side dishes

skygirll

so i was doing pretty good starting paleo, but it hasn't been that long and I'm already tired trying to put meals together. I can make a main dish but then get frustrated trying to put sides together. what are your favorites?

maremare312

Sometimes I get sick of green salad so I'll just do veggies--tomatoes and cucumber, or just chunks of avocado. Mashed cauliflower is good, so are grilled veggies. I'm currently refrigerator pickling some veggies (cucumbers, beets, and green beans) for a little more variety. Adding a few walnuts to stir fried veggies makes it seem more interesting for me. Fried cabbage and apples (usually sugar and vinegar in there, so adjust so it works for you). Antipasto, Green Salad, Spinach Salad, Massaged Kale salad. Asian Slaw is good--make a vinaigrette with a little sesame oil (or just use toasted sesame seeds) and pour over shredded cabbage and carrots, add in some sliced almonds and sliced green onions and it's yummy. Broccoli salad--make a mayo based dressing with a little sweetener and vinegar, pour over blanched or raw broccoli and add in sliced onion, bacon or other meat, dried cranberries, and some raw cashews.

Now that it's summer, grilling veggies is a nice change. Some of my faves to grill are asparagus, eggplant, zucchini and portobello mushrooms.

I also keep a nice variety of nuts and seeds on hand (walnuts, raw whole almonds, slivered almonds, sliced almonds, raw cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pepitas, sunflower seeds) and dried fruit (mostly dried cranberries). Mixing and matching a few of these really perks up a salad.

Also, sometimes a meal that is just one bowl so it doesn't need side dishes is nice--spaghetti sauce and meat over spaghetti squash or zucchini ribbons, fajita salad (bed of lettuce, grilled chicken or steak, grilled peppers and onions, topped with tomato and avocado), tuna salad with shredded carrot, chopped onions, chopped celery topped with avocado and some grape tomatoes.

I've got a couple PInterest boards with recipes, not all are Paleo but most can be adjusted if they are not:

http://www.pinterest.com/soapsbymaremare/csa-inspiration/
http://www.pinterest.com/soapsbymaremare/low-carb-and-paleo/

zenweeder

If you have freezer space, make large batches of sides and the freeze them in single portions. I do this often, then I can "shop" in my freezer for lunches and dinners. Sides that are easy to make and freeze & reheat well are: roasted carrots & beets, roasted carrots & rutabaga, roasted brussels sprouts & onion, roasted mixed bell peppers & onions (to have with sausage or brats), sweet potato coins (add a bit of maple syrup near the end of the roast), and kraut! Kraut freezes well;buy a good lacto-fermented brand and divide it into 1/4 cup portions for freezing. Use yummy lard or bacon fat for the roasting. Freeze in zip top bags or get your friends who eat KFC to save the little plastic containers which you can put in the dishwasher. Use a strip of masking tape to label with the name and date.