Try these super slimming summer soups from the Hairy Bikers 

Losing 3 st each in 2012 probably saved their lives. Now, as statistics reveal a higher mortality rate from coronavirus for those who are obese or have type 2 diabetes, Hairy Bikers Si King and Dave Myers reveal how their new cookbook may help save yours…

Ten years ago we were, to put it bluntly, fat. We both had high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Dave was pre-diabetic.

But with great advice and support from healthy eating experts, we turned our health around, shedding 6 st between us.

Dave even got his blood sugar under control, greatly reducing his risk of diabetes, which feels especially important at the moment. The average person looking to lose weight at roughly a kilo a week needs to cut their intake to around 1,500 calories a day.

That’s about 300 for breakfast, 400 for lunch and 600 for your evening meal, plus two snacks of around 100 calories.

As we discovered when we set out to lose weight ourselves, when you cook your meals from scratch, meaning you know exactly what’s gone into everything you eat, those calories really do stretch — especially when it comes to delicious soups, which are comforting and nutritious and help you feel fuller for longer, yet often add up to less than 200 calories a serving.

You can make a big batch at the start of the week — or when you have time on your hands — so you know you’ve always got an easy lunch in the fridge. 

We keep plenty of single portions in the freezer, too, which will soon defrost if you want something in a hurry.

Dave is a big fan of our creamy, homemade tomato soup, which is so comforting. My favourite is red lentil and harissa.

He’s been batch cooking vats of soup to portion up and give to people in his local community who he collects prescriptions for while they can’t leave home. They’re going down a storm.

We’ve both always found a bowl of soup for lunch, with a big plateful of crunchy salad on the side, is perfect for keeping hunger pangs at bay. We find a small portion can make a great gap-bridger before supper, too, stopping us from snacking if our tummies are rumbling but the evening meal isn’t ready yet.

Hearty suppers play another important role in any weight-loss journey, so we’ve included plenty that are healthy yet sumptuous. Fish is a great source of protein, as are chicken and turkey — both low-fat as long as you remove the skin.

We view red meat as an occasional treat. By choosing lean cuts and removing excess fat, you can enjoy delicious meals featuring beef, lamb and pork, but ideally no more than once a week.

Our main-meal recipes are meant to be filling and delicious. In fact, they’re so tasty you might feel like a second helping.

We’ve trained ourselves to wait 20 minutes whenever the urge to eat more strikes. 

That’s because it takes about that long for the message that you’re full to get to your brain. Waiting it out often results in you deciding you don’t need more food after all.

People often ask about booze —should you ditch it altogether if you’re dieting? When we first set out to lose weight, we didn’t touch a drop for the first month, which helped boost how much we lost and kept us motivated.

If you do want the odd glass of wine or beer — as long as your doctor hasn’t put you on medication that will interact with alcohol or told you to steer clear of it because of your particular health circumstances — that’s fine. But make sure you factor in the calorie count when it comes to your daily total.

It might mean forgoing your snacks for the day; something you can also play around with if, say, you fancy a bigger breakfast or a bigger portion at lunch or supper.

The main thing is that you stick at it — especially at the start. We know from personal experience that it’s those losses you achieve in the first month, as your clothes start to feel looser and you feel that bit lighter, that motivate you to keep going.

Our recipes can help you with that. Each is carefully calorie-counted for you and incredibly tasty, too. Here are some of our favourites… 

Courgette, mint and lemon soup 

105 calories per serving 

Courgette soups are often made with milk or cream and are quite rich, but we’ve kept ours nice and fresh and simple. 

If you’re a vegan, this is one for you and if not, try it anyway as it’s really tasty, super-green and keeps you lean.

Serves 6

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 potato, finely diced
• 750g courgettes, coarsely grated
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp dried mint
• 750ml vegetable stock
• 100g frozen peas
• 100g baby spinach
• Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, add the onion and potato and stir well to coat them in the oil. Add a splash of water, cover the pan and cook the veg gently for about 10 minutes. 

Add the courgettes, garlic, lemon zest and mint, then cook for another 2 minutes. Pour in the stock, season with black pepper and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 5 minutes, then add the peas and spinach. 

Cook for another 2 minutes until the spinach has completely wilted and the peas are just tender but still a lovely fresh green colour. 

Purée the soup in a blender or with a stick blender, but be careful not to over-process it — you want to keep some flecks of green throughout. 

Taste, add a squeeze of lemon juice, if using, and more pepper if you like before serving.

If you want to make your soup a bit more fancy, decorate it with ribbons of courgette and some extra lemon zest.

Creamy tomato

171 calories per serving

Our tomato soup is really rich and creamy but there’s no cream in it and no sugar — just lots of veg and lots of flavour. 

The fennel seeds add an extra tasty tang but if you don’t have any, or don’t like them, just leave them out. 

You could also chill this soup and keep it in the fridge to enjoy cold as a snack.

Serves 4

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 celery stick, trimmed and diced
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 leek, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 100g butternut squash, diced
• 200g celeriac, diced
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, ground (optional)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 50g red lentils
• 1.2 litres vegetable or chicken stock
• 400g can of tomatoes
• Handful of basil leaves, torn
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the onion, celery, carrot, leek, squash and celeriac. 

Cook gently over a fairly high heat, stirring regularly, until the vegetables start to brown slightly around the edges and give off a sweet aroma. Add the fennel seeds, if using, and the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. 

Add the red lentils and pour over the stock, then season with pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer for another 10-15 minutes until the lentils are completely soft. 

Add the basil leaves and let them wilt into the soup, then remove the pan from the heat. 

Purée the soup until smooth, adding more stock or water if it seems too thick for your liking. Check for seasoning before serving and add a little more pepper to taste.

Red lentil and harissa soup

166 calories per serving 

Quick to prepare, this soup packs a punch of flavour. The nice little seasoning of lemon, garlic and coriander also adds a bit of oomph.

Serves 6

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander stems
• 1–2 tbsp harissa paste (depending on how much heat you want)
• 200g red lentils, rinsed
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 400g can of tomatoes
• Squeeze of lemon (optional)
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the herby dressing:

• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 garlic clove,
• Coriander leaves, finely chopped 

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onion and cook over a gentle heat until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then stir in the coriander stems and the harissa paste.

Add the lentils and stir until they are coated with the paste, then pour over the stock and season with pepper.

Bring the stock to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer for another 10 minutes. Stir and check the consistency of the soup — add a splash more water if it seems too thick.

Taste and add more pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice if needed.

To make the herby dressing, finely chop the lemon zest, garlic and coriander until well combined. Blend the soup if you want it smooth — the lentils will have broken down enough to thicken it, but there’ll still be some texture from the onions and tomatoes.

Serve with the dressing spooned over the top. 

Bean and vegetable ribollita

290 calories per serving

Our version of a classic Italian recipe, this is a good hearty soup that’ll keep you full for hours.

We’ve used less pasta than in the traditional recipe to keep the calories down, but there are plenty of beans and vegetables to fill you up.

Use any sort of cabbage you like, including spring greens, kale or Swiss chard, but don’t be tempted to try spinach, as it will just end up as mush.

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This is also a great recipe for using up a Parmesan rind if there’s one in the fridge. It doesn’t matter how hard and dry it is, it’ll still bring a bit of extra flavour to your soup.

Serves 4

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 50g back bacon, trimmed of fat and finely diced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• 2 celery sticks, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• Parmesan rind (optional)
• 100ml red wine
• 400g can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 fresh tomatoes, finely chopped, or 200g canned chopped tomatoes
• 600ml chicken stock
• 50g wholewheat pasta (any short form will do)
• ½ green cabbage or the equivalent in other greens
• 1 large courgette, diagonally sliced
• Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)
• Freshly ground black pepper 

To serve

• Handful of basil leaves, torn
• 25g Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the diced bacon and fry until it is crisp and brown. Then add the onion, fennel, carrots, celery and garlic and cook gently for a couple of minutes. 

Sprinkle over the oregano, add the Parmesan rind, if using, then pour over the red wine. Bring to the boil and simmer until the wine has reduced by about half. Add the beans and tomatoes, then pour in the stock. 

Bring the soup back to the boil and simmer for about 15 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. 

Add the pasta and cabbage, continue to simmer for 5 minutes, then add the courgette. 

Simmer for another 5–10 minutes until the pasta is cooked but still has bite to it and all the vegetables are cooked through. 

Have a taste and add more black pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice if needed. 

Sprinkle over the basil and serve the soup with a scant tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each bowlful. 

Hearty and healthy suppers to savour

Beef stir-fry

283 calories per serving

Stir-fries are the dieter’s best friend when you want something healthy, filling and fast, and this one completely fills the bill. 

It’s inspired by dishes we ate on our trip to Korea a few years ago. Just keep your portion of noodles down and fill up on all the lovely vegetables.

Serves 4

• 100g rice noodles 
• ½ tsp sesame oil
• 300g steak (sirloin, flank, bavette or rump)
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced into strips
• 1 large carrot, cut into matchsticks
• 4 spring onions, cut into 1cm rounds
• 200g shiitake mushrooms
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 5g chunk of fresh root ginger, finely chopped
• Large bag of pak choi or other Asian greens
• 2 tbsp soy sauce (preferably a low-sodium version)
• 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sesame seeds (white or black), to serve 

First, cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, then drain and toss them in the sesame oil. 

Trim the beef of any fat and cut the meat into thin strips. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok. 

Add the red pepper and carrot and stir-fry for 3 minutes over a high heat. 

Add the spring onions and mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes, then add the beef, garlic and ginger. Continue to stir-fry until the beef is seared on all sides.

Trim the pak choi or greens and slice them if the leaves are large. Pour the soy sauce and rice wine vinegar into the wok and add the greens, then cook over a slightly lower heat until the greens have wilted. 

Add the noodles and warm them through. Serve at once, sprinkled with sesame seeds.

White bean and tuna fishcakes

175 calories per fishcake

Everyone loves a fishcake, and tuna and white beans are a classic combination.

You might be tempted to throw everything into the food processor at once, but take our advice and don’t. 

We’ve tried making these in different ways and it really is worth blitzing the beans and the fish separately to get the right texture — otherwise the beans get too smooth and claggy. 

And you don’t need to wash the food processor in between, so it doesn’t take much longer.

Makes 8 fishcakes

• 2 x 400g cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed 
• 2 cans of fish in spring water (drained weight 200–250g)
• 1 onion, very finely chopped
• Small bunch of parsley, roughly chopped
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 egg, beaten
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 100g wholemeal breadcrumbs
• Low-cal olive oil spray
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce (optional)

• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp finely chopped capers
• 1 tbsp finely chopped cornichons
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 150ml 0 per cent-fat yoghurt 

Preheat the oven to 220c/fan 200c/gas 7. Put the cannellini beans in a food processor and pulse a few times until they have broken down a little but are not completely puréed. 

You want a fairly coarse but uniform texture. Tip the beans into a large bowl. Put the drained fish in the food processor with the onion and parsley and blitz until everything is well combined and the parsley is very finely chopped. Add this mixture to the beans in the bowl. 

Add the mustard, beaten egg, lemon zest and juice to the beans and fish, and season with pepper. Mix thoroughly, then taste again for seasoning and add a little more mustard or lemon juice if you like. 

Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over a plate. Shape the fish and bean mixture into 8 patties, dip them in the breadcrumbs, then pat off any excess. Spritz a non-stick baking tray with low-cal oil and place the fishcakes on it. 

Spritz the top of the fishcakes with oil. Bake the fishcakes in the oven for about 15 minutes, turning them halfway through the cooking time. While the fishcakes are baking, make the sauce, if using. 

Simply mix all the ingredients in a bowl and stir well, then season with black pepper. Serve with the fishcakes.

Biker tip: You can use any kind of canned fish — salmon, sardines or mackerel — as long as it’s packed in spring water to reduce the calories

Garlic chicken with beans, kale and tomatoes

290 calories per serving

Slicing chicken breasts in half like this creates two nice thin pieces from each breast. This way they cook quickly without getting tough. The rest is easy and makes a good simple meal.

Serves 4

• 4 chicken breasts, skinned 
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 200g kale, shredded
• 400g can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 300g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Place each chicken breast on a work surface with the top side facing up. Put one hand on the chicken breast, then slice through into the side of the breast, continuing to cut horizontally until you have gone all the way through.

Put the olive oil and crushed garlic in a bowl. Season the chicken pieces well with black pepper, then add to the bowl. 

Rub chicken breasts with the garlicky oil until thoroughly coated, then if you have time, leave them to marinate for half an hour.

When you are ready to cook the chicken, heat a large griddle pan until hot then turn the heat down to medium. 

Cook the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side until they have char lines and are completely cooked through. You may need to do this in a couple of batches. If so, keep the first batch warm while you cook the second batch.

Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil. Cook the kale for 3 minutes until almost done, then add the beans to heat through for a minute. Drain well.

To assemble, divide the kale and beans between 4 plates. Cut the chicken breasts diagonally into strips and add them to the plates. Sprinkle over the cherry tomatoes, then drizzle over the sherry vinegar and serve immediately.

Latin American shepherd’s pie

400 calories per serving (for 4) 266 calories per serving (for 6)

This is a winner. Everyone’s favourite, a good old shepherd’s pie, but with a tasty chilli twist and a sweetcorn topping instead of mashed potatoes. 

Make this and it won’t just be the pie that’s full of beans. The filling is a delight of spicy loveliness, but there isn’t a lot of topping — we’re keeping the calories down — so use a fairly deep dish so you don’t have to spread the topping too thinly.

Serves 4–6

• 1 large red onion 
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 large carrot
• 1 red pepper and 1 green pepper, deseeded
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp smoked chilli powder (chipotle)
• 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander stems
• 400g can of kidney beans
• 400g can of butter beans
• 400g can of tomatoes
• 300ml vegetable stock freshly ground black pepper 

For the topping:

• 500g sweetcorn kernels 
• 3 tbsp fine cornmeal (polenta) or plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 15g butter
• 50g reduced-fat vegetarian Cheddar, grated 

Finely chop the onion and celery sticks and dice the carrot and peppers. Heat the oil in a large pan and add all the vegetables, along with a splash of water. 

Cover the pan and leave the vegetables to cook gently until soft — this should take about 15 minutes. 

Add the garlic, spices and chopped coriander stems and then stir to combine. Add all the beans, then pour over the tomatoes and the stock. 

Season with pepper, then bring everything to the boil. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer until the sauce is well reduced, then tip everything into a deep oven dish. Preheat the oven to 190c/fan 170c/gas 5.

To make the topping, put half the sweetcorn kernels in a food processor with the cornmeal or flour, baking powder and butter, then blitz until smooth. 

Season with plenty of pepper, then add the remaining sweetcorn and blitz again to make a mixture with a rough, dropping consistency. 

Spread the topping evenly over the filling and sprinkle with the grated cheese. Bake the pie in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the topping is a deep golden-brown and the filling is piping hot.

Extracted from The Hairy Bikers Eat to Beat Type 2 Diabetes published by Seven Dials on June 11 in paperback, priced £12.99. Also available in ebook format.

Text © Byte Brook Limited and Sharp Letter Limited 2020. Available at amazon.co.uk

Source: Food Recipes and News