When you begin eating clean, you'll immediately notice that many of the oils and sauces you typically use to prepare your food are not on the acceptable food list.
Think of creative ways to keep your food moist and flavorful
For the most part, at least at the beginning of your transformation, you'll want to keep food preparation simple.
You'll be cooking at home more frequently until you get yourself more familiar with the foods you can eat and the foods you should avoid.
The simplest preparation methods for seafood, chicken, and grass-fed beef are grilling, baking, or broiling or a combination of these three.
You may want to consider purchasing one of the easy-to-clean indoor grills. It makes food preparation at home a quick and easy process.
For vegetables and certain types of seafood, steaming is a great alternative as well. Steaming enhances the natural flavors of vegetables and keeps them moist.
As an added benefit, steaming retains the beneficial nutrients. Vegetables that have been steamed keep their crispness and texture. When they're ready to eat, they're slightly firm or crunchy on the outside and softer on the inside.
What to Cook When It's Too Hot in The Kitchen
Even though you planned on making dinner, sometimes it's just too hot to cook.
On warm summer evenings, try a crisp, cold salad with a fruit smoothie for a refreshing and delicious meal.
Here are some quick ideas for dinners you can try:
- Grilled salmon served over a cucumber-tomato salsa
- Grilled filet mignon with broiled asparagus
- Baked chicken breasts or thighs with a side of mango salsa
- Steamed shrimp and broccoli with water chestnuts
- Chicken, sautéed with ripe plums and a dash of cider vinegar
- Butter lettuce salad tossed with strawberries, sweet onions and a light oil and balsamic vinegar
Master the Salsa Kitchen Dance
Mastering different types of salsas is something you'll definitely want to try.
Perhaps you think of salsa as those bottled types with a sombrero on the label. Start thinking out of the jar!
Lots of different types of vegetables and fruits make great salsas. It only takes about 10 minutes to chop up some fruits and vegetables and create a fabulous fresh salsa.
Take a few of your favorites and experiment.
Use softer fruits and vegetables and mix them with ones that have a more firm texture. You can add beans too.
Black beans, kernel corn, chopped tomatoes, and chopped onion make a great salsa and would be a perfect accompaniment to a chicken breast grilled with Mexican spices.
Get Hot n Spicey
And speaking of spices, you may want to open up your spice cabinet and give it a good reorganization. Both dried and fresh spices are a great way to liven up flavors in place of heavy oils or sauces.
Don't be afraid to experiment
Try grilled salmon or halibut with some fresh dill, chicken baked with some chopped tomatoes and a blend of oregano and basil, shrimp with a little cayenne pepper and pineapple.
You can add a small serving of whole grain pasta to your dinner menu once in a while.
Instead of a heavy, calorie-laden traditional meat sauce try making a homemade spinach pesto. It's delicious, quick, and filled with nutrients.
Make Friends with Vegetables
If you're really not such a fan of vegetables, maybe you're worried about sticking to your regimen.
The reality is that once you stop eating processed foods and sugar, after a few weeks your taste buds will wake up.
When was the last time you really tasted some quick-cooked zucchini or a baked sweet potato? You'll be surprised how much natural sweetness many vegetables and fruits have once you've been off processed sugar for a week or two.
The trick is to stick with vegetables and fruits you know you like and then try experimenting with new foods and flavors after you've become accustomed to your new lifestyle.
Break Your Boring Shopping Habits
Put some fun into the grocery shopping experience by going on a treasure hunt in the produce section.
Maybe you haven't eaten blackberries or taken a bite out of a ripe, fresh pear in years.
It can be so much fun to go to a farmer's market and ask questions about mysterious produce that you've never seen. You won't like everything you try but that's part of the excitement of experimenting.
There are many more tips to help you with the clean eating meal plan. You'll find more help and clean eating recipes over at my blog -http://EatingCleanToday.com. Come over and discuss clean eating grocery list ideas, healthy shopping plans, snacks and meal recipes. You can ask questions and get other help over at Facebook.com/EatingCleanToday. And please take a look at my book Eating Clean to Stay Young over at the Kindle Store.
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