Help, quick! Chicken is taking over my life!

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13

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  • HappyPhantom4
    HappyPhantom4 Posts: 19 Member
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    Lounmoun wrote: »
    I eat a lot of stuff that you probably wouldn't think was healthy... and I am still losing weight.
    A few things I do with chicken- baked with garlic, seasoned salt, pepper and rosemary, grilled chicken, tandoori style chicken, chicken stir fry with vegetables and rice, chicken with pasta on the side, shredded chicken mixed with bbq sauce for a sandwich.
    Try making soups.
    Try turkey occasionally.
    Check out bean and lentil recipes.
    Eat eggs or oatmeal sometimes.
    Eat a giant salad- add some chicken to it if you like.

    I enter in a recipe and then log the portion I ate.

    Some good recipes. budgetbytes.com

    Thank you so much for the suggestions! I'll definitely have to try those. Do you make anything with ground turkey? I would like to do more with it, but it always tastes so bland to me and I try to add enough seasonings so it won't be. But still I just don't care for it all that much.

    ((I accidentally posted my reply before I meant to. Lol)
  • HappyPhantom4
    HappyPhantom4 Posts: 19 Member
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    Sydking wrote: »
    Pork, Beef, fish, Duck, Kangaroo

    Each have about 10+ Cuts you can use for dishes all in many ways

    Learn too cook.

    I eat chicken once a week....... To many other tasty meats and dishes

    All just as healthy

    I thought beef wasn't healthy since it's loaded with so much fat/grease? I don't think I can find Kangaroo at my local Walmart, it would be interesting to try it. I heard Bison is good. Have you tried that before? I don't care for duck so much, but I do really like fish!
    I have been trying to learn how to cook healthily and I've been finding new recipes online.
    Thank you for the suggestions!

    Beef is fine, and fat isn't bad; it's necessary in a diet (by diet, I mean normal intake.)

    I have wanted to try bison; it's always intrigued me!
    Yeah, I would definitely try bison if I knew where to find it.
  • HappyPhantom4
    HappyPhantom4 Posts: 19 Member
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    andycool22 wrote: »
    something we do a lot is cook with lean ground turkey. similar to ground beef but less fat.

    What sort of recipes do you use ground turkey in? Anything I've tried has come out not tasting so good and was really bland.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    Sydking wrote: »
    Pork, Beef, fish, Duck, Kangaroo

    Each have about 10+ Cuts you can use for dishes all in many ways

    Learn too cook.

    I eat chicken once a week....... To many other tasty meats and dishes

    All just as healthy

    I thought beef wasn't healthy since it's loaded with so much fat/grease? I don't think I can find Kangaroo at my local Walmart, it would be interesting to try it. I heard Bison is good. Have you tried that before? I don't care for duck so much, but I do really like fish!
    I have been trying to learn how to cook healthily and I've been finding new recipes online.
    Thank you for the suggestions!

    Beef is fine, and fat isn't bad; it's necessary in a diet (by diet, I mean normal intake.)

    I have wanted to try bison; it's always intrigued me!
    Yeah, I would definitely try bison if I knew where to find it.

    Costco.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    dbmata wrote: »
    PRMinx wrote: »
    Is there a reason why you don't eat pork (religious?)? Because if there is nothing prohibiting you from eating it, pork tenderloin is a great protein.

    No, it's not because of religious reasons. I just had someone tell me pork is fatty that I should stay away from it. And because I'm still learning how to make healthier food choices, I listened to them. But I love pork so maybe I'll try a pork tenderloin sometime. Is there any special way you cook it? Oh, thanks so much for your help!!
    The pork I buy from the 4h kids is very lean.

    I read this out of order/quickly, and for a moment I thought it read that you buy 4H kids.
    On another note...they sell stuff like that?! I had no clue.

    They do, auction usually.

    I would not mind eating a 4h kid though, they're generally raised well. If it weren't for some of the cannibalism specific laws and diseases, I would try it.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    Kruggeri wrote: »
    I have looked all over the internet and found only a few meals that seem healthy. It's difficult too because I don't eat beef, rarely eat pork and I don't eat and the only processed foods I eat are bread and an occasional multigrain cracker. I don't eat pasta either because I know it isn't good for you. So I'm kind of feeling stuck at the moment in that I can't figure out what's healthy to eat. But any meal suggestion would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks you guys!! :)

    I missed the comments before about processed food and pasta isn't good for you. Why isn't pasta good for you?

    Sorry, haha, I guess I didn't finish that thought. But I was trying to say I've heard pasta isn't a healthy carb and is really processed and so since I've done away with the majority of the boxed processed foods (except I have whole grain bread once or twice a week and a few whole grain crackers) didn't seem like a good choice to me. But how do you feel about eating pasta?

    I married into an Italian family, live in the Little Italy section of my city, and spent a month in Florence over the summer. Suffice it to say I'm ok with eating pasta... and gelato... and drinking wine...


  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    Kruggeri wrote: »
    OP - I guess it would help if you told us what you perceived to be healthy... are you trying to keep your meals under a certain number of calories? Are you doing low carb, low sodium, using any other parameters? Do you want only chicken entree ideas or are you looking for complete meals using chicken? What's the aversion to other proteins?

    There are so many ways to cook chicken, and other proteins. Baking it and serving it with vegetables would get old very quickly. You also asked about how to calculate calories if you add tomato sauce....

    1. Determine calories in tomato sauce per unit of measure
    2. Measure/weigh tomato sauce
    3. Pour that amount on chicken
    4. Cook according to directions.
    5. Eat and enjoy

    Pinterest and AllRecipes have lots of suggestions. I third the SkinnyTaste suggestion.

    Also second the comment that people lose weight eating all sorts of foods, even those you may not think are "healthy". There are plenty of people on here (myself included) who lose weight eating pizza, burgers, ice cream, drinking wine, etc.

    Good luck!

    I guess what I see as unhealthy and from the articles/blogs, etc, I've read on the subject, it would be boxed/processed foods, junk food of course, and the meals I make are from scratch, mostly, I mean, I still use things like canned beans, veggies, I like a slice of whole grain toast once in a while with a poached egg on top or an open-faced sandwich, that sort of thing is ok, I think, as long as in the ingredients list it doesn't have words I can't pronounce or that I don't know what it is. Except bread, bread doesn't count, I can't give it up completely, lol. So I guess I'm trying to follow a Clean Eating, Whole Foods type of diet and I'm trying to watch my calories, too. I realized I have to keep track of calories and log the food I'm eating otherwise I tend to get out of control on portion sizes so I make sure to measure foods I eat.
    I'm not trying to be contrary, but how can you loose weight and still eat pizza and burgers? I don't think I could go back to eating those things, well, at least I would try to make healthier versions of those things, but for me to sit down and grab a slice of pizza, I think it would do me in. I'm not sure what to call it, a food addiction? Eating disorder? All i know is that I was so obsessed with food. It was bad. So the idea of eating at like a restaurant makes me feel really anxious. But thank you so much for your comments/suggestions, sorry this turned out so long. I didn't mean to write a book. Lol.

    I think you should spend a little more time reading... depending on what your goals are, there is nothing wrong with eating processed foods. That's not to say you should ONLY eat processed foods, but there is nothing inherently unhealthy about "processing" and in fact, it is almost impossible to come up with a consensus opinion about what constitutes "clean eating" because the vague definitions are interpreted differently by different folks.

    If you are strictly trying to lose weight, then all that matters is calories in being less than calories out. Moderation is key for developing a long term sustainable lifestyle.

    I was able to lose weight eating pizza and burgers because I used moderation, made sensible choices, exercised portion control, and burned more calories than I consumed. I lost about 30 lbs this way, but there are other MFP members who have lost significantly more than I did eating ice cream every day.

    You shouldn't have anxiety about eating in a restaurant. This is meant to be a lifestyle change, and dinners out, social events, etc are going to happen. You need to find a way to still enjoy those events while meeting your calorie goals.

    Good luck.

  • allanakern
    allanakern Posts: 245 Member
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    I weight alfredo sauce and add it to my chicken. it gives me a bump in my fat for the day, and it really is more satisfying that way. the alfredo I get is only 70 cal and 8 g of fat, but since I pay close attention to my macros and am usually low on fat it works for me
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    Oh and yes, I find ground turkey to be sort of bland on its own, so I use it when a recipe calls for ground beef but is in a sauce or something that has lots of other ingredients. Like spaghetti sauce, chili, tacos, etc. I actually usually do a half and half blend of turkey and lean ground beef.
  • squirrelzzrule22
    squirrelzzrule22 Posts: 640 Member
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    Maybe consider other meats- turkey meatballs are great! Also fish. Also, red meat is not totally the enemy. I wouldn't eat it all day every day, but it is a great source of protein and iron so why not cook up a burger patty with a side salad or a nice thin skirt steak pan fried super quickly with some veggies? Don't wed yourself to chicken alone or you may get board!

    My personal favorite healthy chicken recipe is thin chicken breasts topped with real pesto (not the calorie-laden sauce, but the kind that is pure basil and olive oil and clocks in at under 50 cal per serving) drizzle of olive oil, lots of garlic and pepper. Slice two tomatoes and place on top of the pesto, and then top with low fat mozarella. Bakes in about 20 minutes and is really tasty and moist. You can put it over some whole wheat pasta (I like Barilla plus with protein) or have it on its own with a simple salad with balsamic and olive oil....yummmm
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
    edited December 2014
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    I think for one thing, maybe you need to re-evaluate your definition of "healthy"....

    Secondly, There are a lot of lean cuts of pork and beef, not to mention fish.

    I would also add that dietary fat is also essential to a "healthy" diet...trying to cut out all of the fat isn't at all healthy.
  • PRMinx
    PRMinx Posts: 4,585 Member
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    PRMinx wrote: »
    Is there a reason why you don't eat pork (religious?)? Because if there is nothing prohibiting you from eating it, pork tenderloin is a great protein.

    No, it's not because of religious reasons. I just had someone tell me pork is fatty that I should stay away from it. And because I'm still learning how to make healthier food choices, I listened to them. But I love pork so maybe I'll try a pork tenderloin sometime. Is there any special way you cook it? Oh, thanks so much for your help!!

    Sorry for taking a while to get back to you.

    Pork tenderloin is one of the leanest cuts of meat you can eat. Whoever told you that pork is fatty has no idea what they are talking about.

    I marinate my tenderloin in dijon mustard, garlic, rosemary, apple juice concentrate, salt and pepper. In the winter, I'll bake it at 350 until it hits 145 degrees and then let it rest for a while. In the summer, I grill it.
  • greenfirearm
    greenfirearm Posts: 120 Member
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    Shallow frying doesn't need to be unhealthy. You can even just dry fry chicken.

    People are odd.
  • greenfirearm
    greenfirearm Posts: 120 Member
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    dbmata wrote: »
    PRMinx wrote: »
    Is there a reason why you don't eat pork (religious?)? Because if there is nothing prohibiting you from eating it, pork tenderloin is a great protein.

    No, it's not because of religious reasons. I just had someone tell me pork is fatty that I should stay away from it. And because I'm still learning how to make healthier food choices, I listened to them. But I love pork so maybe I'll try a pork tenderloin sometime. Is there any special way you cook it? Oh, thanks so much for your help!!
    The pork I buy from the 4h kids is very lean.

    I read this out of order/quickly, and for a moment I thought it read that you buy 4H kids.
    On another note...they sell stuff like that?! I had no clue.

    Lean pork steaks are definitely a thing. I personally prefer to leave the fat on because I at least find it filling and less likely to binge eat after a nice pork steak and loads of veggies.
  • andielyn
    andielyn Posts: 233 Member
    edited December 2014
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    I bought this Kindle cookbook a couple years ago and it has some great recipes. I particularly like the Penne, Broccoli and Cherry Tomatoes dish-- it's definitely been a standard recipe for me. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OD73X0/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  • jonnyman41
    jonnyman41 Posts: 1,031 Member
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    prawns stir fried (using one cal spray ) with various quick cook veg, e.g peppers, carrots, broccoli (whatever veg is in the fridge and safe to eat pretty raw and then add or make a flavouring, e.g. fresh garlic, with tomato sauce and soy (pretty low cal and not over on the sugar due to small amounts). I also eat it with rice or rice noodles. all very tasty and good stuff. Don't be afraid to use a little flavouring just go easy on shop bought stuff in large jars.
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
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    How are you determining if a food is healthy??

    Pasta is healthy, Pork is healthy, Beef again is healthy.. all foods can be part of a well balanced healthy diet even ice cream. What do you like eating? What did you eat before? I would be miserable if all I ate was chicken.
  • uconnwinsnc1
    uconnwinsnc1 Posts: 902 Member
    edited December 2014
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    Some bad language and rude jokes for those sensitive folk...
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    I mean, I like chicken, but I only know of one way to cook it that's healthy.

    You need a more accurate definition of "healthy".