Health and Fitness

Simple hacks to get your 5 serves of veg a day

Nutritionists and dieticians recommend that everyone over the age of 4 years gets at least 5 serves of vegetables a day to lower your risk of health problems – but you don’t have to be munching on carrots all day to achieve it! Here are some simple ways to add extra serves of veggies to your meals.

April 8, 2021

A serve of vegetables is probably less than you think.  

One serve equals one cup of salad vegetables or half a cup of cooked vegetables. Lentils and beans also count towards your vegetable target.

Easy ways to enjoy more vegetables in your diet

Frozen vegetables are a great option as they last and you can always have them on hand (so there are no excuses for not eating your veggies!). Produce for freezing is processed immediately after harvesting, sealing in nutrients, so they could be better for you than produce that has been sitting around in the supermarket for a while.  

Different vegetables help protect the body in different ways, so choose a variety to meet your daily target.  

Breakfast

  • Add them to a smoothie. Make smoothie packs and freeze for a quick and easy breakfast. Choose vegetables that don’t have a strong taste (such as zucchini or spinach) and add berries, yoghurt or anything else you fancy.
  • Top toast or English muffins with cooked mushrooms, tomatoes or baked beans (choose the lower sugar varieties).
  • Chop up any veggies in your fridge and add to an omelette.  

Snacks

  • Chop celery, cucumber, capsicum and carrot sticks and eat with low fat dip or hummus, instead of crackers.
  • Grate or dice, carrot, zucchini and corn into a savoury muffin.
  • Try wholegrain or wholemeal crackers topped with tomato and reduced-fat cheese, or avocado.  

Lunch

  • Add salad to your lunchtime roll or sandwich.
  • Fill a baked potato with low-fat coleslaw.
  • Have a cheese and tomato toastie rather than just cheese.
  • Add vegetables or legumes (such as dried beans, peas or lentils), tosoups for added flavour and texture.  

Dinner

  • Always serve dinner with cooked vegetables or a salad.
  • Add a few extra vegetables to a stir-fry, curry or pasta.
  • When eating out, choose a side salad instead of chips.
  • Add lentils and grated carrot to your spaghetti bolognese – it will make it go further and you will hardly notice the difference.  
  • Try a meat-free Monday – there are some great vegetarian recipes available that the whole family will enjoy.
  • Have a Mexican food night – beans are always a vital ingredient.  
  • Cook a batch of soup using up all your leftover vegetables at the end of the week.

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