Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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At times, I do miss the beans and buns with my bbq'd burgers on Saturday. And yes, I miss spaghetti and garlic bread on on Wednesday. I've always liked steaks, so now they're simply grass fed - which took a little change of technique, but hardly a sacrifice!

But I also find wholly new joys in paleo. My wife and I really enjoy playing with novel recipes that take some work and taste delicious. But some simple 'throw it on the grill/in the pot'-type paleo foods that I never ate before are pretty really cool. e.g. I never ate salmon at all much before. Now I can't wait to take out some fresh wild salmon, a cedar plank, throw on a little olive oil and Rock's seasoning that I always keep handy recipe here (w cayenne, coriander, turmeric), and throw 'em on the grill. Nothing could be easier and yield a taste to die for. I still do burgers on Saturday (w/o the bun and beans), but hump day is now Rock's cedar plank grilled salmon day.

What are your super simple staple foods that are new to you in paleo? I could probably work a few more into my week ;-)

flag	asked Jan 14 2012 at 18:39 Russ 573●1●8

I use celeriac all the time :) – Korion Jan 14 2012 at 18:58

Ralph Furley · Accepted Answer · 2012-01-15 01:08:20Z UTC

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Prior to "going paleo" I was eating out on a daily basis - usually two or three restaurant meals per day. Part of my enjoyment of my paleo diet has been learning to cook. The training wheels are still on, so I keep it simple. One of my staples has become something that I can cook in a slow cooker. This is something to do easily on a weekly basis - usually pot roast or beef stew (no potatoes).

answered Jan 15 2012 at 1:08

Ralph Furley
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Ralph, Sounds just like me and my wife. Our training wheels are also still on, so I love the simplicity of a crock pot stew once a week. Great for the days when my wife and I are gone all day. Nothing fancy, just throw a bunch of stuff in the pot and leave. Gonna use notes from others to play with veggies to add and then just play with spices. You win! – Russ Jan 15 2012 at 16:00

if only I could find a crock pot in Switzerland... – gydle Jan 16 2012 at 0:05

Nance · Answer 2 · 2012-01-14 18:53:14Z UTC

First, I strongly recommend you type "favorite" into the Search box and you'll see an entire page of threads.

My favorite staples are bone broth stew, slow-fried beef, cooked vegetables (rutabaga, celery root, fennel, celery, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts) and raw vegetables (red leaf lettuce, celery, English cucumbers, onion) plus staple fruit (grapefruit, persimmon, bananas, figs, dates, freeze-dried blueberries, fresh pineapple) and seasonal fruit (watermelon, plums, cherries, berries.)

I make and eat/drink extra-fat yogurt and water kefir.

I eat more things than that but those are my staples.

Kimberly · Answer 3 · 2012-01-14 19:33:56Z UTC

Gotta say that I keep falling in love with new-to-me foods. Like cauliflower-broccoli-mustard soup, frittata muffins in their infinite variety, mashed cauliflower, lettuce leaf tacos, nutty porridge.... the list goes on and on!Cauliflower rice, celery stuffed with almond butter, clean-out-the fridge salads, kale, endive. And I would probably be happy eating salmon on a daily basis.

I find the generosity of the many paleo bloggers and authors to be very helpful as I can always find a new and interesting recipe to play with.

I have had to create an index so as not to lose track of the sources for things I've tried!

JayJay · Answer 4 · 2012-01-14 19:50:20Z UTC

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Working on increasing my sardine consumption as a staple snack.

answered Jan 14 2012 at 19:50

JayJay
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	Well that's pretty simple. But good. Lately I've been hitting pickled herring for snacks too. – thhq Jan 15 2012 at 2:10
	yeah, eating simple is my middle name. The most exotic my recipes get are my lacto-ferments. – JayJay Jan 15 2012 at 2:13

staceychev · Answer 5 · 2012-01-14 20:12:19Z UTC

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Kale. 85% lean grass-fed ground beef. Eggs. Clarified butter. Pretty much everything else is icing... well, not literally icing. Unless I'm using homemade olive oil mayo as icing. That's pretty decent.

answered Jan 14 2012 at 20:12

staceychev
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	How do you make olive oil mayo? – Heather Jan 15 2012 at 2:59
	I learned from Alice Waters' book The Green Kitchen, but don't bother to do the crushed garlic part to make it a real aoli. I start with one egg yolk from a trusted source in a large glass bowl. Add 1/2 tbs of cold water, and I add garlic powder and ground mustard powder. Whisk together well. Then you start adding the olive oil, about a cup per one egg yolk. I like using a lighter olive oil (not extra virgin) so it doesn't taste really strong. The key to the olive oil part is to literally add a drop of about the size of 1/4 tsp, then whisk it in. (cont. below) – staceychev Jan 15 2012 at 14:08
	Do that again with the drop of oil several times, each time whisking until it's totally absorbed, and the yolk will start to get fluffy and lighten in color. At this point, you can pour more olive oil in at a time, constantly whisking. When it's finished, you can add salt/seasonings to taste. I like adding a tiny bit of lemon or lime and sometimes I'll mix in chipotle powder. Yesterday, I bought a spice powder from Whole Foods called Za'atar mix (it's a standard Mediterranean mix) and mixed it into the mayo with some lemon. It was amazing on a burger and fish both. – staceychev Jan 15 2012 at 14:11
	Heading to the grocery store and will pick up some kale to play with in recipes. Once lived in The Netherlands where they used kale quite a bit, so may ask some friends there :-) – Russ Jan 15 2012 at 15:53
	Thanks Stacey, that sounds delicious. – Heather Jan 16 2012 at 16:12

Eric · Answer 6 · 2012-01-14 19:57:28Z UTC

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Egg Yolks are my staple.

answered Jan 14 2012 at 19:57

Eric
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+100 pastured are the shizz. – Nutritionator Jan 14 2012 at 21:34

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Already for me, too. First intervention on paleo was upping consumption of eggs, only now pastured only! – Russ Jan 15 2012 at 15:56

Joshua · Answer 7 · 2012-01-14 20:23:11Z UTC

Even in Florida, we've got a little cold snap right now and I'm enjoying slow-cooked soups. This last week has been great, with beef chili and chicken stew.

My favorite pre-paleo meal was a ploughman's board, meats, cheeses, chutneys, etc... I'm very sparing with dairy (maybe 2oz/week tops) but I will formulate a more diet friendly "snack plate" as it is what I consider, the bestest meal of the world.

OddBallin · Answer 8 · 2012-01-15 03:37:32Z UTC

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Grass-fed beef tongue. It's delicious, cheap (especially for grass-fed/pastured/humane/organic), very fatty, extremely simple to cook (this, however, should not be confused with "quick to cook", which is the only downside) and butchers and farmers market vendors show such gratitude when I so much as ask for one - like I'm taking it off their hands. I live in a rather affluent area where most (myself excluded) can afford the really excellent and popular cuts of a cow and associate the tongue with grub that they'd only feed to their least-favorite dog, so the sellers in my area kind of get excited when I buy it. Paleo has opened me up to the world of meat beyond chicken breast and ground beef.

answered Jan 15 2012 at 3:37

OddBallin
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You've got me interested in tongue, which I see in the butcher shop but don't know how to deal with. It's still cheap, whereas some of the tough cheap cuts like brisket and skirt have gone way up in price. And you're right about spending some time on simple cooking to generate a pile of food to eat for weeks or months after. – thhq Jan 15 2012 at 13:01

Hmm, could be worth a try. How do you cook yours? – Russ Jan 15 2012 at 15:48

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Tongue is very simple to prepare; it just takes a while if you want really tender meat. I braise it for several hours in a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar (I don't think the latter is strictly paleo and isn't necessary, but it helps to tenderize), plus any seasonings I want. Then I peel the skin off, shred it with two forks, and treat it as I would any other shredded meat. It's pretty much like a mild brisket in terms of flavor and texture. You can also scald the tongue, put in an ice bath to skin it, then slow cook it in the oven like a nice roast and slice it, but I've not done it. – OddBallin Jan 15 2012 at 16:29

OddBallin, Sounds interesting. Will have to give it a try... in Texas, we love brisket, so something similar should feel right at home ;-) – Russ Jan 17 2012 at 0:45

Heather · Answer 9 · 2012-01-14 20:10:14Z UTC

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Salami. Some people don't eat cheese, but I experimented with eating two round slices of salami wrapped around one slice of havarti the other day...total for two servings=380 calories. Just so happened to have my best feeling day so far after that for breakfast :-).

answered Jan 14 2012 at 20:10

Heather
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I'm starting to like dry sausages more than bacon. – thhq Jan 15 2012 at 2:08

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I love cheese wrapped with salami. We get an amazing organic, gluten free salami that is amazing. – peter Jan 15 2012 at 3:12

thhq · Answer 10 · 2012-01-14 20:19:07Z UTC

New combos. Simple. Hmm.

I'm playing with several foods right now. Here are a few.

Black truffles. Strong smell but subtle flavor, so it goes well with plain crabmeat, or chopped and soaked in olive oil to drizzle on various foods. With salting and chilling it makes an olive truffle butter. Fried crisp slices of truffle, fished out of the oil, have an indescribable good flavor. The truffle oil should be good on steamed fish. But truffles are wasted on strong foods like smoked meat and pickled herring.

Sliced pears or apples with dry sausage slices. The fruit softens the sausage, and this tastes even better when spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and/or cardamom) and a little salt are added.

Crab melts. Which cheese is best? Strong cheddar? Emmenthaler? The experiments continue as long as the crabmeat lasts.

Georgia · Answer 11 · 2012-01-14 21:58:41Z UTC

Grass-fed bison steaks at Costco, sole, scallops, crab, bone soups, kale and all greens, fish sauce (the authentic stuff without sugar, from Thailand or Vietnam), plain sweet potatoes, chia seeds (I put those on salads and into vegetable soups for added fiber), the oranges from my tree, roasted salsa (great for poaching my eggs in), coconut flour, coconut butter, organic ghee...

What are your favorite simple new staple foods?

11 Answers