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I realize that I am almost asking the world but I wanted to put the question out there. Do you know of any cheap and healthy food you can order out?

Healthy = Paleo/Primal approved (Conventional meat and veggies is fine) that would NOT count as a cheat meal.

Cheap = $5 for the meal or has a big enough serving that you can eat half now, save half for later and it would still qualify as $5 per meal.

Here are mine (Thank you to PH for the first):

  1. "Ghetto Burrito Bowl" at Chipoltle (type in search to find the PH thread): Consists of getting two sides of meat with a side of guacamole and possibly some salsa or lettuce.

  2. Large Order of Pho Soup: This usually costs $8-$9 but I've found you can order to go and eat half now then put the rest in the fridge for later (just bring soup to a boil in a pot then add in ingredients). I had trouble finishing the entire thing anyway and half of that made a good portion for a meal (Note: I eat 3 a day)

EDIT: A heads up to anyone trying this: It looks like a lot of Pho places use MSG in their PHO. Be sure to ask about this before you order.

  1. Rotisserie Chicken at Whole Foods + Salad Bar: This can last a LOT of meals and has no additives, just herbs. I enjoy getting the chicken and some salad at the salad bar and eating the salad + about 1/4th to 1/5th of the chicken. The rest is used for the protein portion of the meal for a few days.

What are yours?

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Is Pho really all that Paleo - what ingredients are they adding to the broth, i.e. soy sauce, MSG etc? – Renee Apr 25 2012 at 15:06
I asked my local Pho place if they add veggie oils or wheat to their soup and they said no. They said that the soup was made from bone broth but I will have to doublecheck on the soy sauce/MSG. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 15:16
Do you mean pho without the noodles? Do you get just the broth and the meat? – Amanda Apr 25 2012 at 15:31
I follow the "Safe Starch" so I get mine with rice noodles. I read another hack where they just get the broth, meat and veggies but I don't think that would be enough for me. A good idea if you just want a non-heavy meal. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 16:19
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 All the places I use to eat Pho at used MSG (pretty heavily). May want to re-consider that one. If they say they don't, I'd stil be skeptical (that's just me). – MotoMoto Apr 26 2012 at 2:22
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22 Answers

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I live in North Carolina, so a favorite food of mine to get out is a big plate of barbecue. There's probably some sugar in the sauce, but I can't imagine it's substantial (it's Lexington style and though it's tomato and vinegar based, it's not super thick like bottled barbecue sauce). I usually get barbecue slaw to go with it (chopped cabbage in barbecue sauce), and I get baked beans - not paleo, but you could substitute collard greens or something.

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 I would double check on the BBQ sauce. That stuff is typically LOADED with sugar. Just a thought. – DanielleO812 Apr 25 2012 at 15:27
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 You have just melted my heart. Talking about barbecue makes feel funny in a good way. We have a few great places here in WNC so we just skip the sides and order by the pound with two forks and a plate. – Molly Apr 25 2012 at 15:29
Danielle: You may be right. I looked up a few recipes - bit.ly/Ig4Pyp - and they vary in sugar content, so it probably depends on where you get it. Again, it's a very thin sauce though, so personally, I'm not concerned about the amounts involved. I see it as being the same as overlooking the veg oil used in the chipolte fare mentioned. Other people's mileage may vary depending on their strictness. :) – Anthony Apr 25 2012 at 15:50
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 Our eastern is a vinegar and red pepper flake sauce, I've heard of some restaurants using sugar, but you're pretty safe for the most part. – Ashley Apr 25 2012 at 17:30
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 My understanding is that North Carolina BBQ mostly uses a vinegar and red pepper sauce, instead of a sugar laden BBQ sauce like the rest of the country. – jj Apr 25 2012 at 18:23
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My rule of thumb in general that with "cheap," "fast," and "good," you can usually pick any two out of three, but asking for all three is expecting too much. If I want "fast" food I'll run to the grocery store and pick up, say, sashimi. Although even that is immediately climbing out of your definition of "cheap." Hard-boiled eggs to go, Fage (if you do dairy), precooked meat. I like the roast chicken idea.

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Fair enough, but as you can see I found a few. Because of that I wondered if there were others. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 18:21
Sashimi if you live in the Pac NW (like me) and give yourself a slightly higher budget than the question posed. I didn't want to just be a hater and offer nothing but a quip. ;-) – tdgor Apr 25 2012 at 19:23
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 I've had cheap, fast, and good... low-carb burgers at Carl's Jr. They'll lettuce wrap any burger, even their value burger. You can add guac or bacon, with or without cheese, and ask for no sauce. Even ask for extra vegetables. Pair it with a cup of water, and yuuuum. <3 – Esther Apr 27 2012 at 18:22
^ presumably the burger pattie is made with wheat though right? – Jamie Aug 19 at 9:37
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Dairy, chocolate, hard-boiled eggs, fruit, canned oysters.

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 Sardines, nuts (many varieties) and pork rinds (yes, eat them, only a couple local brands though, fried in own lard, nothing else, yum!). – MotoMoto Apr 26 2012 at 2:36
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Chipotle is mine (salad bowl + meat + guac), but I think lots of folks do In and Out Burger too w/o the bun (wrapped in lettuce)

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+1 Add pico + an extra serving of meat to the bowl and I'm gold. – DanielleO812 Apr 25 2012 at 15:28
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 +1 for In and Out. Love it in a pinch (plenty of them in my neck of the woods). – MotoMoto Apr 26 2012 at 2:25
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Pho does not have soy sauce or oil in it.

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What about those meat balls - can't imagine it's quality meat... I like Pho, please convince me otherwise! – Renee Apr 25 2012 at 15:33
It may have MSG though. I don't know about Vietnamese food, but other Asian foods use it liberally. – trjones Apr 25 2012 at 15:36
Yea, I don't eat the meatballs, but the regular pho tai does not have soy sauce or oil in it. MSG may or may not be used depending on the chef. Check with the kitchen. I eat pho when I'm racing or doing long runs because it's the perfect combination of carbs and protein for me. – Carla Apr 25 2012 at 15:43
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 I don't get meatballs in my pho, I go for the brisket, tripe, and tendon pho personally. Skip the beansprouts and load it down with basil and sriracha. – Joshua Apr 25 2012 at 17:41
Looks like one of my Pho places has MSG. BIG thanks for the heads up! I will need to look into this at any PHO places I go to. – Denis Apr 27 2012 at 13:26
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Hardees/Carls Jr has a low carb burger, prepared with lettuce instead of the bun. Total life saver on many occasions, out and about and when I have a burger craving. Plus you can get a salad at subway prepped just like a sandwich.

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Pretty much any burger place nowadays will serve any of their burgers bunless. I know, been there, done that ; ) – MotoMoto Apr 26 2012 at 2:28
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Elevation Burger does a great lettuce wrap, plus their beef is grass-fed. We also have some great salad places in DC like Sweetgreen and Chopt which will do double or triple protein on top of a design-your-own salad.

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How much are Elevation Burger's burgers? I remember I tried them once but you have to get at least a double to get enough meat. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 17:15
It can vary by location, but double burger (6.4 ounces of beef) is usually $5.99. – Mike T Apr 26 2012 at 15:05
And the beef is not only grass-fed, it is completely grass-finished, never fed grain, certified organic and ground on-site. – Mike T Apr 26 2012 at 15:06
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I'll throw Smashburger in the mix - although if you order without the bun for eat-in, it comes on a plate; they don't wrap it in lettuce. Not sure how that would translate for takeout. I don't know about oil usage there.

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I live in California, and we have a burger place called In-N-Out that has "protein style" burgers that are wrapped in lettuce, sans bun. I usually get a double-double protein style burger with or without cheese... no sauce with ketchup, mustard, and extra vegetables. And I get a side of water. Depending on my carb intake for the day I may or may not add on a side of french fries.

Another option I like is to get a lettuce-wrapped "low-carb" style burger from Carl's Jr. Carl's Jr will lettuce wrap ANY of their burgers. You can also substitute the cheese for guacamole, which is awesome. And sometimes I'll add bacon. They have beef burgers, turkey burgers, and chicken burgers.

Also, pretty much all fast food places (McDonald's, Carl's Jr, Jack in the Box, etc...) have salads that you can buy.

Note: I've tried to get lettuce wrapped burgers at McDonald's and, while possible, they are pretty lame. They put them in a plate or bowl and don't actually wrap them, the lettuce is one very small wilted piece of lameness, and the meat is barely existent...

If I'm REALLY hankering for a customizable and affordable fast food burger that complies with my paleo/primal/low-carb/gluten-free style of eating that is fast, cheap, and tasty... I head over to Carl's Jr.

And for when I don't mind dishing out a few more bucks, I'll go to Chipotle.

Hoped that helped! :)

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2 
 Much appreciated. Keep in mind that those fries are most likely fried in bad oils that are rancid due to constant use. – Denis Apr 27 2012 at 18:24
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In Canada theres a chain called "Hero Burger"

its amazing, its pure Angus beef thats grass fed, certified antibiotic and hormone free.. plus has full traceability.. you can even get it with bacon and guacamole (obviously no bun).. doesn't get much better than that in Ontario!

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Seriously? Jealous! – Veriria May 22 2012 at 14:19
heroburgers.com – Sloan May 22 2012 at 15:03
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I love Chipotle. If you watch what you eat there you can get away pretty clean. Other than that, when I am on the West Coast I love In'n'Out burger. They don't use any preservatives and you can order your burger "protein style" without the bun.

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1 
 Was just going to say In-n-Out, protein style, no sauce. – jj Apr 25 2012 at 18:24
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If you live in the area where they have Jimmy John's Subs, you can get an 'Unwich' -- basically a 'wrap' of meats inside lettuce. I typically get the tuna with avocado (yes, regular mayo, so there is some vegetable oil), and extra onions, hot peppers, and cucumbers. You can also get roasted turkey breast.

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I was looking into Jimmy Johns. Any idea about additives to their cold cuts and meat? – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 16:22
Be careful their cheese and some of their meat has gluten – Ashley Apr 25 2012 at 17:33
I don't use their cheese, and avoid their processed meats -- typically, I stick to tuna or turkey (both of which are gluten free). I'd suspect that some of their cold cuts are chock full of nasty things, since they're a regular commercial concern and 99% of their business is in regular plain old sub sandwiches. – Firestorm Apr 25 2012 at 18:20
I like Jimmy John's -- we don't have Chipotle where I live so it's the only fast food place I go outside of times of desperation on the interstate a couple of times a year. I didn't know about the gluten, sigh, although I can't imagine it's that much. I tend to go with roast beef as presumably less processed than some other deli meats -- also I like roast beef with mustard anyway, since I'm telling them to hold the soybean-oil mayo. I would never order tuna salad there or anywhere due to the large amount of commercial mayo -- that seems worse to me anything in deli meat. – PrairieProf May 22 2012 at 15:34
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A lot of dine-in places have curbside service now -- you can call ahead and order a steak salad or a grilled chicken dinner and pick it up just as quickly as you could swing through a drive-thru. The portions are usually large enough to split into two meals. A locally-owned restaurant near me offers a HUGE filet salad using field greens, big slices of squash, tomatoes, carrots, and blue cheese. It's $13 but enough for 3 people to share for lunch.

EDITED TO ADD:

I was thinking about this question when I got off work late last night. I was hungry and too tired to start a meal from scratch at home. I had to pick up some groceries so while I was there I grabbed a chef salad and one of those packs of hard-boiled eggs from the deli. When I got home I diced the eggs, added cranberries, sunflower seeds, and sliced tomato. It took me maybe three minutes to throw it all together and be able to sit down to eat. Not perfect but it was filling, tasty, and super quick. Cost: $4.

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I will have to try this. Thanks for the idea! – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 18:54
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I know of 5 places that are currently seeking to fulfill this need.

Cultured Caveman in Portland, Not So Fast Food in San Diego, The Health Nut On Wheels in Miami, Paleo Wagon in Denver, and now Caveman Truck in Indianapolis.

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Whole Foods hot bar -- I don't know their ingredients list but I'm going to assume it's a wee bit better than a conventional hot bar at any other grocery store. The last time I went to Whole Foods, I got a box of food for $4.95 which included steamed broccoli & carrots, pulled pork, and grilled sweet potato slices.

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 love the whole foods hot bar! i definitely go overboard with the toppings, though. ended up with a $16 salad once. whoops. – Laura May 22 2012 at 16:51
I enjoy picking up a Rotisserie Chicken with salad then taking what I don't eat of the chicken home. A good meal. – Denis May 22 2012 at 18:28
Yeah their rotisserie chicken IS good! I ended up going on a Tuesday, I think, and they were only $6.99. I used it over three meals and my husband even ate some of it as well. – Veriria May 22 2012 at 21:47
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Shawarma minus the pita would work well, ask for a plate.

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Taco time has gluten free tacos and I add avacado.. No it's not paleon"perfect" but in q pinch it is better than most fast food options. I live in the Seattle area. Not sure where you are

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At Subway you can get any of their sandwiches as a salad, I usually do grilled chicken with double meat and then lots of fresh veggies, no dressing. Chic-Fil-A also has a relatively good grilled chicken salad option, pick off the croutons. I believe both of these are right around 5 bucks or maybe a little more.

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 I would HIGHLY suggest avoiding subway. I believe Primal Toad did the article but LITERALLY everything there has bad additives including the meat. I believe it was similar with Chic-Fil-A when I checked. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 16:20
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 Chick fil a also gives a lot of money to anti gay organizations. That's something I can't abide. – Ashley Apr 25 2012 at 17:32
Learn something new everyday Ashley. Thanks for the heads up. – Denis Apr 25 2012 at 18:53
Chic-Fil-A is a no go for me because of their big $$ contributions to anti gay orgs. – Carla Apr 25 2012 at 19:59
And the fact they deep fry the hell outta their chicken. – MotoMoto Apr 26 2012 at 2:33
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Most Chinese take-out places have some beef/broccoli or chicken/broccoli combo on their menu. I'm sure it comes doused in soy-sauce initially, but you could just ask them to hold the sauce and I'm sure they'd do it.

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the meat is gonna be coated in corn starch though, and stirfried in veggie oil.. – Moonablaze Aug 19 at 18:32
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I cant imagine anything from any fast food place being paleo (strict anyway). Maybe an undressed salad or something.

Id rather just use at as a chance for a intermittant fast (or pick up some nuts, fruit, tuna or salmon from a supermarket)

Oh, actually now I reconsider. Maybe those roast places might be semi-alright (though id skip the potato myself - and the gravy). Could never trust them not to put crap in the ingredients tho.

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Pollo Loco is about as paleo as it can be. Not your free range chicken but cooked in pieces with minimal seasoning on a flame grill, with fresh salsas. Crack and suck the bones as you like.

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unfortunately almost all of their meats are marinated with sauces that contain gluten. – Moonablaze Aug 19 at 18:33
Pollo Loco does not report using gluten in their flame-grilled chicken: myglutenfreenj.com/El_Pollo_Loco_Gluten_Free.html What is your source that says otherwise? Home versions of this marinade are composed of lime and pineapple juice, far from using breading or fry mixes. – thhq Aug 20 at 13:34
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I use a paleo meal delivery device (www.theprimalplan.com) At first I thought it was pricey but once I calculated how much I spend on food, realized it was saving me money.

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