Spicing up you food


Body building diets have long been regarded as bland and monotonous and often this true. At the hardcore end of the spectrum we have the " food is a means to an end " brigade and will eat bland dry meals and force feed themselves if necessary. At the other end of the spectrum we have the " I eat what I want when I want ". With the later you will see poor results if any to be honest, with the first group you would see best results.The majority of people do not want to eat boiled turkey and rice six times a day..... So where is the middle ground ?

The middle ground will suit most people out there, making food taste more palatable is pretty simple and only takes a little extra time, foreword thinking and experimentation. Throw in variety and you could have an interesting tasty diet that will get you to your goals.

Cooking methods- Healthy cooking methods are pretty straight forward if you use the correct pot's, pan's and trays i.e. non stick Then there is minimal need for using excess oils and greasing agents. Where these are needed use One cal fry light spray or coconut oil. Contact grills like the George Foreman grill are ideal quick, easy to clean and again non stick. Invest in a steamer and a good non stick wok as well....oh and a BBQ!

Flavorings- Marinades tend to get over looked as they require forward planning. Having your chicken marinade in garlic, ginger and soy sauce for a day or two then stir fried is a substantial improvement over boiled chicken. Marinades can be any thing that takes your fancy fresh herbs, lemon, lime and spices. Dry rubs, there is almost an endless variety of these Cajun spice, piri piri, tandoori spices, Thai herbs and spices. There are shelves of these in the supermarket. My current favourite is sweet potato wedges with a squirt of one cal oil and souther fried spices roasted in the oven to go with my home made burgers.

Dressing's can be used for fish, meats and salads. They can be made up in advance in bulk and stored in the fridge for weeks. Extra low fat mayonnaise, garlic, parsley and cider vinegar will pass as a reasonable Ceaser dressing. Balsamic vinegar comes in a huge array of flavours chocolate, fig ( very nice ), raspberry and orange. If you are really game you can make the flavoured ones your self. Same goes for olive oils walnut, truffle, Mediterranean and lemon to name but a few. One part cider vinegar to three parts extra virgin olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and mustard will give you a great vinaigrette.

Basic sauces can be made in bulk and frozen in portion for later use....for example makes two portions with roughly 8g of carbs per portion

1/2 an onion
4 cloves garlic
Tin chopped tomatoes
Fresh basil
Tsp tomato puree
Low sodium salt
Pepper
You can add mushrooms , peppers and a touch balsamic vinegar.

1. Sweat off the onions and garlic
2. Add tomatoes, touch of water and puree
3. Cook for 30 min, add basil and season
4. Liquidize

All the flavouring suggestions I have mentioned above will add negligible amounts of calories to any diet. If you train hard, include CV and stick to a good diet 95% of the time the above will have little to no negative impact on your physique. If what you eat is enjoyable you are less likely to stray of the path in to Burger king.

Check out this site for carb and fat free sauces....not cheep but a good variety.

http://www.lowcarbmegastore.com/sauces- ... ces/sauces

Planning in advance-Plenty of people cook off the top of their head with varying degrees of success in both taste and physique. I do this, but I have a clear plan of what my protein, carbs and fat intake will be each day and I adapt each meal accordingly. A good portion of my day is spent in front of a cooker so its rarely an chore for me to cook a meal. I have a fridge full of meat and fish delivered to my door on a daily basis and should I not have time to cook my self I have minions otherwise known as commis chefs to cook it for me. Not everyone is that lucky though and the majority have to plan in advance. It takes nearly the same amount of time to prepare and cook two meals as it does six...so cook in bulk ! Plan what you are going to eat in advance for the week and shop accordingly.

I have been a chef for over 20 years so this is second nature to me, I am also considerably faster preparing and cooking food than the average person. Nothing above is particularly time consuming, the last thing a want to do when I get home is cook any thing complicated. You are only limited by your imagination and if that is the case use Google.

Thomas 10/2012

I just want to say one thing about this post and that is superb. You have shared such a useful information about food and some new tricks to spice up food. I will keep this information in my mind and try soon.

Warm chicken and avocado salad

Ingredients for 1 portion

200g chicken breast
1/2 ripe avocado
4 button mushrooms
2 spring onions
1/2 red pepper
Mixed salad leaves
Low soduim salt / pepper
1 Tbs ( 15ml )salad dressing

Method

Dice chicken to 1/2 inch cubes
Slice mushrooms, pepper's, spring onions and avocado
Heat a wok or non stick pan with a couple of squirts of one cal spray until very hot
Add chicken and cook till golden ( about 6-7 minuets )
Add Avacado and vegetable
Cook for another 3-4 minuets
Season
Leave to rest for 3-4 minuets and place on top of salad leaves
Drizzle dressing over the top

Works out 200g of protein, 20g of good fats and negligible carbs.
*keto friendly

Tuna Salad

Ingredients for 1 portion

200g fresh tuna loin
1 Large egg
4 New potatoes
25g Green beans
Mixed salad leaves
25g mixed olives
1 Tbs Salad dressing ( 15ml )
Low sodium salt / pepper

Method
Boil egg and beans till cooked
Cool both, de-shell egg
Arrange leaves and place olives, beans and egg on top
Add salad dressing
Heat a non stick pad and a couple of squirts on one cal spary till very hot
Season tuna and place in pan 3 minuets on one side turn over 2 minuets on the other
Leave to rest for 4 minuets and place on salad.

Works out 45g of protein, 20g good fats, 15g carbs

Nice Thomas keep them coming!

Oooh, nice. Fricken love tuna.

That chicken and avocado salad mmmmm

Is it an optical illusion. Or is that chicken salad impossibly balanced

Years of training and lots of photos lol

Considering getting a divorce and marrying it tbh

Tandoori chicken, coconut rice, red onion and coriander salad

Ingredients

200g of chicken breast cut into 1inch dice
Tsp Tandoori spices
50g Basmati rice
Tsp coconut oil
Lime juice
Mixed salad leaves with coriander
1/4 red onion

Method

Mix the spices and chicken together and dry roast till firm
Cook the rices, drain and mix in the coconut oil and lime juice to taste
Finely shred the red onion and mix through the salad

Works out 40g protein 40g carbs 15g good fats.

Lovely stuff here chef !!

Some great recipes building up here Thomas and thanks for going to the trouble of uploading pictures too, makes the world of difference

Burgers and sweet potato wedges

Ingredients for 1 portion

200g Extra lean beef mince
1/2 white onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
Chopped coriander
Tiny bit of grain mustard
Low sodium salt / pepper

300g sweet potato
Souther fried spices
Couple squirts of one cal spray

Method

Cut the sweet potato into wedges,
Coat with one cal and mix the spices in, dry roast on a non stick tray

Mix the burger ingredients in a bowl, split into two burgers
Cook on a George Foreman Grill or oven or grill till firm or a core temp of 75 degree's

Serve with salad or Green veg.

Works out 40g protein 50g carbs 13g fat

Protein Pancakes

Ingredients

30g Whey Protein (flavour your preference)
30g Powdered Oats
50g Egg Whites
1/4 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
A handful of fresh fruit such as: Blueberry's/Starwberries/Raspberries

Method

Mix all the ingredients, except for the fruit, in a blender and blend until nice and smooth.
Coat a non-stick pan with a little butter one cal spray
When the pan is hot enough about 1-2 minutes per side.
Add with a dollop of natural low fat yoghurt and fresh fruit if desired.

Protein porridge

Ingredients

50g Oats
250ml Skim Milk
Whey Protein flavoured 1 scoop
1 Teaspoon Honey
Chopped Banana and blueberry's


Method

In a small saucepan mix the Oats and milk and gentley bring to the boil
Remove from heat and put it in a bowl and stir in Whey Protein.
Next Drizzle a little honey on top and then add your chopped fruit on top.

Strawberry and banana protein bars

Ingredients - Makes 6 Bars

90g Oats
90g Whey Protein Strawberry
25g Fat Free Cream Cheese
3 egg whites
25g Skimmed milk powder
25g Water
1 1/2 Bananas , mashed
2 Tsp Rapeseed Oil

Method

Preheat Oven to 325 degrees and then grease a 9"x9" square baking tray.
Next Combine Oats , Whey Protein Strawberry and dry milk. Set aside.
In another bowl beat together with an electric hand mixer; cream cheese , egg whites, bananas , water and oil.
Add the oat mixture and continue to beat until the two are combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared tray and bake for 30-35 minutes

Per Bar: 22g protein , 22g carbs , 3g fat

How much egg white dude and any ideas on protein g per bar? Cheers

Edited mate

Cheers mate ! I reckon ill knock these up the weekend, ill let you know how i get on!

nice one thomas, keep them coming!