Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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I haven't moved 100% to Paleo eating yet, but I have made a small start. I'm wondering if it is possible to make changes to different aspects of a cooking style (Cajun in my case) to make it more Paleo-friendly.

The meal I cooked last night is probably the complete opposite of what is a recommended Paleo diet. I made a chicken stew/fricasse. That consists of chicken cooked with potatoes, in a roux (browned flour and oil) to make a very thick gravy. That is all served over a bed of white rice.

Rice and roux are two things commonly used in Cajun cooking. I think that if I could find an easier way to substitute these things, it would be easier to adjust to the Paleo diet. Small changes would also be easier for family to accept than saying "I can't eat with you, that's not Paleo".

I'm really interested to hear from the users who posted in this question on their experience with this.

flag	asked Jul 26 2011 at 20:14 CB 23●4

CRAWFISH :) i live in mississippi, let's do a cajun meet up! – Mallory Jul 27 2011 at 15:53

jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com · Accepted Answer · 2011-07-26 20:37:52Z UTC

For the roux and rice, I make a faux rice by just running cauliflower through my food processor until it's the size that I want. I use in stir fries and it works super great for me. Once all the seasonings are in it's pretty darn tasty. I think if you do a quick steam with some fresh bay leaves that will help give a nice flavour, too.

For the roux, how about using arrowroot? I have Bob's Redmill brand. I use about 2tb of arrowroot, 2tb of fat to a cup of liquid. If I want a really thick sauce then I do a 3-3-1 ratio.

Good luck!

TomInTexas · Answer 2 · 2011-07-26 20:29:53Z UTC

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Potatoes are paleo. White rice is acceptible on paleo for most people (its mostly just the starch of the rice -- a rare example of something processed into a MORE paleo food.)

The roux is the only thing that you would need to cut out, and there are options that you could try such as coconut flour. Although odds are you will have to eventually give up eating some things that you love in the name of better health.

As far as I've seen (I live next door in Texas) a good deal of Cajun cooking is fairly paleo or at least near-paleo.

answered Jul 26 2011 at 20:29

TomInTexas
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	I thought the starches in Potato and rice made them not acceptable as Paleo foods. I guess that means I still have a ways to go to get the hang of this. – CB Jul 27 2011 at 18:27
	They're sort of a gray area. White rice has had everything but the starch stripped away. Its non-reactive for almost everyone, and because of this its a "safe starch" even though its not technically "Paleo." Potatoes are fine. Humans have been eating them for AT LEAST 5000 years and if you take away the skin they are just starch too. The paleo-purists dont like rice or taters, but many see no problem with them. – TomInTexas Jul 28 2011 at 12:06

gilliebean · Answer 3 · 2011-07-26 20:44:16Z UTC

POTATOES

Potatoes should be fine; perhaps try sweet potatoes instead? Be sure to peal them.

RICE

Rice is okay as a cheat, but only once in a while. Don't use brown rice which also has phytic acid (which steals minerals from your body and escapes with them in your poop!).

If you'd really like a rice substitute, try: grated cauliflower. There's a recipe here or you could just try googling "grated cauliflower rice" and see what you find.

ROUX

Instead of flour in the roux, try arrowroot instead of flour. You'll need to experiment with the amount to get it to your desired consistency.

Jules · Answer 4 · 2011-07-26 21:17:27Z UTC

CB - welcome to paleo land!

We do exactly as said above, and have some fun recipes for gumbo, crawfish étouffée and jambalaya. The cauliflower rice really does take on the flavor of a good gumbo (in my humble opinion!).

As far as a roux is concerned, we've made ours with a combination of either almond flour, coconut flour and/or arrowroot powder, and some bacon grease. I think our gumbo tastes exceptionally good too! - here's a pic: paleo gumbo

Let us know what recipes in particular you're interested in, and we can certainly help!

Paleo Comfort Foods

Harry · Answer 5 · 2011-07-27 04:28:09Z UTC

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Faux Cajun food seems sorta wrong. So here's what I did on Fat Tuesday this year.

answered Jul 27 2011 at 4:28

Harry
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Looks delicious and solves the rice problem too. – Karen Jul 27 2011 at 11:52

Kelly · Answer 6 · 2011-07-26 20:27:36Z UTC

Part of my family is in Thibidoux so I get the roux!!

I think the only thing you can do is try to find a substitute for the flour, perhaps try a coconut flour, a rice flour? I know it won't be exacty the same.

Also substituting different oils will be necessary as well. Cauliflower rice is an option but I've not yet been able to convince too many people that its good (I dont mind it)

Where theres a will theres a way, but certainly it will take some effort and experimentation!

Hack Cajun Food

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