Quick and Easy Ramadan Meals

An opportunity to renew one's identity with Ummah (community) and learn important lessons such as patience, piety and discipline, it’s a time when followers eat only two main meals per day. Suhoor (eaten before dawn) should be moderate but enough to provide energy for the entire day while Iftar (eaten after sunset) is much more of a social event involving family and community members.

While you could just ‘wing it’, planning your meals will make Ramadan smoother. Here are our Ramadan favourites, which can all be whipped up quickly and with just a handful of ingredients.

Ramadan is also the time when we really start indulging in Malay treats once again. But instead of picking up whatever is at the local market, why not make it yourself so that you know exactly what goes into it? Tempeh stir-fry ikan bilis is simple to make and being a relatively dry dish, it goes well with rice and curry. But hey, you already know that you’ll be throwing down these crunchy delights on its own. And once you start, you won’t be able to stop!

Dates are the quintessential Ramadan food item. They’re easy to digest, quell hunger pangs, prepare the stomach to receive food and are rich in energy, minerals, vitamins, and health-benefiting phytonutrients. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) himself advised eating them saying, “break your fast by eating dates as it is purifying.” But instead of eating raw dates just like everyone else, why not spruce them up and turn them into a cake? Check out the recipe below as it’s much easier than you may think!

Consider this hearty little meal your ‘Ramadan life-saver’. Why? Because it’s perfect for cooking in bulk! Do yourself a favour and set aside some time on a Sunday afternoon to make and freeze a pot in individual containers. There will come a day when you’re short on time and you’ll be thankful that all you have to do is grab a pack out of the freezer!

Would you believe that you could roast a chicken in just 10 minutes? Well, it’s completely possible with this quick roasted chicken leg recipe! The only catch is that you will have to put in 15 minutes of prep time. However, after taking one look at the end result, you’ll be reaching for the cayenne pepper and corn flour the next time you need to break fast!

If “soft, chewy and baked to fit in the palm of your hand” sounds good with you, then you’ll love sweet potato cakes – a traditional snack hailing from the north island of Hokkaido, Japan. Whether it’s the start or the end of the day, there’s one thing for sure - these fluffy cakes will bring a smile to your face and warmth to your heart.