The biggest expat struggle for me has always been loneliness. Cultural shock, assimilation, politics etc haven’t every really gotten me down. But feeling lonely has bitten me again and again. In fact, loneliness has been shown to be as detrimental to health as smoking, so Sunrise Senior Living reached out to me to help raise awareness about the Don’t Dine Alone Campaign, which educates about the health risks of loneliness and isolation (especially in old age) aka the campaign to end loneliness, I definitely knew that I was going to participate.
There’s only so much that GPs and health providers can do in the fight against loneliness. It truly is up to friends, family and neighbours to reach out to those in our communities that need help.
I used Sunrise’s recipe for smoked paprika and red onion chicken, which was brilliant. I especially loved the red wine/onion gravy. Below you can find my recipe for the spicy couscous and sweet potato side that I served it with. If you would also like to raise awareness, search the hashtag #dontdinealone on social media, and I encourage every single one of my readers to reach out to someone they might feel is lonely: a neighbour, a new work colleague, a friend in need and just invite them over for dinner.
Smoked Paprika and Red Onion Chicken
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups of couscous
3 cups of chicken broth
1/2 red onion, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup of fresh cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper
Instructions:
Add 1 1/2 cups of your chicken broth and spices to a large pot. Bring it to a boil. Add in your sweet potatoes and onion. Cook until the sweet potato is tender.
Strain out the onions and sweet potato, and set them aside, whist keeping your spicy broth. Add your remaining chicken broth to the spicy broth, bring it up to a rolling boil and then add in your couscous. Cover and remove from the heat. Let it stand for 5 minutes before taking off the lid and fluffing the couscous with a fork. All of the broth should have be absorbed.
Mix the couscous, onions and sweet potatoes together in a large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Top with your fresh cilantro.
Who might you be able to reach out to?
*Sunrise living provided me with a voucher for my groceries, but my thoughts and opinions on the campaign are completely my own. I think it’s a great cause and one I think everyone should get involved with.
