 180g soba noodles
• 150g sugar snap peas
• 1 cup (155g) frozen broad beans, thawed and peeled
• Peanut oil, for frying

For the tonkatsu sauce

• 1 Tbsp tomato sauce
• 3 tsp apple sauce
• 3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp oyster sauce

Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil.

Lightly pound the thick end of each chicken breast so that it is the same thickness as the other end. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Put the flour and breadcrumbs on separate plates. Whisk the egg in a bowl. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour, then dip them in the egg and coat in the breadcrumbs. Set aside while you prepare the salad.

Combine the tamari, rice vinegar, miso, sesame oil, ginger, honey, and garlic chives in a large bowl.

Cook the noodles in the boiling water for 2 minutes. Add the sugar snap peas and broad beans and cook for 1 minute, then drain. Rinse well under cold water and drain well.

Add the noodles, sugar snap peas and broad beans to the bowl with the tamari dressing and toss well to coat.

Pour enough of the peanut oil into a large frying pan to come 0.5–1cm up the side. Heat the oil over medium– high heat, then add the chicken and cook for 6–8 minutes on each side or until golden and cooked through. Remove from the pan, drain on paper towel and rest for a couple of minutes before slicing.

Meanwhile, make the tonkatsu sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl.

Divide the salad among bowls, add the sliced chicken and spoon the tonkatsu sauce over the top.

For a vegetarian meal, use firm tofu or a meat-free substitute instead of the chicken and omit the tonkatsu sauce.

Crispy fish tacos with sweet chilli avocado salsa

Serves 4 | Prep 15 mins | Cook 15 mins

• 600g firm white skinless fish fillets, such as snapper
• 1/2 cup (110g) rice flour
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 tsp onion powder
• Ground white pepper, to taste
• Peanut oil, for frying
• 2 egg whites
• 8–10 butter lettuce leaves
• 8–10 mini tortillas

For sweet chilli avocado salsa

• 1 1/2 Tbsp sweet chilli sauce
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 1–2 avocados, diced
• 1 Lebanese (short) cucumber, quartered lengthways, sliced
• 2 spring onions (scallions), chopped
• 1 handful coriander (cilantro), chopped

To make the salsa, stir the sweet chilli sauce and lime juice together in a bowl. Add the avocado, cucumber, spring onion and coriander and toss to coat. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside while you prepare the fish.

Cut the fish into thick strips.

Combine the rice flour, turmeric, onion powder, white pepper, and a little salt in a large bowl.

Pour enough peanut oil into a large frying pan to come about 1cm up the side of the pan and place the pan over medium–high heat.

Whisk the egg whites in a bowl until foamy. Add half of the fish and toss to coat, then dredge the fish pieces in the rice flour mixture. Cook the fish for a few minutes until crisp and cooked through. Drain on paper towel. Repeat with the remaining fish pieces.

Lay a lettuce leaf on each tortilla and top with the crispy fish and the salsa. Serve immediately.

Replace the fish with firm tofu for a vegetarian meal. Air fried tofu has a great crunch!

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