What's your favorite iron-rich recipe?

aimforhealthy

Iron is not one of the macros I was tracking here on MFP, and I've been eating about 70% raw and about 85% vegetarian (with the other 15% chicken or seafood) and as clean as possible for a few months, so I probably shouldn't be surprised that my doctor recently told me my bloodwork is showing me as slightly anemic.

I looked back through my food diary and saw that most days I'm getting about half my RDA of iron with what I eat, but some days were lower and some days I was getting ZERO. Ack. I never, ever went over just with what I was eating, not even once. But I'd rather get iron from food than a supplement - and can't find a supplement that, with what I eat, won't put me way over my RDA. So if you please, share with me your favorite iron-rich recipes! They don't have to be vegan or vegetarian or raw. Many thanks in advance.

neanderthin

Oysters for sure, and they can be eaten raw, preferably by me. Liver of course, dark chocolate, beans, I like cannellini, nuts like cashews and greens are probably pretty low and BV isn't great either.

_noob_

Oysters are filter feeders...and considering where most US oysters are farmed....that's just growdie...

neanderthin

Oysters are filter feeders...and considering where most US oysters are farmed....that's just growdie...

No dessert for you then.

BeachIron

Shellfish in general such as oysters, mussels, and clams are high in iron. There are also beef, beef liver, spinach, and, of course, enriched breakfast cereals. There's really no reason to ever be low on iron.

gaiagal3

Dark greens...spinach, kale etc. Red meat as well. If you do need a supplement there are chewables too in low doses. I have iron deficient anemia...getting your iron in is important as it can cause hair loss, shortness of breath, weakness, etc. Hope you feel better soon and glad you caught it early!

aimforhealthy

I'll have to look up the low-dosage iron supplements. I think my issue is that I flat-out DISLIKE a lot of the foods that are rich in iron (liver, dried apricots, oysters, red meat - yikes to all of them, not a fan of breakfast cereals either).

There's really no reason to ever be low on iron.

I'm guessing you're not a vegetarian Turns out it's actually VERY hard to get your RDA of iron as a woman my age from only things like leafy greens and cashews - even 2 cups of kale, for example, only have less than 15%, and some of them, like spinach, also have things in them that inhibit iron absorption.

Hope you feel better soon and glad you caught it early!

Thank you! I've never been anemic in my life. She said it was VERY mild and all my other blood work came back normal, and nothing else has changed, so I think it's clearly due to the recent dietary changes. Thanks for the tip about the low-dosage chewable supplements - guess those are going to be the way to go to fill in any gaps

gaiagal3

The chewables I like are Bariatric Advantage...the flavors taste great and they have low dose options I've read that it's quite common for vegetarians to have low iron sometimes.

brainzap

Spinach. I like to sautee 6 cups of spinach in 2 teaspoons butter with 2 cloves of garlic.

littlebudgie

Vitamin C increases iron absorption, which makes a chickpea salad with, say, red peppers or other sources of vitamin C a great idea, not to mention tasty. Adding parsley to it will also boost your iron - I think parsley has the most iron of any leafy green, including kale and spinach. 1 cup has 21% of the RDA of iron (although if I recall correctly the RDA is higher for vegetarians and menstruating women).

Parsley is also a pretty mild-flavoured addition to drinks, although I do find it leaves a lingering aftertaste. I really enjoy this one smoothie I make with half a cup of parsley, apples, blackberries and ginger. The flavours work well together, and the vitamin C and iron combo is great for absorption!

neandermagnon

iron is a micronutrient not a macronutrient (I'm not being pedantic, just thought you'd like to know :flowerforyou: ) macronutrient = you need them in large quantities = fat, protein, carbs; micronutrient = needed in small quantities = vitamins and minerals

I invented this recipe as I have been prone to anaemia in the past, this has fixed it though (eaten regularly). It's not low calorie.

Ingredients:
any red meat as a mince (can be lower fat varieties because the iron is in the lean part of the meat)
any green vegetables
a tin of baked beans (i.e. the British food, haricot beans in tomato sauce)
curry paste (you can use curry powder)
tomato puree
any other vegetables you like, or another kind of meat
onions
garlic
ginger


put the onions (chopped), garlic (chopped), ginger (chopped), mince and curry paste into a large, non-stick pan. You don't need to add extra oil as there's already oil in the curry paste and the fat will come off the meat as it cooks. Cook until the mince is done, then add the vegetables (chopped) (if you're using potatoes, parboil them first) and tomato puree. Add water until you get a curry sauce consistency. When the vegetables are nearly done, add the tin of beans and heat it all through. Personally I eat it like it is (i.e. not with rice or bread) because it already contains carbs (in the beans and veggies) and it's quite high calorie already.

There are 3 sources of iron in this: red meat, green vegetables, baked beans.

Also avoid drinking tea with meals, there's something in tea that can inhibit the absorption of iron. (says she who's the worst tea junkie of all...)