The best thing about the keto-carnivore diet is that it’s easy to follow, not expensive, and your dishes are simple to make if you know how.
That’s what I’m going to show you in this article, helping you make your keto-carnivore journey easy to stick to and enjoy.
The meals I prepare and cook take me no longer than 3- to 15-minutes to make. Shopping is also a breeze and done in a flash.
I visit my butcher shop every Monday morning, where I buy a week’s worth of my favorite meats.
Here’s my shopping list:
- Ground Beef, 1kg — is more nutrient dense than steaks due to its 15% fat content, yet it’s cheaper.
- Bacon, 500g — High fat, and high protein.
- 500g Chicken legs — the dark meat contains more nutrients and the skin healthy fat.
This lineup easily sees me through 1 week of meals, being 14, as I only eat lunch and dinner.
Besides the butcher shopping list, once a week I go to my favorite seafood stall and grab some shrimp and oysters, which I see as treats.
Seafood is usually quite expensive in Europe or the USA, so being able to enjoy it this often at such a low cost is truly wonderful.
I love seafood — my favorites:
- Shrimps
- Oysters
- Squid
- Crawfish or Lobster (once in a while)
Lobster is harder to come by here too, and it’s not that cheap either. Shrimp, oysters, and squid, however, are super cheap. I buy 500g worth of fresh shrimp for $4, -, and I can make 3 meals out of that.
It’s truly amazing what I create with shrimps.
My 3 favorite dishes:
- Shrimps sautéed in butter, garlic, onion, red chili, salt and pepper, and a dash of wine. A dream!
- Shrimps sautéed in butter, garlic, onion, red chili, salt and pepper, and heavy cream. Wonderful!
- 5-Egg shrimp omelet, with diced onion, and chili. So healthy and filling!
That results in having leftover meats in my fridge. No problem, I freeze it, and then use it the following week, while cutting back on the new week’s purchases.
Every meal is delicious, which is why it’s so much better and healthier to home cook instead of eating out in restaurants.
Plus, the only food you can really eat out is grilled meats and fish, which greatly limits your food choices, except if you’re in a steak house.
Let’s face it, not many of us can afford to eat out in steak houses every day, which is why it’s best to cook at home.
And remember, 99% of restaurants cook their food in seed oils. Commonly known as canola, palm, or sunflower oils, which are falsely sold as heart-healthy by manufacturers.
PUFA oils oxidize at a low temperature yet are used for high-temperature cooking. Think about deep frying — it can’t get any hotter than that. Your French fries are torched in that toxic mess.
Once oxidized — meaning burnt — and ingested, you’re consuming free radicals which then float around your bloodstream wreaking havoc.
Free radicals are one of the major cancer culprits, and you’re served them daily by the seed oil industry!
The easy way to shop, prepare, and cook keto-carnivore
Keeping things simple is the best way to go. It also saves money. Yet simple doesn’t have to mean bland and boring.
Here’s how I do it, along with a list of my go-to dishes.
The ingredients
Beef, Chicken, Bacon, Pork Chops, Fish, Shrimps, Squid, Oysters, Eggs, Herbs, Spices, Cheese, Heavy Cream, Butter, Garlic, Onions, Chilis, Avocados, Cauliflower, and Broccoli.
The fewer vegetables you eat, the fewer carbs you consume.
You avoid lectins and phytons which can and do cause leaky gut. Especially if you eat a lot of them.
Cauliflower, Broccoli, and Sprouts are free of lectins, which is why I include only these veggies in my diet.
How to cook
The base ingredients for every meal are:
Generous amounts of butter, garlic, onions, and red chili.
I sauté the meat, browning it on both sides, and then slow-cook it for about 30 minutes at a low temperature, adding water, herbs and spices, white wine, salt, and pepper.
The result is deliciously soft meat in a rich, spicy, and flavorful sauce.
The variations
- By adding heavy cream, and a lot of fresh pepper, you turn your sauce into a pepper cream delight.
- If you add a mix of 3 kinds of cheese to your creamy dish, you’ve got a wonderful cream-cheese flavored meal.
- You can go Indian by adding Garam Masala — another smash-hit.
- Use a lot of chili powder and make your meal a chili con carne special.
My main dishes
As noted, I keep my food simple, rely on my base ingredients for flavor and vital nutrients, and then change it up with a variety of spices.
Bacon and eggs — always an all-time favorite, for any meal
Burger patties smothered in cheese and eggs
Meatballs in tomato sauce, oven-baked with Mozzarella
Sautéed slow-cooked chicken legs, breast, pork chop, or steaks
Shrimps sautéed in white wine, garlic sauce
Squid sautéed in garlic, onions, and lemon
Fish sautéed butter with lemon
Chicken Stroganoff, with creamy cheese, and mushroom sauce
5-Egg cheese and onion omelets or scrambled eggs
Tuna (canned) with 3 sliced hard-boiled eggs, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar
I don’t make it all in one week, more like half, then I rotate and change the menu the next week.
Simply select your favorite meats, buy 2 to 3 for the week, along with plenty of butter, eggs, and your chosen herbs and spices, and get cooking.
Cooking for leftovers
I usually cook in the early evening and make enough that I have leftovers for one portion. This makes life easier; you have to cook less often, and it saves time and money.
The next day, I warm up leftovers in the frying pan in butter and add eggs. Either scrambled or simply cooked on top of the food, like a skillet, with the eggs sunny side up and a little runny.
Salt and pepper to taste, and you have a wonderful lunch in no time.
Desserts, snacks, and treats
I don’t normally bother with desserts, snacks, or treats, as my cravings have completely gone after 7 years on keto-carnivore. The only thing I crave is meat!
If you do have cravings for healthy treats, this is what I recommend:
- Full-Fat Greek or Regular Yogurt, solo
- Full-Fat Greek or Regular Yogurt, with fresh or dried berries
- Full-Fat Greek or Regular Yogurt, with berries and dark chocolate chip
- Full-Fat Greek or Regular Yogurt, with warm pureed berries
- Dark Chocolate on its own. 75% and upwards.
- Atkins Coconut and Dark Chocolate bars. These are high-fat and protein, and very low in sugar.
There you have my routine, a detailed guide, and advice on how to shop, prepare and cook your super-healthy homemade keto-carnivore meals.
Final Thoughts
Overall you need to buy far fewer ingredients on the keto-carnivore diet. Your meats don’t need to be steaks, and you can get plenty other affordable meats.
If you cook with my suggested ingredients, which include a lot of super-healthy, antioxidant-rich, and anti-inflammatory ingredients like garlic, onions, and chili peppers, you are doing yourself and your health a lot of good.
Good luck.
Rob
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