1001 Low-Carb Recipes: Hundreds of Delicious Recipes From Dinner to Dessert That Let You Live Your Low-Carb Lifestyle and Never Look Back (85 page)

½ cup (40 g) fresh snow pea pods (measure them after you cut them up!)

½ head cauliflower

2 teaspoons chicken bouillon concentrate

¼ cup (60 ml) hot water

In a big, heavy skillet over medium heat, start the onion, garlic, curry powder, and chicken sautéing in the butter. Remember to stir it once in a while during the sautéing process.

While that’s happening, pinch the ends off of your snow peas, pull off any strings, and cut them into ½-inch (1.3-cm) pieces. Run the cauliflower through the shredding blade of your food processor—but this time, you’re not going to microwave your cauli-rice. Just hang on to it. In a cup or small bowl, dissolve the bouillon in the water.

When the chicken is white all over and the onion is translucent, stir in the cauli-rice and the dissolved bouillon, making sure everything is well combined—you want the chicken and curry flavors throughout the whole dish. Cover, turn the heat to low, and let it cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Uncover, add the snow peas, and stir again. Re-cover and let cook for another 4 to 5 minutes. Then check to see how your cauli-rice is—you want it just barely tender, but not mushy. When it reaches that state, serve with Major Grey’s Chutney (page 496), crumbled bacon, and chopped salted peanuts.

Yield:
3 to 4 servings

Assuming 3, each will have 36 g protein; 8 g carbohydrate; 3 g dietary fiber; 5 g usable carbs. Analysis does not include garnishes.

This is my decarbed version of a very famous Italian dish—and it’s quick and easy enough for a weeknight supper. My husband loved this—but then, any food with butter, cream, and cheese, especially all three, is pretty much his

1 pound (455 g) boneless, skinless chicken breast

½ head cauliflower

3 tablespoons (42 g) butter

¾ cup (120 g) chopped onion

4 cup (60 ml) dry white wine

2 teaspoons chicken bouillon concentrate

¼ teaspoon saffron threads

1 clove garlic, crushed

¼ cup (60 ml) heavy cream

Guar or xanthan

Salt and pepper

½ cup (40 g) shredded Parmesan cheese

First, run the cauliflower through the shredding blade of your food processor. Put it in a microwaveable casserole dish with a lid, add a couple of tablespoons (30 ml) of water, cover, and microwave on high for 5 or 6 minutes. Uncover as soon as the microwave beeps!

Cut the chicken breast in ½-inch (1.3-cm) cubes. Melt the butter in a big, heavy skillet over medium to medium-high heat and start sautéing the chicken and onion.

When the chicken is white all over and the onion is softened, stir in the wine, bouillon concentrate, saffron threads, and garlic. Stir it around until the bouillon concentrate dissolves.

Drain the cauli-rice and throw it in the skillet. Stir it around to blend all the flavors and let the whole thing cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and cook for another minute. If you want the whole thing a little creamier, use just a little guar or xanthan, but I didn’t bother. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon onto plates or into bowls, top each serving with 3 tablespoons (15 g) Parmesan, and serve.

Yield:
3 servings

Each with 30 g protein; 5 g carbohydrate; 1 g dietary fiber; 4 g usable carbs.

These are currently a hot appetizer at Asian restaurants, and they’re delicious—but the restaurant version usually contains an unacceptable amount of sugar. Serve these as an appetizer if you like, but I like them as a light supper. Even if you have to make the Asian Dipping Sauce too, this will take you all of 15 minutes.

1 pound (455 g) ground chicken

1 can (8 ounces, or 225 g) water chestnuts, drained

1 cup (70 g) sliced mushrooms

5 scallions, roots and limp shoot removed, cut into 2 or 3 pieces each

3 tablespoons (45 ml) soy sauce

2 tablespoons (3 g) Splenda

½ teaspoon blackstrap molasses

1½ teaspoons minced garlic or 3 cloves of garlic, crushed

1½ teaspoons rice vinegar

3 tablespoons (45 ml) oil

Guar or xanthan

Iceberg or leaf lettuce

Asian Dipping Sauce (page 478)

Place the water chestnuts, mushrooms, and scallions in a food processor with the S-blade in place. Pulse just enough to chop everything to a medium consistency.

Combine the soy sauce, Splenda, blackstrap molasses, garlic, and rice vinegar. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over highest heat. Add the chicken and stir-fry, breaking it up as it cooks. When about half of the pink is gone from the chicken, add the chopped vegetables and stir-fry everything together for a few more minutes. When the chicken is cooked through, stir in the soy sauce mixture and let everything cook together for just another minute or so. Thicken the pan juices just a little with guar or xanthan and serve.

To eat this, you wrap spoonfuls of the meat mixture in lettuce leaves, dip the rolls in the Asian Dipping Sauce, and then eat them by hand. The tidiest way to do this is to take a whole, firm head of iceberg lettuce and slice a good 2-inch (5-cm) thick slab off the side, making lettuce “cups”—you can do this all over the head, leaving the inside of the head for salad. However, there’s no reason not to use leaf lettuce if you prefer it.

Yield:
Figure this is 6 servings as an appetizer

Each with 10 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of fiber, for a total of 8 grams of usable carbs (exclusive of the dipping sauce) and 25 grams of protein, which is a pretty filling appetizer!

If you figure this is 4 servings as a main course, each with 15 grams of carbohydrates and 3 grams of fiber, for a total of 12 grams of usable carbs (again, exclusive of the dipping sauce) and 37 grams of protein.

Wow—This is easy, delicious, low-carb, low-calorie, and reheats easily. What more do you want from a recipe?

2½ pounds (1.1 kg) boneless, skinless chicken thighs

5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tablespoons (15.6 g) chili powder

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

2 tablespoons (30 ml) lime juice

1 teaspoon salt

1 large jalapeño, minced, or 2 teaspoons canned jalapeños

12 6-inch (15-cm) low-carb tortillas

1 cup (20 g) shredded lettuce

1 cup (115 g) shredded cheddar cheese

cup (180 g) light sour cream

¾ cup (195 g) salsa

½ cup (32 g) chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Place the chicken in a slow cooker.

In a bowl, mix the garlic, chili powder, oil, lime juice, salt, and jalapeño together. Pour over the chicken and stir to coat. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 10 hours. (Or cook on high for 5 hours.)

When the time’s up, stir the mixture with a fork to reduce the chicken to a big pot of tasty chicken shreds. Fill each tortilla with
cup chicken (75 g) and top with lettuce, cheese, 1 tablespoon (15 g) sour cream, a generous tablespoon salsa, and a sprinkling of cilantro, if desired. Wrap and devour!

This is a great meal for a family that has some low-carbers and some non–low-carbers— just give them regular or (preferably) whole wheat flour tortillas. The chicken keeps well in the fridge, and it reheats quickly in the microwave for a fast snack. (I find that 45 seconds on 70 percent power is about right for a
-cup serving.)

Yield:
12 servings

Each with 22 g protein, 14 g carbohydrate, 9 g dietary fiber, 5 g usable carbs.

The name says it all!

2 pounds (910 g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 jar (16 ounces, or 455 g) prepared salsa

1 tablespoon (7.8 g) chili powder

1 teaspoon chicken bouillon concentrate

3 ounces (85 g) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

6 tablespoons (90 g) light sour cream

Put the chicken in a slow cooker.

In a bowl, stir together the salsa, chili powder, and bouillon, making sure the bouillon dissolves. Pour the mixture over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 7 to 8 hours.

When the time’s up, shred the chicken with a fork. Serve topped with the cheese and sour cream.

Yield:
6 servings

Each with 39 g protein, 6 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 4 g usable carbs.

You’ll thank me for this recipe the weekend after Thanksgiving!

3 cups (330 g) diced leftover turkey

2 tablespoons (28 g) butter

1 small onion, diced

2 4-ounce (115 g) cans mushrooms, drained

1 cup (240 ml) heavy cream

1 cup (240 ml) half-and-half

2 teaspoons chicken bouillon concentrate