Iron Rich Foods: Overview, Importance and Recipes

Table of Content

• Iron overview

• Iron-rich food and supplements

• How much iron do we need?

• Why is iron so important?

• Iron-rich foods

• Iron-rich quick snack recipes

• Delicious Indian iron recipes

• Take-Home Points

• FAQ on Iron Rich Foods

Iron overview

You have heard about iron, its effect on the body, iron-rich foods, iron makes you stronger, etc. let’s find out the reality behind the common sayings.

According to Harvard T.H. Chan, school of public health; iron is an essential element for maintaining blood health. Blood is composed of haemoglobin, here the central atom of haemoglobin is iron. It is also a crucial metal for mental and physical growth.

As per the studies, there are about 4.5 million people suspected each year of iron deficiency anaemia. 

We need iron for the normal growth and development of our body. In this article we will discuss why iron-rich food is important, how much iron do we need and foods that are rich in iron.

Iron-rich food and supplements

Iron is available in two major forms and both are obtained from completely different sources. One is heme and the other is non-heme form. Heme form obtained from non-vegetarian food only, like meat, poultry, and seafood, all non-veg lovers, even if you are having a rough day, here is a nice slab of steak! To cherish your iron diet. 

The non-heme part sources are the opposite as of the heme source, a complete platter for vegan people. It comes from whole grains, leafy vegetables, legumes, seeds, and nuts.

You can choose your favourite option and enjoy the meal.

How much iron do we need?

This is an iron requirement chart according to age group, according to the university of Florida.

The upper limit of iron or tolerance intake which will not cause any harm to the individual is 45 mg daily iron intake for males and for females with 14-age.

Why is iron so important?   

It is a fundamental requirement of our body because our body can’t synthesize iron by itself, we need to take it from our diet then only our body will work efficiently.

Enough amount of iron will keep our body free from a lot of diseases like anaemia, muscle weakness, and tachycardia which in many cases invites other diseases too and hence patients end up with multiple complications at the same time.

PICA-An eating habit very common in children. Pica is eating non-nutritive, non-food substances for at least a month.

It involves eating chalk, soil, charcoal, ice, paper, coffee powder and even baby powder. One of the major reasons is iron deficiency. This could be minimized by eating iron-rich foods. 

Signs of iron deficiency are:  

Here is a list of iron deficiency signs you need to know:

• Extreme fatigue  

• Cold hands and feet

• Inflammation

• Brittle nails

• Fast heartbeat

• Headache

• Confusion

• Hair loss

• Craving for soil, clay, ice etc

• Sensitivity to cold

• Pale skin

• Muscle soreness

Iron-rich foods 

Heme iron is only available in nonvegetarian foods like:

• Meat

• Poultry and seafood

• Chicken liver

• Eggs

• shrimps 

• Salmon 

• Canned sardines

• Canned light tuna

• Oysters, mussels, clams

Non-heme sources:

Plant-derived foods containing non-heme iron are:

• Fortified breakfast cereals

• Spinach

• Grains, nuts

• Beans

• Dark chocolate (enjoy cheat food with iron)

• Lentils

• apples

• Banana

• Pistachio

• Cashews 

• Jaggery  

• Potatoes with skin (now crispy potatoes are healthy!)

• Bread

• Tofu

• Bagel (enriched)

• Black-eyed bean

• Chickpea

• Soybeans

Iron-rich quick snack recipes

1. Pumpkin juice:

It is one of the nutrient-rich juices, filled with antioxidants, fibers, and iron. Pumpkin seeds are a top source of iron but are bitter in taste. If the juice is bitter in taste add honey to cut out the bitterness and enjoy your healthy pumpkin juice.

2. Sesame and flax seeds smoothies:

Full of antioxidants, iron, and nutrients. Add milk, honey, sesame seeds, and flaxseeds and blend till it forms uniform liquid and enjoy.

3. Fortified cereal with strawberry milk

4. Instant oatmeal

Delicious Indian iron recipes:

1. Chana dal cabbage Tikki

Ingredients:

• 1 cup soaked and drained chana dal

• 1/2 cup finely chopped cabbage 

• 1 tbsp roughly chopped green chillies

• 2 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves (pudina)

• a pinch of turmeric powder (haldi)

• 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds powder (jeera)

• 2 tbsp low-fat curd (dahi)

• salt to taste

• 1/4 cup besan  

• 1 3/4 tsp oil for cooking

Method:

1. To make chana dal and cabbage tikki, combine the chana dal, green chillies and 2 tbsp of water in a mixer and blend to a coarse paste.

2. Transfer the paste to a deep bowl, add all the remaining ingredients and mix well.

3. Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions and keep aside.

4. Heat a non-stick tava (griddle) and grease it using 1⁄4 tsp of oil.

5. Shape a portion of the mixture into a 63 mm (2½ “) flat round tikki and immediately cook it on the tawa (griddle) on a slow flame, using ¼ tsp oil, till it turns golden brown in color from both sides.

6. Repeat step 5 to make 5 more tikkis.

7. Serve the chana dal and cabbage tikki immediately.

2. Moong Dal cauliflower appe

Ingredients:

• ½ cup yellow moong dal

• ¼ cup finely chopped cauliflower greens

• 1 tbsp roasted cumin seeds

• 2 tbsp oil for greasing

Method:

1. Clean, wash and soak the yellow moong dal in enough water for 3 to 4 hours.

2. Drain and blend the moong dal in a blender to smooth paste.

3. Transfer the blend in a deep bowl, add cauliflower greens, green chillies, and cumin seeds and mix them well.

4. Now heat the appe pan on a medium flame and grease with oil, pour the mixture in each mould and cover with a lid and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, flip the appe in between once done.

5. Serve the moong dal cauliflower greens appe with healthy green chutney.

3. Nachni pancake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup ragi flour

• 1 tbsp besan

• 1 tbsp sesame seeds

• ½ cup grated onion

• 1tsp grated ginger

• ½ cup chopped coriander

Method:

1. In a bowl combine ragi flour, soya flour, sesame seeds onions, green chillies and ginger, coriander. Mix it well and make a dough.

2. Heat a nonstick pan and grease it with oil.

3. Spread an even layer on one portion of dough to make a round.

4. Cook on both sides till it gets golden brown.

5. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

6. Serve the nachni pancake with green chutney.

4. Halm drink

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp garden cress seeds

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Method:

1. To make halim drink, combine the garden cress, lemon juice and half cup of water.

2. Mix well

3. Cover the halim drink with a lid and keep aside for 2 hours.

4. Serve fresh.

Treat for non-veg lovers!

Well, we all now know the list of iron-rich foods and their importance. Let's blend some of the ingredients for a delicious snack to enjoy at all times. 

As iron is an essential element, only a true chef will know how to serve the food with its value, here will see some amazing and simple recipes for an iron-rich dish, a treat for all no-veg lovers!

• Mutton curry 

• Fish curry 

• Rogan josh

• Malabar biryani

• Chicken kurma

• Chettinad chicken biryani with coconut milk

• Hyderabadi mutton biryani 

• Grilled pomfret fish 

• Lamb & squash biryani with cucumber raita

• Lentil ragu

• Lamb chickpea soup

•  Chicken liver and chorizo salad

• Steak and broccoli protein pots

• Malabar lamb curry 

• Mutton stew

• Nongol fish curry, and the list goes on…

Take-Home Points

• Iron is an essential nutrient for growth and development.

• Iron rich diets are very essential to meet regular iron requirements, take portion wise iron rich food and workout daily.

• Iron deficiency is a serious issue in children, pregnancy, and immunocompromised patients.

• Immunize yourself against diseases like, anemia, tachycardia, constant headache with regular intake of iron.

References

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8744124/#:~:text=Introduction

• https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/iron

• https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FY217

• https://www.tarladalal.com/recipes-for-iron-rich-breakfast-534

• https://www.livestrong.com/article/91583-breakfast-foods-high-iron/

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279618/#!po=75.0000