1001 Low-Carb Recipes: Hundreds of Delicious Recipes From Dinner to Dessert That Let You Live Your Low-Carb Lifestyle and Never Look Back (99 page)

1 quart (960 ml) water

1 tablespoon (7.8 g) chili powder

2 tablespoons (3 g) Splenda

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon (16.5 g) tomato paste

Bodacious Beef Brisket Rub (page 488)

Bodacious Beef Brisket Beer Mop (page 489)

Wood chips or chunks, soaked for at least 30 minutes

Put the brisket on a plate, sprinkle one side with 1 teaspoon of the meat tenderizer, and pierce it all over with a fork. Flip it over and do the same to the other side with the remaining teaspoon of tenderizer. Let that sit a minute.

In a flat, shallow, nonreactive container just big enough to hold the brisket, dissolve the salt in the water (using warm water helps). Stir in the chili powder, Splenda, garlic, and tomato paste. Submerge the brisket in the brine—add just a little more water if the brisket isn’t totally submerged. Let the brisket brine for 3 to 5 hours.

When brining time is up, pull out the brisket and sprinkle it liberally all over with the Bodacious Beef Brisket Rub. Set up your grill for indirect cooking (put the coals on one side of the grill or leave half the burners off on a gas grill). Add wood chips or chunks and smoke the brisket for a good 3 to 4 hours. Mop with the Bodacious Beef Brisket Beer Mop every half hour to 45 minutes, using a clean utensil each time you baste. When smoking time’s up, slice the brisket thin across the grain and serve.

Yield:
Figure 6 servings

This was one of the hardest recipes to estimate the correct carb count for. The analysis comes up saying 19 grams of carbohydrate per serving, with 3 grams of fiber, but the vast majority of that is in the brine and the mop. I’m going to say about 6 grams of carb per serving, and I think that’s actually high; 28 grams of protein.

Our tester, who loved this recipe, halved it. You can feel free to do the same.

4 pounds (1.8 kg) beef brisket, cut into pieces if necessary to fit into your slow cooker

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

4 stalks celery, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon (7.2 g) dry mustard

1 tablespoon (5.4 g) dried oregano

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons pepper

1 teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

1 can (16 ounces, or 455 g) tomato sauce

½ cup (120 ml) beef broth

1 teaspoon beef bouillon concentrate

¼ cup (60 ml) red wine vinegar

½ cup (12 g) Splenda

½ teaspoon blackstrap molasses

2 chipotle chiles canned in adobo sauce

2 bay leaves

Guar or xanthan

In a big, heavy skillet, brown the beef all over in the oil over medium-high heat. Transfer the beef to a slow cooker.

Add the onion and celery to the skillet and sauté until softened. Stir in the garlic, dry mustard, oregano, cumin, pepper, and salt or Vege-Sal and sauté for another minute or two. Transfer the mixture to the slow cooker.

In a blender or food processor, combine the tomato sauce, broth, bouillon, vinegar, Splenda, molasses, and chipotles and blend until smooth.

Put the bay leaves in the slow cooker and pour the sauce over the whole thing. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 12 hours.

When the time’s up, remove the beef to a platter. Remove the bay leaves and thicken the sauce to taste with guar or xanthan. Serve the sauce over the beef.

Yield:
8 servings

Each with 41 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 6 g usable carbs.

This was one of the first recipes I adapted from Peg Bracken’s
I Hate To Cook Book
, aka the World’s Funniest Cookbook (and also one of the most useful). It was higher carb and wasn’t originally a slow cooker recipe, but it adapted well to both!

3 to 4 pounds (1.4 to 1.8 kg) beef short ribs, frozen or thawed

1 can (8 ounces, or 225 g) tomato sauce

¾ cup (180 ml) water

2 tablespoons (30 ml) wine or cider vinegar

¼ cup (60 ml) soy sauce

2 teaspoons Splenda

1 large onion, sliced

Guar or xanthan (optional)

In a bowl, mix together the tomato sauce, water, vinegar, soy sauce, and Splenda.

Put the ribs in the slow cooker. Place the onion on top of the ribs. Pour the sauce over the onion and ribs. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 8 to 9 hours. (If you put the ribs in thawed, cut about 1 hour off the cooking time.)

When the time’s up, thicken the sauce with guar or xanthan if you prefer. (This recipe gives you tremendously tasty ribs in a thin but flavorful sauce—it’s more like a broth. You can thicken it a bit with guar or xanthan, but I rather like it as it is.)

Yield:
7 servings

Each with 61 g protein, 5 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 4 g usable carbs. (This analysis is for 3 pounds [1.4 kg] of ribs. The total carbs will vary with how much of the sauce you eat, because most of the carbs are in

Look for black bean sauce in Asian markets or in the international aisle of a big grocery store. You’ll only use a little at a time, but it keeps a long time in the fridge and adds authenticity to Asian dishes.

6 pounds (2.7 kg) beef short ribs

3 tablespoons (45 ml) oil

1 stalk celery, chopped

¼ cup (30 g) shredded carrot

½ cup (80 g) chopped onion

2 tablespoons (12 g) grated ginger

6 teaspoons Chinese black bean sauce

3 teaspoons chili garlic paste

3 cloves garlic, crushed

¼ cup (60 ml) soy sauce

1 cup (240 ml) dry red wine

2 cups (480 ml) beef broth

1 teaspoon five-spice powder

1 tablespoon (1.5 g) Splenda

Guar or xanthan

In a big, heavy skillet, brown the ribs all over in the oil. Transfer the ribs to a slow cooker.

Add the celery, carrot, and onion to the skillet and sauté over medium-high heat until they soften and start to brown. Stir in the ginger, black bean sauce, chili garlic paste, and garlic and sauté for another couple of minutes. Now stir in the soy sauce, wine, broth, five-spice powder, and Splenda. Pour the mixture over the ribs. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 6 to 7 hours.

When the time’s up, transfer the ribs to a platter and scoop the vegetables into a blender with a slotted spoon. Add 2 cups (480 ml) of the liquid and run the blender until the vegetables are puréed. Thicken the sauce to heavy cream consistency with guar or xanthan and serve the sauce with the ribs.

Yield:
12 servings

Each with 35 g protein, 3 g carbohydrate, trace dietary fiber, 3 g usable carbs.

Short ribs are very flavorful, and this is a simple way to make the most of them.

4 pounds (1.8 kg) beef short ribs

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon (15 ml) Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon (15 ml) beef bouillon concentrate

½ cup (120 ml) dry red wine

1 can (8 ounces, or 225 g) mushrooms, drained

Guar or xanthan

Place the ribs in a slow cooker. Add the bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce, and bouillon. Pour the wine over everything. Place the mushrooms on top. Cover the slow cooker, set it to low, and let it cook for 8 to 10

When the time’s up, use a slotted spoon to scoop out the ribs and mushrooms and put them on a platter. There may be a fair amount of grease on the liquid in the pot; it’s best to skim it off. Remove the bay leaves and thicken the sauce to taste with guar or xanthan.

Yield:
10 servings

Each with 42 g protein, 1 g carbohydrate, trace dietary fiber, 1 g usable carbs.

Fauxtatoes (page 209) are the ideal side with this, so you'll have something to eat all that gravy on!

Blue Slaw (page 241) or any coleslaw is good with these. Also, feel free to use a full-size slab of ribs—about 6 pounds (2.7 kg) worth—and double the seasonings if you’re feeding a family.

1 slab baby back ribs, about 2½ pounds (1.1 kg)

Purchased Rosemary-Ginger Rub (such as Stubb’s)

2 tablespoons (40 g) low-sugar apricot preserves

1½ teaspoons spicy brown mustard

1 teaspoon Splenda

1½ teaspoons soy sauce

Sprinkle both sides of the slab of ribs generously with the Rosemary-Ginger Rub. Curl the slab of ribs around and fit it down into your slow cooker. Cover and set the slow cooker on low. Forget about it for 9 to 10 hours. (No, I didn’t forget anything. You don’t put any liquid in the slow cooker. Don’t sweat it.)

When the time’s up, preheat the broiler. Mix together the preserves, mustard, Splenda, and soy sauce. Carefully remove the ribs from the slow cooker—they may fall apart on you a bit because they’re so tender. Arrange them meaty-side-up on a broiler rack. Spread the apricot glaze evenly over the ribs. Place them under a broiler set on high at least 3 to 4 inches (7.5 to 10 cm) from the heat for 7 to 8 minutes. Serve.

Yield:
2 or 3 servings

Assuming 3 servings, each will have 5 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 38 grams of protein.

Instead of using the usual Italian seasonings, this was adapted from a historic Roman stew recipe using spices from the Far East. It’s unusual and wonderful.

3 pounds (1.4 kg) beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes

3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil

4 cloves garlic

2 cups (240 g) sliced celery

1 teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon pepper

teaspoon ground allspice

teaspoon ground nutmeg