Six Ramadan recipes to keep you full throughout the day

From 30-minute pakoras to budget-friendly borek, my recipes will keep you going through the holy month without breaking the bank, says Zubda Malik

Fuelling your body with the right food is essential while fasting during Ramadan (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Muslims across the UK are halfway through the holy month of Ramadan, which is observed with fasting from just before dawn until sunset.

This means keeping themselves healthy and full with the pre-dawn meal suhoor and evening meal iftar is essential.

From quick and easy masala fish pakoras that can be made in under 30 minutes, to budget-friendly spinach and feta borek at 80p per serving, I’ve come up with six recipes in partnership with Asda to keep you full from sunrise to sunset.

Ramadan favourite: Adana kebab

Nothing completes a Ramadan spread like an Adana kebab (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Nothing completes my Ramadan spread like the mouth-watering Adana kebab – bursting with authentic flavours from Turkey. It sure impresses my family!

Cook time: 1hr 5mins

Serves: 6

Price: £1.87 per serving

Ingredients:

1kg lamb mince

2 onions

1 red bell pepper

4-5 cloves garlic

20g parsley

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp black pepper powder

2 tsp sumac

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp paprika powder

1 tsp chilli powder

2 jalapeño chillies

Method:

1. In a bowl, add the mince along with salt, black pepper, sumac, cumin powder, coriander powder, paprika and chilli powder. Mix everything together and set it aside.

2. In a chopper add the sliced bell pepper, onions, jalapeños and garlic, grind the mixture coarsely and remove its excess moisture by putting in a muslin cloth. Add this mixture to the mince.

3. Next, add finely chopped parsley (alternatively you can use coriander), and make sure there is no excess moisture in the herbs.

4. Mix with your hands for a good 2-3 minutes until everything is combined well.

5. Cover and leave in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours, ideally, but at least 30 minutes.

6. Put the kebab meat on the skewers. Dip your hands in water to prevent the kebab meat from sticking to your hands.

7. Put the skewers on a charcoal grill and cook for around 15-20 minutes. Alternatively use the oven at 180C or cook on the stove over a skillet. While grilling, don’t forget to flip each side of the kebab, to keep the juice of the ingredients in the meat.

8. Don’t overcook the kebabs as these will become hardened.

9. Serve with lavash bread, tzatziki sauce and fresh salad.

Budget-friendly: spinach and feta borek

Big on flavour, little on budget (Zubda Malik/Asda)

This recipe offers an abundance of flavours and textures while being easy on the budget.

Cook time: 35mins

Serves: 8-12

Price: £0.80 per serving

Ingredients:

500g spinach

Salt and pepper, to taste

300g feta cheese, crumbled

123g ricotta cheese

10g spring onions, chopped

Handful of dill

1 pack filo pastry

125ml milk, room temperature

1 large egg

2 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp butter, melted

Black sesame seeds, as required

Method:

1. Wash and chop the spinach finely. Place the spinach in a salad spinner and spin to drain out all the water (or air dry before cutting).

2. Add the chopped spinach to a large bowl.

3. Finely chop the spring onions and dill. Transfer to the bowl.

4. Crumble in the feta cheese

5. Add salt and pepper and mix to combine everything.

6. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, milk, melted butter, and olive oil together. Set aside.

7. Unwrap your filo pastry and lay a single sheet on a flat surface.

8. Use a pastry brush to lightly brush the prepared liquid (don’t drench it in liquid, just make it a little soft and sticky).

9. Place another sheet of filo dough on top and repeat with the liquid mixture. (Keep the rest of the filo sheets covered otherwise they will become dry).

10. Spoon the filling across the long edge in a straight line.

11. Carefully lift the edge of the filo pastry closest to you and seal the filling with pastry. Continue to roll in a log shape.

12. Take one end of the pastry and start twisting it into a circle like a spiral.

13. Place the spiral on a baking sheet and brush it with the liquid mixture.

14. Repeat for the rest of the filling and filo dough.

15. Once your boreks are ready, bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes at 200C until golden brown.

Kid-friendly: kulfi cheesecake

Make dessert more exciting for the whole family (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Make dessert time more exciting for your family with this delightful kulfi cheesecake recipe that’s sure to have your little ones asking for more.

Cook time: 1 hour 40 mins

Serves: 8-12

Price: £1.06 per serving

Ingredients:

200g digestive biscuits

50g pistachios and almonds, crushed

100g butter

600g cream cheese

1 tin evaporated milk

300ml condensed milk (add 50ml more if you like it sweeter)

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp saffron, crushed

3 large eggs

5g cornflour

15g self-raising flour

Crushed almonds, pistachios and rose petals

Water from method

1 tbsp water and honey

Method:

1. Start by blitzing the biscuits in a food processor or crushing them inside a sealed bag with a rolling pin into fine crumbs; transfer them to a bowl.

2. Add pistachios and almonds to a food processor and grind coarsely. Add them to the biscuit crumbs.

3. Melt the butter in the microwave for a few seconds or over the stove. Pour the melted butter onto the crushed biscuits, pistachios and almonds. Mix everything together.

4. Preheat the oven to 200C.

5. Grease and line an 8-inch baking tin with parchment paper.

6. Transfer the crust mixture into the prepared tin and press down until an even base is formed.

7. Bake the base in a preheated oven for 8-10 minutes.

8. In a large mixing bowl, place the softened room-temperature cream cheese and break it through with a spatula until smooth.

9. Add condensed milk to the cream cheese and whisk.

10. Add the evaporated milk along with saffron, ground cardamom, pre-sifted cornflour, and self-raising flour.

11. Whisk on a low speed until you get a smooth mix without any lumps.

12. Add one egg at a time and I prefer to use a hand whisk while beating eggs to ensure that I don’t overwhip the mixture.

13. Then add the second egg and then the third. Make sure the batter is smooth and there are no visible lumps.

14. Pour the cheesecake filling into the prepared tin. Tap lightly to remove any air bubbles and smoothen the top.

15. Bake in a preheated oven at 150C for 60 minutes or until the edges are hardened but the middle part is still jiggly.

16. Once baked, turn off the oven but allow the cheesecake to remain in the oven for half an hour with the door slightly open.

17. After taking out the cheesecake from the oven, remove it from the tin and cool it completely at room temperature.

18. Thereafter, refrigerate for a minimum of 5-6 hours or overnight.

19. In a saucepan, add water and honey. Cook until thickened, take off the heat, and cool down slightly.

20. Add pistachio and almonds (chopped or whole as per preference). Mix it well and spread it over the cheesecake. Let it set for 30 minutes.

21. Garnish with rose petals and enjoy!

Made in under 30 minutes: masala fish pakoras

This quick and easy pakora packs a punch (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Short on time but still want to impress your guests? Try this quick and easy masala fish pakora recipe that packs the punch and is ready in a flash.

Cook time: 20mins

Serves: 5

Price: £2.06 per serving

Ingredients:

5 dried red chillies

1 tsp ajwain/carom seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp tamarind sauce

1 tsp chilli powder

Salt to taste

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp garam masala powder

A pinch of red food colour

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

2 tbsp lemon juice

1kg fish (preferably cod)

125g self-raising flour

20g rice flour

1g baking powder

2 tsp paprika

½ tsp turmeric

Salt and pepper, to taste

250ml unflavoured soda/sparkling water/mineral water

31g plain flour

77g sunflower oil, for frying

Method:

1. Take white fish boneless fillets, pat the fish fillets dry with a paper towel and cut into bite-size chunks.

2. In a bowl, mix the flours, baking powder, paprika, turmeric, salt and pepper together. Using a fork, whisk continuously, add the mineral or sparkling water to the flour mixture and continue mixing until you have a slightly thin and smooth batter. (Place the batter in a refrigerator for an hour if needed).

3. In a pan, dry roast dried red chillies, carom seeds, cumin seeds and coriander seeds for 3-4 minutes on very low heat.

4. Remove from the heat, cool down completely and coarsely grind these.

5. In a big bowl, mix together roasted spices, salt, chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala, red food colour, ginger garlic paste, lemon juice and tamarind sauce. Mix together and make a thick paste. If needed add a splash of water to bind the ingredients together.

6. Add the fish chunks and coat them well.

7. Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer or large, deep wok.

8. Place the plain flour into a shallow dish. Toss each chunk in the flour and shake off any excess.

9. Dip into the batter and coat the fish.

10. Carefully drop each chunk into the hot oil. Fry for approximately 5-6 minutes until the batter is crisp and golden, turning the pakoras from time to time with a large, slotted spoon.

11. Once cooked, take out the pakoras from the hot oil and drain them on paper towels.

12. Serve with raita and chutney. Enjoy!

Grazing board: katori chaat

Elevate your snack game (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Looking to elevate your snacking or grazing board game? Get inspired with this irresistibly tangy and crunchy katori chaat.

Cook time: 50 mins

Serves: 8

Price: £1.20 per serving

Ingredients:

2 cups plain flour

2 tbsp sunflower oil

Water to knead, as required

Sunflower oil, for frying

150g chickpeas, boiled

200g potatoes, boiled

1 onion, chopped

½ English cucumber, cubed

1 tomato, chopped

1 beetroot, thinly sliced

225g yoghurt

60ml plum chutney

60ml tamarind chutney

60ml raita

60g plain bhujia

75g bombay mix

Handful coriander leaves, chopped

2 green chillies, chopped

2 tbsp chaat masala

1 tsp paprika

Method:

1. In a bowl, add plain flour, oil and mix well.

2. Gradually add water, keep mixing and knead until soft dough is formed.

3. Make a ball sized dough and flatten it on the work surface with rolling pin into a 2mm thickness.

4. Dust flour while rolling as required.

5. Prick the flattened dough ball with a fork.

6. Place a small flat bottom bowl and wrap the dough.

7. Remove the excess from the top with the help of knife.

8. Deep fry in hot oil. When dough katori separates from bowl, take out the bowl from oil and fry until it turns golden and crispy.

9. Take out on a paper towel and set aside to cool down.

10. To assemble, add in 2 tbsp boiled chana, 1 tbsp boiled and cubed potatoes, 1 tbsp chopped onions, 1 tbsp chopped tomatoes, few slices of beetroot, 3 tbsp yoghurt, 1 tbsp plum chutney, 1 tsp raita, and 1 tsp tamarind chutney in the katori.

11. Sprinkle chaat masala and paprika.

12. Top with plain bhujia and bombay mix. Garnish with coriander leaves and green chillies.

13. Serve katori chaat immediately and enjoy!

Eid special: ouzi rice with chicken

Add a touch of Middle Eastern flair to your Iftar (Zubda Malik/Asda)

Add a touch of Middle Eastern flair to your Iftar or Eid celebration with this delicious recipe for ouzi rice with chicken.

Cook time: 1 hour 20 mins

Serves: 4

Price: £1.66 per serving

Ingredients:

380g basmati rice

4 skinless chicken breasts (600g)

3 tbsp sunflower oil

1 onion, finely chopped

105g peas

115g carrots

2 tbsp butter

1 tsp turmeric

2 tbsp all-purpose seasoning

½ tbsp chicken seasoning

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ginger powder

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 tsp cinnamon powder

20g slivered or sliced almonds

34g cashews or pine nuts

1L chicken or vegetable stock

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a pot, add finely chopped onions, and sauté.

2. Add chicken pieces, all-purpose seasoning, chicken seasoning, turmeric, ginger and garlic powder. Fry for 4-5 minutes until the colour changes.

3. Add carrots and peas. Mix it well and sauté for another 2 minutes.

4. Pour chicken/vegetable stock and bring it to boil.

5. Cover and cook until the chicken is almost tender.

6. Take out the chicken, place it on a baking tray, and broil for 15 minutes at 170C or until it’s slightly golden brown.

7. Add 1 cup of boiling water if required to the pot (sometimes the water dries up quickly depending on the size of the pot).

8. Add rice, cinnamon powder, salt and pepper. Give it a stir and let it simmer on low to medium heat for about 20 minutes until the rice is cooked through and the water has evaporated. Fluff the rice gently with a fork and place the butter cube on top and let it melt.

9. In a separate pan, roast the almonds and cashews until golden brown.

10. Plate the rice and top it with the cooked chicken. Then, garnish with the toasted almonds and cashews.

Shop the Asda Ramadan range here or find more Ramadan and Eid recipe inspiration here.