How dried food can supercharge your family budget meals

With rising prices, it may seem a challenge to eat healthily. But a trip down the dried foods aisle in the supermarket will reveal a selection of nutritious staples that can easily be incorporated into meals to boost their nutritional profile while keeping costs down.

Stock your cupboards with dried pulses such as chickpeas, lentils and beans, dried fruit, wholegrains such as couscous, and nuts these last for months and can supercharge your meals with nutrients, says dietitian Dr Sarah Schenker.

Drying foods removes almost all the water content, resulting in a small, energy-dense version, with a concentrated source of nutrients, including protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals.

Though some vitamin C is lost in the drying process, theres no loss of the plant compounds which the body needs to help fight disease and ageing, adds Sarah Schenker.

In fact, research suggests drying foods can increase their antioxidants. For example, one study found that dried plums (prunes) have twice as many beneficial plant compounds as fresh, weight for weight.