North African Carrot Slaw recipe paleo primal carrots-min

Recipe: North African Carrot Slaw

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Wonderfully Moroccan, this carrot based ‘slaw’ is fruity and gently spiced, and teams up perfectly with some chicken wings or drumsticks.

North African Carrot Slaw Ingredients:

  • 5 carrots, grated
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1tbsp sesame seeds
  • 3 tbsp sultanas
  • 2 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp mint, finely chopped
  • 1 stick of celery, finely chopped
  • 2tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice

North African Carrot Slaw How To:

Leave the sultanas to soak for 5 minutes in hot water whilst preparing the rest of the veg.

Mix all ingredients together, dress with the olive oil and lemon, and season to taste with a little salt and pepper.

North African Carrot Slaw recipe paleo primal carrots-min

Steamed Sweet Chilli Chicken with Carrot, Squash and Coconut Mash paleo recipe dinner-min

Recipe: Steamed Sweet Chilli Chicken with Carrot, Squash and Coconut Mash

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Who doesn’t love the taste of Sweet Chilli Chicken? Unfortunately, the majority of sweet chilli sauces on the market are either laden with sugar, artificial flavourings, or in most cases, both. Thankfully, it’s remarkably easy to make your own sweet chilli glaze that is just perfect for basting chicken with. The bold flavours of sweet chilli pair beautifully in this recipe with the creamy carrot, squash and coconut mash.

Recipe: Steamed Sweet Chilli Chicken with Carrot, Squash and Coconut Mash
 
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Recipe type: Dinner
Prep time: 
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Ingredients
  • For the chicken
  • 2 Chicken breasts
  • ⅔ red chillies, finely chopped and deseeded
  • A chunk fresh ginger, grated
  • 1 tbsp coconut aminos
  • 1 tsp honey
  • Juice 1 lime
  • For the mash
  • 2 cups butternut squash, diced
  • 6 – 8 medium sized carrots, chopped
  • ½ can full fat coconut milk
  • Handful desiccated coconut (optional)
  • Salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Heat water in the base of a two tiered steamer. Line one of the steamer baskets with a little parchment paper, and lie the chicken breasts flat. Add the diced squash and carrots to the other basket. Place the vegetables on the first tier of the steamer, and the chicken on the second. Cover and steam for 10 minutes. Place the coconut milk in a saucepan on a separate hob, and heat gently.
  2. Meanwhile, make the sweet chilli glaze by mashing together the chilli and ginger in a mortar and pestle. Muddle in the coconut aminos, honey and lime. Taste, and adjust to make sweeter / spicier depending on your preference.
  3. When the 10 minutes are up, remove the vegetable basket from the steamer, whilst leaving the chicken on (now on the lower tier) for a further 3 or 4 minutes. Tip the carrots and squash into a large bowl, and mash well before adding the coconut milk. Keep mashing to make a creamy consistency, before seasoning and adding the desiccated coconut (if using)
  4. Check the chicken breasts are fully cooked through before removing from the steamer. Glaze with the sweet chilli, before serving in two separate bowls over the mash.

Steamed Sweet Chilli Chicken with Carrot, Squash and Coconut Mash paleo recipe dinner-min

Paleo Diet Primal Olive Oil Extra Virgin Fake Test Quality Label-min

Are You Using Fake Olive Oil?

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Olive oil is one of the healthier oils around, because it’s full of nutrients and antioxidants. Using high quality ‘extra virgin’ olive oil is pretty standard on a Paleo diet. But just how good is the olive oil in your kitchen?

Apparently some olive oils are not all they seem…

Olive oil comes in different categories: ‘Extra virgin’, ‘virgin’, ‘fine virgin’, (normal) ‘olive oil’ and ‘pomace’. ‘Extra virgin’ is the label put on an oil containing less than 1% acid.

Recent research from the Olive Institute (University of California in Davis) revealed that more than half of the olive oils presently on the market are bad quality. Often, despite what they label says, it is not always ‘extra virgin’ olive oil and is sometimes mixed with cheaper oils like hazelnut oils or even soybean oil! Sometimes the oil can be made from overripe and rotting olives. This olive oil does not have any nutritional or health benefits and can even be harmful…

Olives are fruits, making it a very unique oil. Olives are drupaceous (stone fruits), like prunes and cherries. The oil is made with a simple hydraulic press, much like the one we use for fruit juices. This in contrast to the “vegetable” oils, which are made in a refinery with the use of solvents, heat and high pressure – not very natural!

Paleo Diet Primal Olive Oil Extra Virgin Fake Test Quality Label-min

Olive oil is made gently which is why it keeps the ‘extra virgin’ quality, full of antioxidants in the forms of polyphenols and sterols, and vitamins E and K. Olive oil contains large quantities of CoQ10, an antioxidant which is very effective in protecting our heart and fighting chronic inflammations.

Choosing a Good Quality Olive Oil

It’s really important to make sure the olive oil you use is good quality – and really is what it says it is only the label. There are a few ways you can get more certainty about the olive oil you buy:

  • Develop a taste for olive oil. There are course and tasting session run, which will help you get a feel for what it should taste like. This will help you identify if the oil you purchase is a good one.
  • Buy only brands that are certified by trustworthy organisations.
  • If possible, buy directly from the olive growers and producers.
  • You might have heard about the refrigerator test: when you put olive oil in the fridge, it should solidify. If it doesn’t solidify, you could be dealing with a mixture of oils. BUT! This test is not 100% trustworthy, as some very high quality olive oils will not solidify.

If you’re not happy with some olive oil that you’ve purchased – return it – and try another brand.

How do you choose a good olive oil and what do you use it for? Do you have any brands, which you’d recommend? Please share your olive oil hints and tips in the comments below!

Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings paleo diet primal recipe barbecue-min

Recipe: Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings

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What more is there to say!? Hands down the perfect Friday night treat, these chicken wings are brilliant with a healthy green salad.

Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings Ingredients:

  • 16 free range chicken wings
  • 2 tbsp coconut aminos
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • ½ tsp mustard powder
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  • Salt and pepper

Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings How To:

1)     Preheat an oven to 200C / 400F / Gas mark 5. Place the chicken wings in a roasting dish, season with salt and pepper, then bake for 15 minutes.

2)     Meanwhile, combine all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, mixing really well.

3)     Remove the chicken wings from the oven. Lower the heat to 180 / 350F / Gas mark 4. Baste the wings in the sauce mixture before returning to the oven. Bake for a further 25 minutes, turning every so often and coating them in the juices.

Sticky BBQ Chicken Wings paleo diet primal recipe barbecue-min

25 Reasons You Should Get More Herbs In Your Diet paleo primal health nutrition-min

25 Reasons You Should Get More Herbs In Your Diet

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Instead of using herbs just to add flavour and colour to your cooking, do you ever add them for their medicinal benefits? Since ancient times herbs have been used as medicine in cultures all around the world.  Many modern medicines use active ingredients which come directly from plants – so there’s clearly a lot to be gained from plant medicine.

25 Reasons You Should Get More Herbs In Your Diet paleo primal health nutrition-min

Here are 25 herbs that you probably have in your kitchen – and what they are claimed to be beneficial for.

  1. Basil: full of minerals and a natural antioxidant
  2. Black pepper: anti bacterial, antioxidant and helps to stimulates digestion
  3. Cardamom: fresh breath
  4. Cayenne pepper: antibacterial, rich in beta carotene (pre cursor to vitamin A), reduces pain and helps stimulates metabolism
  5. Celery: stimulates the appetite, diuretic, detoxifing, helps with constipation, relieves rheumatism, helps with kidney stones and eases arthritis symptoms
  6. Chili pepper: rich in vitamin C, anti-inflammatory and natural antioxidant
  7. Cinnamon: regulates blood sugar levels, powerful antioxidant, regulates cholesterol metabolism and promotes good circulation
  8. Clove: powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and mildly anesthetic
  9. Coriander: rich in iron and magnesium, prevents gas, prevents urinary infections, regulates blood sugar level and a natural detoxifier of heavy metals
  10. Dill: anti bacterial, antioxidant and contains a lot of iron
  11. Fenugreek: relieves constipation and said to stimulate muscle growth
  12. Ginger: antiseptic, calms the stomach, anti-inflammatory and an effective natural remedy for motion sickness
  13. Ginkgo biloba: stimulates the circulation, anti-aging and improves memory
  14. Garlic: anti bacterial, anti-viral, lowers blood pressure and has natural antibiotic properties
  15. Mint: rich in vitamin C, calms the stomach and intestines and relieves headaches naturally
  16. Mustard seed: rich in selenium, omega-3, phosphorus, vitamin B3 and zinc, helps against cancer and is a natural anti-inflammatory
  17. Nutmeg: anti-inflammatory and helps to regulates sleep
  18. Oregano: anti bacterial, strong antioxidant and useful as preservative
  19. Paprika powder: anti-inflammatory and a natural antioxidant
  20. Parsley: detoxifies, helps with kidney stones and a natural antispasmodic
  21. Pepper: contains a lot of capsaicin (the ingredient that ensure the ‘heat’), clears stuffy noses, relieves pain and said to be beneficial for prostate cancer
  22. Rosemary: keeps the genes young, strengthens the immune system, improves the circulation and stimulates digestion
  23. Sage: improves the memory, anti-inflammatory and a strong natural antioxidant
  24. Thyme: antiseptic and a natural anti bacterial
  25. Turmeric: often called Curcuma, yellow root or curcumine. Very strong antioxidant, is said have a role in cancer prevention, help with skin infections, anti-inflammatory and relieves arthritis symptoms.

Which herbs do you use in your cooking? Have you ever used plants and herbs for health reasons? Was it successful? I’d love to hear your experiences and thoughts in the comments below! And please remember – seek medical advice before using herbs for medicinal purposes!

South Indian Pepper Chicken paleo diet recipe dinner-min

Recipe: South Indian Pepper Chicken

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Although a lot of South Indian recipes are vegetarian, there are a few gems that will really satisfy your carnivore cravings. In this Pepper Chicken recipe, Black Pepper is used as an ingredient, not a seasoning, so don’t hold back on the amount you use!

Pepper Chicken Ingredients:

  • 4 chicken breasts, diced
  • 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
  • 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
  • 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 4cm fresh ginger, grated
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 x 400ml can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 handful fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • Plenty of freshly ground Black Pepper
  • Juice of ½ lemon

 Pepper Chicken How To:

1)     Season the diced chicken with the lemon juice, lots of black pepper, and a pinch of sea salt. Add a little more pepper just for safe keeping!

2)     Heat half the oil in a pan to a high heat. Brown off the chicken for 3 – 4 minutes, then set aside.

3)     Drain the meat juices from the pan, then return to a medium heat. Add the rest of the oil, then sauté the onions for a couple of minutes. Once they have turned a healthy golden brown, add the crushed garlic, ginger and turmeric, and allow to sweat for a few minutes to let the flavours release.

4)     Add the chopped tomatoes, and simmer for two minutes. Now return the chicken to the pan with the chopped peppers. Turn up the heat, and cover with a lid. Cook for 10 – 15 minutes, until the meat is really tender.

5)     Remove the lid, and add the fresh coriander just before serving. Works a treat with lots of fresh steamed veggies or Cauliflower Rice.

South Indian Pepper Chicken paleo diet recipe dinner-min

 

Paleo Diet Recipe Primal Mexican Turkey Burgers with Coriander Guacamole-min

Recipes: Mexican Turkey Burgers with Coriander Guacamole

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For me, free range turkey is one of the most underrated meats. It's often overlooked in favour of chicken, when in truth it’s a lot more versatile, whilst still being lean and high in protein. Lean turkey mince is brilliant to use in chillies, but it also binds really well to make delicious turkey burgers. Try these with a hearty spoonful of homemade guacamole on the side.

Makes 8 burgers

Ingredients

For the burgers:

  • 500g free range minced turkey
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 2 jalapeno chilli peppers, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  •  
    2 tsp smoked paprika
  • A small handful fresh coriander, chopped
  • Sea Salt, to taste

For the guacamole:

2 large, ripe avocados
1 clove garlic
2 spring onions, finely chopped
Juice ½ lime
Black pepper
Sea Salt
1 handful fresh coriander, chopped

Turkey Burgers How To:

Heat a little olive oil in a pan to a medium heat. Lightly fry the onions until golden to mellow out the flavour. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.
Rinse the turkey mince in a little cold water. Combine all ingredients in the mixing bowl with your hands, being sure to mix well. Roll out into 8 generous sized balls on a chopping board, then flatten into burger shapes.

Heat a grill to a medium-high heat. Grill the burgers for 6 – 8 minutes each side, making sure they are thoroughly cooked through.

Meanwhile, peel the avocados and remove the stone. In a mortar and pestle, crush the garlic clove with a little sea salt to form a paste. Scrape into a bowl with the two avocados, and mash to a pulp with a potato masher.

Squeeze in the lime juice, black pepper and coriander and mix well. Serve on the side with the burgers.

Ahh Mexican food, it doesn’t get much better than you. Let me know if there are any other Paleo adapted Mexican recipes you’d like to see on here!

Paleo Diet Recipe Primal Mexican Turkey Burgers with Coriander Guacamole-min

Guacamole paleo recipe dip sauce avocado primal-min

Recipe: Guacamole Dip

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Guacamole is another one of those things that is definitely worth making instead of buying. That way, you can be sure what’s in it – and know that it won’t contain any nasties!

This is how I make mine.

Guacamole Ingredients:

  • 4 chillies, finely sliced
  • Small bunch coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
  • 3 tomatoes, finely diced
  • Sea salt to taste
  • 1 red onion, finely diced
  • Juice of ½ lime
  • 4 ripe avocados

Guacamole How To:

Use a pestle and mortar to grind together the chillies, coriander (cilantro), tomatoes, sea salt and onion, until you reach a paste consistency.

Add the lime juice, and a dash of water if required, to make the mixture more fluid. Finally, mash in the avocados, just before you’re ready to serve!

Guacamole is great with almost any Paleo meal, and a great dip for raw vegetables – particularly alongside some homemade Pâté!

Guacamole is one of those foods best made fresh. It will store in the fridge for a short time, but won't look as appealing! If you need to make it up in advance, using more lime will help it to keep that bit longer.

Do you make your own dips? I’d love to hear what your favourites are, in the comments below!

Guacamole paleo recipe dip sauce avocado primal-min

CLA paleo diet Conjugated Linoleic Acid-min

CLA & The Paleo Diet

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Concluding my focus on common deficiencies, this week turns to CLA.

CLA stands for Conjugated Linoleic Acid and is the good trans-fat that occurs naturally in dairy and meat products – especially when animals have been grass-fed, another plus for the Paleo diet. In the stomach of animals such as the goat, sheep or cows millions and millions of tiny pieces of bacteria help the animal to digest its food. They also help to covert dietary linoleic fatty acids into saturated fatty acids. While this conversion takes time and several steps, one of those steps is to create CLA, some of this never actually gets fully saturated and will show up instead in the animals milk fat and body.

CLA paleo diet Conjugated Linoleic Acid-min

28 different CLA isomers – or structural arrangements of the molecules show in CLA rich animal fat.  This is very complex and different from the trans-fats created by partially hydrogenating vegetable oils. It is those lab created trans-fats that have a negative metabolic and health effect, while the CLA isomers you get from grass fed dairy and meat is more beneficial.

CLA has been touted as the “belly busting” trans fat with research in 2007 showing that in rats, supplementing their diets with CLA did not cause them to lose whole body fat, but it was found they became more insulin sensitive. When it came to supplementing CLA in mice diets it did cause rapid weight loss, but the increase in hepatic fat accumulation left the mice insulin resistant.

Many people have taken CLA as a supplement and it did seem to work for weight loss, but while the weight loss was good, at the moment we are not really sure what else it does to the body. Research into this further on different animals may help us better understand if there are any additional effects on humans. Are we more like mice or rats?
Primal Diet Supplement Vitamin Mineral Deficiency
The one thing that these studies did show was that hepatic fat accumulation or loss and body fat accumulation or loss is not always in the same direction. We are seeing hepatic fat loss but no weight loss and hepatic fat gain with rapid weight loss. Those who follow low carb diets insisting that this metabolic advantage allows them to eat thousands of calories and lose weight will love the little mouse’s result! While the study on the mouse is quite well known amongst those in the carb circle with the mouse eating as much as it wants without losing or gaining weight, this metabolism does come at a price – profound liver damage.

Tests were carried out to see what effect dietary supplements of CLA would have on the body mass index, and body fat distribution. 40 volunteers participated in a 12 week double blind study some received a CLA while other received olive oil. Body fat and abdominal and hepatic fat content was assessed with an overall finding that showed CLA supplements did not show any significant change in the volunteers BMI index or in their total body fat.

Have you considered supplementing with CLA? If you have, did it have good results for you? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments, below.

Smoked Mackerel with Fresh Beet Slaw paleo lunch recipe-min

Paleo Lunch Box Recipe – Smoked Mackerel with Fresh Beet Slaw

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I just love making my own ‘slaw’ – they are quick to make, super versatile and brilliant to keep in the fridge. You can mix them up with all sorts of ingredients, and they are perfect to chuck in the lunchbox for a healthy pick me up. This slaw is made with raw beets, and is as wonderful to look at as it is to eat. Smoked mackerel is the perfect combination to boost the protein and omega 3s.

The Slaw recipe below makes enough for about four good sized servings, so if you have a family to feed you may want to double up. Switch up the ingredients however you see fit – don’t be afraid to experiment!

Slaw Ingredients:

  • 2 strips sustainably caught smoked mackerel per portion

For the Slaw:

  • 2 raw beets
  • 4 medium carrots
  • ¼ red cabbage
  • ¼ white cabbage
  • 2 green apples
  • Handful pumpkin seeds
  • Handful flaked almonds
  • 75ml red wine vinegar
  • 40ml olive oil

Slaw How To:

Chop both cabbages as finely as possible. Grate the carrots, beets and apples, and combine all in a large bowl.

Combine the red wine vinegar and olive oil in a separate bowl. Gradually stir into the slaw mixture, then add the pumpkin seeds and almonds and mix again. Season to taste. Cover with gladwrap/ clingfilm and store in the fridge.

The slaw will keep in the fridge for a good 3 – 4 days, and the flavours will just develop over this period. When ready to serve, add to your lunchbox with 2 good sized strips smoked mackerel (slip the bottom skin off first if you like). Just make sure the lid is on tight, as you don’t want beetroot juice leaking into your bag!

Smoked Mackerel with Fresh Beet Slaw paleo lunch recipe-min