Thursday, January 7, 2010

Curry Beef and Cabbage


This quick recipe is a perfect paleo dish: it contains plenty of lean proteins, good fats and non-starchy vegetables.


Curry Beef and Cabbage

1 lb ground beef or bison
half a head of cabbage, shredded
1 tsp each:
salt
curry powder
tumeric
cayenne pepper (if you don't like spicy foods, you might want to reduce or leave this out)
half a can of coconut milk

Heat a large skillet to medium-high. Brown ground beef until almost cooked through, then add spices. Mix thoroughly, then add cabbage and saute another 5 minutes. Pour in coconut milk and reduce heat and cook until milk is reduced by half.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Roasted Carrots

It is a frightening concept for many low-carb dieters to consider eating carrots, which is completely ludicrous. Organic carrots are delicious, cheap and a terrific way to boost your glycogen levels post-workout.

Roasted Carrots

4-5 large carrots (you could also use organic baby carrots)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt, pepper, dried thyme

Heat oven to 450 degrees, peel carrots (this is optional) and cut into uniform pieces. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper and dried thyme. Cook 20-30 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Crockpot Salsa Chicken


This is the easiest recipe...ever. For those of you who do not like handling raw meat, this is the perfect cooking method for using raw chicken. I used a peach salsa made fresh at our local market, but if you cannot buy a fresh made kind, make sure it is gluten-free and sugar-free.

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

1lb chicken breasts and/or thighs
1 jar salsa

Put chicken in crockpot and cover with salsa. Cook 6-8 hours or until chicken falls apart.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Do it Yourself: Beef Jerky


Beef jerky is one of my favorite protein snacks, but purchasing commercially produced jerky is expensive. Not only does purchasing jerky mean wasteful packaging, but it typically includes ingredients that I do not want to consume. Making your own jerky is cheap, easy to make and let's you be in control of the flavors and seasonings. If you do not have a food dehydrator, don't fear; your oven will suffice.

Beef Jerky

2 lbs london broil or flank steak
1 tsp any seasoning you like (I used salt, pepper, cayenne, curry and tumeric)

Put london broil in the freezer for 1 hour to make cutting easier. Before slicing meat, rinse and pat dry meat, trimming off any excess fat. Cut meat against the bias into 1/8 inch slices and put into large bowl with seasoning blend. Marinate up to 24 hours.

If you are cooking in the oven, place aluminum foil across the bottom of your oven. Carefully place each piece of jerky on the oven racks (see image below). Put oven on lowest setting or no more than 170 degrees. If your oven, like mine, does not go below 200 degrees, prop the door open. Cook 2-5 hours, depending on your oven and your desired degree of 'dryness'.

When your jerky if finished, let it cool to room temperature, then store in plastic bags with one paper towel to soak up any moisture. Your jerky will keep up to two weeks or longer if kept in the fridge.