Does anyone here eat real food?

Quirky_but_nice

I'm looking for more ideas for my lunches and dinners, BUT I only eat things that could be prepared in an ordinary kitchen using items that our ancestors would readily recognise apart from minor diversions when I go out to eat! (Ben and Jerrys!):bigsmile:

Sofaa1

Chicken and sweet potatoes or green beans is my favorite food for lunch and dinner !

xcalygrl

My lunches mainly consist of a grilled lean protein (pork loin/chops, chicken, turkey breast), sweet potato or rice, and a steamed vegetable (broccoli, frozen stirfry mix, green beans, broccoli/cauliflower/carrot mix, etc.).

My dinners vary widely: taco bowls, grilled protein/veggies/rice or sweet potato, hamburgers, chili dogs, fish/veggies/rice or sweet potato.

rachswann

I cook up a big batch of ground turkey with mushrooms, peppers & onions on Sunday. You can put that on a salad, tacos, all kinds of stuff. I also steam up a big bag of kale. Never thought I would like kale, but I actually crave it, so good!! That's real food, no fat free crap or processed junk. Could also grill up some chicken breast to have on hand. I'm all about the prep! Good luck!

Quirky_but_nice

I seem to be eating chicken most days Gone off it a bit. Also organic free range is very expensive and I try not to eat factory farmed anything.

KarenJanine

I think the only reason my ancestors didn't eat Ben & Jerrys was because it hadn't been invented yet. :happy:

I take packed lunches to work which is usually a salad with a protein item such as boiled eggs, tuna, mackerel, cottage cheese, mozzarella, etc. (If I ate meat grilled chicken, turkey or steak strips would work well too).

I also takes snacks like Greek yoghurt, fresh berries, protein bars, etc.

My dinners are usually along the lines of steamed fish with vegetables and sweet potatoes, omelettes, homemade curries or stews, stir frys, etc.

Maitria

You may want to check out some of the clean eating groups. This thread may not end well. I'm not a clean eater, but the recipes are often pretty amazing.

Quirky_but_nice

I looked at the "clean eating" brigade, but that's a bit too faddy for me. Our ancestors ate white bread, just not at every meal!
So my ideal is to try to avoid overprocessed food, eat things with an ingredient list I recognise and is in season if possible.
As I'm in the UK, some of the suggestions will be a bit transatlantic for me and the available food market here

(Currently new potatoes are in season, sweet potatoes aren't)

Thank you for all your input so far. Please keep it up. Friend requests also wanted if you think we can motivate each other or swap recipes

georgiapeach46

Real food is the only way to go. Lean meat, portioned according to your protein allowance. Fresh veggies, some raw, some steamed. Love broccoli, spinach, collard greens, bell peppers, cucumbers,zucchini, squash, fresh tomatoes. Carbs can be portions according to allowance: rice, noodles, pasta, potatoes, sweet potatoes. Don't forget about fresh fish: We eat salmon and tilapia bought fresh from Kroger. Don't like the frozen fish because no idea how old it is. Fresh tastes much better. Sprinkle a bit of Mrs. Dash and some parmesan/romano cheese on top and bake. Delicious!

Quirky_but_nice

What is Mrs Dash?

geckospot

Mrs Dash = salt substitute

Quirky_but_nice

Thanks. I eat salt, so salt it is!

SnuggleSmacks

All of my food seems to be real. Except desserts. Pretty sure at least some of those are imaginary.

Quirky_but_nice

:bigsmile:

qmmanager69

If dessert is imaginary does that mean we don't have to log the calories?? :laugh:

Archer9304

I'm pretty sure my ancestors did eat ice cream, because they had milk...might have been breast milk, but it was milk... mmm nutritious ice cream... :laugh:

Acg67

I'm looking for more ideas for my lunches and dinners, BUT I only eat things that could be prepared in an ordinary kitchen using items that our ancestors would readily recognise apart from minor diversions when I go out to eat! (Ben and Jerrys!):bigsmile:

So you won't use any modern appliances ie stove, oven, grill etc as our ancestors wouldn't recognize them?

Quirky_but_nice

I had a lovely meal planned last night only for my other half telling me he was taking me out to the pictures! So a 3 scoop Ben and Jerry's it was then. :bigsmile:
The loss of my dinner wasn't missed!

Quirky_but_nice

An ordinary kitchen using ITEMS our ancestors would recognised. Check for sentence construction before putting typing fingers in gear
I still use my grandmothers saucepans!

LolBroScience

An ordinary kitchen using ITEMS our ancestors would recognised. Check for sentence construction before putting typing fingers in gear
I still use my grandmothers saucepans!

Industrial, Commercial, or Residential construction?

Quirky_but_nice

So you won't use any modern appliances ie stove, oven, grill etc as our ancestors wouldn't recognize them?

I'm sure my nan used a stove and a grill

Acg67

An ordinary kitchen using ITEMS our ancestors would recognised. Check for sentence construction before putting typing fingers in gear
I still use my grandmothers saucepans!

Ah, I forgot appliances, kitchen tools etc are not items and that items would only apply to ingredients, silly of me

l8kelovr

Absolutely - majority of my meals come from my kitchen not the grocery store freezer. Sometimes calculating calories is a bit of a guess, but feel better knowing that I have made the meal myself and know exactly what is in it.

QuietBloom

Which ancestors are you referring to? I hope you don't only eat food that can be prepared by skinning it with flint knives and roasting it on a stick over a fire (if cooked at all). Am puzzled by your arbitrary food preparation rule. :huh:

But then you say you eat Ben&Jerry's, so you redeemed yourself. :bigsmile:

odusgolp

Someone brought these into work today, and let me tell ya... that is NOT food!

richardheath

An ordinary kitchen using ITEMS our ancestors would recognised. Check for sentence construction before putting typing fingers in gear
I still use my grandmothers saucepans!

Ah, I forgot appliances, kitchen tools etc are not items and that items would only apply to ingredients, silly of me

I read it the same way you did. I was thinking this was a new fad diet where you don't use blenders or food processors etc...

OP - I think INGREDIENTS would have been a better choice of word for you.

alletahg

I made the switch to real food/clean eating almost two years ago, and since I'm the mom, the rest of the family did too.

For lunch, I often have a salad of chopped veggies, or leftovers from dinner. I'll fill a whole wheat tortilla with hummus, greens, tomato, peppers, and avocado, with maybe a slice of cheddar cheese. I make soup and freeze it in single servings. Dinner is usually a protein with veggies and fruit on the side. If I make rice, I use brown rice (look up Alton Brown's method of cooking brown rice in the oven). Last night we had pan seared wild salmon, fresh fruit, and homemade corn cakes with avocado salsa. The night before, we had grilled steak served over salad greens, steamed green beans, and fresh pineapple.

There's a site called 100 Days of Real Food that I found to be a good resource. I've also gotten good at substituting ingredients to make other recipes "real," such as white whole wheat flour in place of all purpose, natural sweeteners like maple syrup or honey in place of refined sugar, coconut oil instead of vegetable oil, etc. We eat a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit.

Since we don't buy packaged foods anymore, I will usually double recipes for things like pancakes or waffles and freeze the extra in individual servings. This makes weekday breakfasts really quick and simple. I have a bread machine that I got at a garage sale for super cheap and usually make my own bread. There are a lot of things we used to buy that I started making myself and was surprised at how simple they can be -- like pizza dough, taco seasoning, tortillas, and applesauce. It helps that I like to cook and work at home so am here to do these things.

We don't make a fuss about what we're served at other peoples' homes and when we go out to eat, we order whatever we want. We take the kids out for ice cream and sometimes order pizza or take-out. So it isn't an obsession with me, but I like that we are avoiding all of the crap added to food these days, least of all the extra salt and sugar. Plus, my youngest is no longer chronically constipated. Not having to unclog the toilet DAILY is definitely worth the extra time in the kitchen!

Quirky_but_nice

Which ancestors are you referring to? I hope you don't only eat food that can be prepared by skinning it with flint knives and roasting it on a stick over a fire (if cooked at all). Am puzzled by your arbitrary food preparation rule. :huh:

But then you say you eat Ben&Jerry's, so you redeemed yourself. :bigsmile:

:bigsmile: It's the ingredients and method of producing them that's important to me. I don't use a micrawave but I do use an electric kettle so no hard and fast rules. I just try to eat a more natural diet without a chemical overload. And the food has to TASTE good.
Ben&Jerry's included and excluded :bigsmile:

octomancer

My lunches mainly consist of a grilled lean protein (pork loin/chops, chicken, turkey breast), sweet potato or rice, and a steamed vegetable (broccoli, frozen stirfry mix, green beans, broccoli/cauliflower/carrot mix, etc.).

LOL, are you me?? This is about 50% of my diet.

To the OP:

I live in England too. I'm fortunate enough to have a Waitrose at the bottom of my road. 99% of what I buy comes from the first three aisles: Fruit and veg, dairy and the reduced section for meat for my freezer. The most processed food I eat is tinned tomatoes and dried pasta (maybe the odd fishcake ) I cook everything I eat from fresh ingredients.. I even make my own cereal (granola and muesli). If I'm not going out with workmates for lunch then I almost always bring something healthy from home.

If you can see the recipes I've entered, or you take a look at my food diary, then you'll get a good idea of what I eat for main meals, things like:

Chicken curry + rice
Chicken thighs in spicy tomato sauce + rice
Chicken and bacon lasagne
Pork/lamb chops + potato or sweet potato + steamed veg eg cabbage, leek, carrot, broccoli
Pork/lamb meatballs in spicy tomato sauce + rice
Fried salmon + steamed veg + potato or sweet potato
Fishcakes + steamed veg + potato or sweet potato
Fried chorizo and veg + rice
Cold meat + salad

The rice dishes and the lasagne can be frozen, they end up being my work lunches. I'm lucky enough that we have a kitchen with a fridge, a freezer and 2 microwaves at work so it's easy to eat healthy lunches.

I also cook a mean kedgeree but my housemate hates the smell of smoked haddock so I don't cook that much any more ;-) I cook a few other things from time to time like risotto, chicken chasseur, chicken/pork in pepper sauce, sunday roast with all the trimmings and good old english fry ups :-)

If you're interested in any of the recipes above let me know :-)

hmaddpear

I cook most nights and take in left-overs for lunches - so they're pretty much the same thing. Too many to list, but some ideas:

1. Steamed fish - on a large piece of tinfoil place a pile of sliced mushrooms and a fillet of fish (any - I tend to like trout). Add seasoning and fresh herbs to taste (parsley mainly, but tarragon is delicious as well). Fold the foil over, like a pasty, making sure the ends are scrunched. Place in a moderate oven (GM6, 180C) for about half an hour. Serve with steamed veg / potatoes / rice / whathaveyou. If the tin foil idea is a bust, you can do the same thing with any ovenproof pan/dish with a lid - just watch the liquid levels.

2. Chicken with lemon and thyme - Using a large pack of chicken drumsticks and thighs (approx 1kg), place in a roasting dish. Add quartered lemons and onions, a good handful of thyme (Tesco and Sainsbury do fresh herb packs and I tend to use a whole pack), a splash of white wine (optional), salt and pepper. Bake in a moderate oven (GM6, 180C) for an hour to an hour and a half. Serve with fresh green salad, or steamed veg etc.

3. Stews. Completely generic, but approx 500g meat, 1,500g different veggies (mushrooms, carrots, courgettes, squash, celery, swede etc.), a couple of onions, some garlic, stock/wine/beer, add herbs and spices to taste, cook on a low heat for an hour to two, depending on the meat. Faves include pork and black pudding (use water as the stock), beef in ale, chicken in red wine. Serves 4-5, depending on how hungry you are. Not the sort of thing for summer, but kept me going through the winter!

Quirky_but_nice

An ordinary kitchen using ITEMS our ancestors would recognised. Check for sentence construction before putting typing fingers in gear
I still use my grandmothers saucepans!

Ah, I forgot appliances, kitchen tools etc are not items and that items would only apply to ingredients, silly of me

I read it the same way you did. I was thinking this was a new fad diet where you don't use blenders or food processors etc...

OP - I think INGREDIENTS would have been a better choice of word for you.

Lol! My blender is inherited, so maybe my age would have been a good place to start! I stand by what I first typed, now stop nit picking both of you, you're getting boring