Sophie Gastman's Find Your Healthy redefines nutritious cooking with bold, joyful flavours

Sophie Gastman, a trained nutritionist, believes that enjoying food is just as important as eating healthily. Her new cookbook, Find Your Healthy, focuses on flavourful meals that bring pleasure while keeping nutrition in balance.

Gastman argues that a good diet should include what she calls Vitamin P—the pleasure that comes from eating delicious food. Gastman builds her meals around protein, fibre, and plant-based ingredients. She avoids heavily processed foods but never sacrifices taste. To boost flavour, she relies on spices like cumin, smoked paprika, and cinnamon. Fresh herbs—cilantro, parsley, and Thai basil—also play a key role in her dishes.

Pickled foods add another layer of taste. Onions, olives, jalapeños, and anchovies bring acidity and saltiness to her recipes. Anchovies, in particular, are a favourite—she uses them in pasta sauces and salad dressings for a rich umami kick.

Chili oils are another staple in her kitchen. Brands like Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp and White Mausu Peanut Rayu give her dishes an extra depth of flavour. Through her cookbook, she aims to debunk myths about healthy eating, showing that nutritious food can still be exciting and satisfying. Gastman’s approach blends nutrition with enjoyment, proving that healthy eating doesn’t mean giving up taste. Her recipes encourage people to experiment with bold flavours while keeping meals balanced. The cookbook offers practical ways to make food both nourishing and delicious.