Recipes with Chia Seeds - Healthy and Filling at the Same Time!

Ever heard of chia seeds? They come from a mint related flowering plant from Mexico and Guatemala. Apparently, in the 80s, they were used as "pets." You grow them and they look like cute turtles, hedgehogs or even afros on a bust (they have a Barrack Obama one, lol):

A Chia Pet.  The seeds have emerged as the newest health craze.

But these past few years, chia seeds have also emerged as the newest health food, an excellent source of omega-3 fats and fiber. More here about chia: Chia Health Benefits. It's a very versatile, healthy food, because it is practically tasteless (and thus, doesn't interfere with the flavour of the food that you're adding it to) and expands when you mix it with liquid, making you feel fuller.

Here are two recipes of chia which we regularly eat in the family.  You will find that chia keeps absorbing the liquid it's in, so when you set aside the food and eat it later, the liquid might be gone. Just add more liquid (milk, coconut milk, broth...whatever it is that you used in the recipe) to dilute it. And for recipes which are soupy like the two below, stir the chia in the liquid from time to time after a few hours, because it will get clumpy if you just leave it untouched.


MANGO "SAGO" CHIA
Serves 4 people

Mango "Sago" Chia. Healthier than the original and just as refreshing!

This recipe was inspired by a dessert which I often see here in local Singapore restaurants. The original dessert is made with milk, tiny sago pearls, chunks of mango and grapefruit. Basically, substitute the sago with the chia, and you now have a healthier dessert! In our home, we usually eat this for breakfast.

MANGO SAGO CHIA
Serves 4

1/2 cup chia seeds
3 cups milk
1 tablespoon honey

At least 6 hours before you will eat this dessert,  mix the chia, milk and honey in a covered container, and stir vigorously with a wire whisk. Put in the ref and stir again after a few hours. And stir yet again, a few hours later.  The chia will expand and suck the liquid. Add more milk and honey before eating, if you find that the mixture is too thick.

I usually prepare this the night before and we eat it at breakfast. I do stir it with a whisk after a few hours to ensure that the seeds don't clump together.

CHIA GINATAAN
Serves 4

This dessert is inspired from Filipino Ginataan, which is a hot, dessert "soup" made from coconut milk, jackfruit strands, glutinous rice balls (like the Japanese mochi), bananas and yams. Instead of using the mochi, eliminate it completely and add the chia.

1/2 cup chia seeds
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup evaporated milk
Strands of jackfruit
Sliced bananas
Sliced purple yam
1/2 cup sugar

Heat the milk and add the purple yam until slightly tender. Add the jackfruit and bananas.  When they are also slightly tender, add the coconut milk and the chia seeds.  Add the sugar and mix well.  Enjoy warm.