Paleo and primal

[Daughteroughter]

I have been reading about paleo and primal diets has anyone tried them?

Fava After doing a bit of light research - I decided to add more salt than the recipe and everyday I have drained the excess liquid and added another tablespoon of salt, as expected without the nitrates - it has devoted a grey pallor - the honey bacon is stiffer and bleed less water which is not what you'd expect, but the two bits of belly were from different animals. Might finish the process tomorrow and have the bacon ready for the weekend and the freezer.

I'll pluck some courage and open the bag tonight!
Do you have any extra links to read? the ones I came across advocate pink salt; some cover the the belly in pounds of salt and/or sugar (dh, dd and ds don't like salty bacon and I don't like it sweet).

Sad thing is that, although my dad used to make salami (pork, bore and venison), he never made bacon. The salt and spices/herbs went in the salami mince mixture and it was hung for weeks.

Will look out some links - HFW makes bacon with normal salt but he uses loads.

This Falafel recipe is very tasty and very filling.

Sorry for the double post lost internet on my phone

misscph I'm not breastfeeding anyomore its my old name on mfpal. Weird thing is this woe is making me broody, which is totally unpractical

This bread looks good I found it following favas cracker link. Has anyone tried it?

I have made that one before Giraffe in fact I have made it twice - both ways and it has not been great, however I made this one from Elana's Pantry yesterday and it got the "best one yet" comment from the dcs and dh.

The bacon making has been a bit of a disaster - too salty, think I may soak it for a while and put it on a slow roast - see if I can at least salvage something out of it.

Sorry to hear about your bacon, snow Silly question! Did you discovered it was too salty before or after drying it in the oven?
If it's still too salty after slow roasting you might still be able to use it in soups or sauces as 'stock cubes' instead of salt.

I opened mine this morning and it smelled quite sweet, looked grey/pink and it had started to release some juices. I added (covered really) with salt and some more rosemary, now I'm wondering whether to go scrape some of the salt off.

Amatriciana sauce
Ingredients
100g bacon (ideally streaky)cubed
2-3 clove of garlic
1-2 chillies
(1/4-1/2 tsp salt)
olive oil
1 tin of tomatoes or 500g fresh tomatoes (blended) or a small bottle of Passata

If using fresh tomatoes- blanch first (3-5mins) to remove skin.

Cook bacon until the fat starts golding, add garlic, tomatoes and chillies and simmer for 30 mins (might need to add a bit of water if using passata); check for salt and add if required. Once cooked add a drizzle of olive oil and maybe some fresh parsley.
Instead of cooking the sauce on the hob, it can be cooked in the oven for a more intense tomato flavour (I tend to add chicken to it) but the bacon still needs a bit of rendering first.

I've just seen that you can make your own bacon! I definitely have to give that a try! My family eats loads of bacon and you do have to wonder how bad it is, especially for the children. One question, how do you slice it? I have a couple of really sharp knives but I think I would struggle to get thin even slices.

Some entrepreneur really should set up a website catering to primal/paleo eaters. There are enough people on the threads on here to get a sizeable amount of business. And I'm sure a lot of people would love to be able to buy e.g. nitrate free bacon or 100% meat sausages.

Stunt nun I would def be intersted in nitrate free bacon, but I was looking for cooked meat in m&S for a work lunch and everything had nitrates and or sugar added. Amazon sell a bread and meat slicer which I really want but no space for another gadget

Misschp thanks for that info on meat boxes by the way, really helpful :) , I couldn't find the box on athelet you described though - was it a custom box.

snow so frustrating, I hope you salvaged the meat.

DP on board with gluten free, organic etc but unfortunately it emerges he expects me to do it for £200 a month less . Still I shouldn't bury head in sand about finances I guess...

Youngest dd2 is firmly in toddler food refusal mode which is making things even trickier, she is having less junk in the form of biscuits but quite a lot of fromage frais and potatoes with cheese. Paleo chicken nuggets next week again I think, as she liked those.

Giraffes, I think it was the steak lover' box plus bulk buy mince plus 2 chickens. Mind you, Athleat is a very confusing site ;)

The cost of paleo - as a former (organic)vegan I still find it so hard to accept that my food costs have DOUBLED since going paleo! But it has made such a difference for DH and DS's wellbeing.

Don't worry about the fromage frais etc., it is so much better than biscuits etc. Just change it a little at a time.

Update on the bacon!
After roasting it and doing a taste test to discover it was beyond salty - I soaked it in water, rinsed and soaked again. I then boiled it on a gentle simmer for 45 mins. Allowed it to dry on a chopping board. The taste was then closer to gammon - pretty good actually. I have chopped it up and froze it into 150g portions and I will use it as Unami flavouring in sauces as fava suggested. Salads, soups, breakfast hash etc.

I don't see it as a disaster - it didn't go the way I expected but the results are pretty good - in fact it backs up what HFW said about homemade bacon that it was best used to flavour other dishes. I will use it and I will make it again - I just won't be serving it as bacon and eggs in the morning.

snow Thank you, thank you, thank you for the bacon recipe.

I don't envy the amount of work you had to put in but I know next time it'll be perfect.

Ours turned out beautiful. I didn't scrape the extra salt added yesterday and it took 3hrs for the bacon to reach 150F-but it was clearly ready when some of the fat started dripping. The skin made lovely cracklings. I was expecting a strong flavour of rosemary, as I had drowned the poor thing in it, but only the outer bits had a hint.
Other than one extra addition of salt and at least double the rosemary, I pretty much stuck to the original recipe...I wrapped the bacon to be in kitchen paper to avoid contamination from the plastic bag and rolled as much of the air out.

I have one very happy daddy, looking forward to his Father's day breakfast. Thank you, snow.

You're very welcome fava I think I might follow the recipe more next time, your's sounds perfect!

We will be having asparagus and poached eggs for Father's Day breakfast and then a stuffed tenderloin with bread and butter pudding made with croissants for afters - I will be baking but not eating - dh doesn't have issues with gluten and this is his favourite pudding, the kids aren't complaining either!

This week I plan to make Ghee - seems pretty easy and can be stored in the cupboard - the stuff I bought before contained preservatives.

Ribeye tonight with mushrooms onions and swede chips and chipotle mayo....can't wait!

Thanks Misscph will check out that box. I made fish fingers from scratch and coloured the rice flour with turmeric- felt like such a palaver but all three ate them. must be quite a change from vegan do you miss pulses etc, I have been craving hummus and that's coming from a meat eater

That's great snow, sounds a bit like using pancetta in sauce yum!

Look forward to hearing about the Ghee snow, I usually use butter when making curry so have wondered what its like.

So pleased your bacon worked flava

We had lunch out and I steered the children away from cold lunchbox option to hot meals, they shared 2 between 3 and it was much better value and probably a lot more filling than the tiny sandwich, crisps and juice option.

I used some chicken broth from the slow cooker and bottom of the fridge veg to make soup for me and a base for the rest of the families pasta sauce I also sneaked in some anchovies in to their sauce before blending. Might sneak in some more things next time { evil }

Am still doing whole 30, it isn't too bad not having dairy but I will be happy to introduce it back again, but hopefuly in smaller quantities. I think I will have to restrict nuts a bit more though if I want to lose any weight.

Have discovered I love beetroot cut into smallish wedges and rosted with olive oil, dp has been having his with blue cheese.

Giraffe How far into whole 30 are you? I can't realistically give up alcohol for a month - not in the summer....always do it in January, so that's the plan whole 30 detox after Xmas. But I am trying to avoid almonds, chocolate and diary. I think I may have a chocolate allergy - my mouth it becoming irritated at times and I need to pin down the culprit.

Snow why couldn't it be something less delicious! maybe it will be enough just to have a break from them for a month. Dp gets sore mouth from citrus and sometimes wine which is tricky.

I am only on day 8, at home has been easier than expected but eating out and socialising more difficult than I thought. Jan def d makes the most sense as a month to do it as so many people are on diets and too skint from Christmas for nights out. I willbe done in time to make dds birthday cake.

Do you feel better on whole 30 Giraffe?

I have a feeling diary is an issue with me but giving it up is tricky - too many restrictions leave too little choice - I suppose I could see it as a cheat/treat rather than an everyday food.

Snow I had a thought actually, could your mouth thing be with toothpaste, I am noticing my lips feel a bit puffy after I brush - some paleo people don't use regular tootpaste, but I don't feel my teeth are clean without colgate total.

I haven't noticed a huge difference yet but still pretty early on. I have needed the odd nap but otherwise my energy is quite level and I find it easier to get up in the morning. But (this is embarrasing) my heels are less chapped and seem noticably less dry (makes me think candida) . Eating out is really not possible if being strict, I had onion soup out last week then relised there was probably all sorts in it.

I am beginning to get used to not having dairy and I have less cravings for tea and coffee, I am still drinking them with coconut milk, but finding myself reaching for glasses of water too I am finding my hand goes to put cheese crumbs to my mouth quite a lot though when preparing food for dc so I probably used to eat a fair amount without registering it.

Actually I am failing a bit on the three meal thing because I have a fairly small breakfast and then need snacks. I got out of the habit of bfast on 5:2.

DS played me this morning, "mummy I really want something but I know you will dissaprove etc" I feel into his trap and gave toasted him a slice of wheat bread from freezer {wry }

Update on Clarified butter/Ghee Couldn't have been easier!
Unsalted butter two packs - melt, remove scum aka milk solids, keep boiling on a very low simmer till butter goes clear and remaining solids fall to bottom around 30mins - then strain the solids out using a piece of muslin or a thin tea towel...decant into jar and you're done! No need to refrigerate - stays fresh for 6months. Highly recommend!

Giraffe - don't think it's toothpaste, my lips haven't been affected and I'm not that neat when brushing, just my tongue, gums and the roof of my mouth - which became swollen after chocolate eating. It's getting better now and once it's fully healed I'll try out the chocolate again.

I get better quality sleep when I avoid a high carb diet, it does mean that I am aware of needing more sleep....then again I am more active.

snow good news about ghee, sounds pretty doable Fingers crossed for no reaction next time you eat choc.

Made some ketchup this evening to put in a meat loaf recipe. The ketchup is really easy to make - just don't over cook as it will become bitter...no added sugar at all, I was surprised by how good it was, kids liked it too. I doubled up the batch and stored some in my bulging freezer. No more shop bought ketchup for us!

Interesting about the ghee, snow! I buy ghee from my local Asian grocer, but it is not organic or grassfed of course. Very tasty, though!

Re whole30, I skimmed the page, doesn't look too restrictive? My dh just started Paleo Protocol (basically meat and veg an that's it), and he is well cranky today due to coffee withdrawal symptoms ;) When ever he goes off coffee, he seems to have a headache for weeks, sigh! Thank God I am going camping w kids in thecoming weekend ...

Hello!

I'm currently reading Primal Body:Primal Mind and am absolutely convinced that Primal is the way to go for me (and hopefully my family) and I'm only half way through the book!

This will be a major change of diet and lifestyle though, as my diet is embarrassingly carb-heavy and unhealthy at the moment. I rely a lot on sugar and easy processed food, and have been aware for a while that I needed to make some significant changes but wasn't sure, until now, what the healthiest approach actually was.

I've ordered some grass-fed organic meat from Everfield Farm, and am going to give myself a few days to get organised. Due to the massive changes this will entail, I'm aiming to start by concentrating on cutting out wheat, sugar and processed food, cooking from scratch, and doing the best I can..! Going to have a google for some nice looking recipes.

Just wanted to say hello really