Low carb meals that are good

[BonitaApplebum]

Okay, so I need to drop a little weight. Low carb works best for me. I can't pull off keto but I do well staying under 50g net carbs a day.

Problem is, I get low carb fatigue after a bit... none of my usual go-tos look good to me.

Instead of surrendering to the sweet, sweet carbs, I was thinking I'd start a thread to get fresh ideas for meals that are low in carbs.

So, what's good?

[radial]

The easy solution is subscribing to a prepared meal service that offers low carb options.  When I'm interested in losing weight I sign up with a service that delivers prepared meals you can heat up in the microwave for a couple of minutes and just dig in.  Portion size, macro distribution, and total calories are all taken care of for you.  No fuss no muss. 

The trick is finding a service that offers enough variety to keep you interested.  Prepared meal services with low carb options that I've used and liked include Factor (formerly Factor75), Territory, Trifecta, and Fresh n' Lean.

There are also low carb meal kit services where you get the ingredients for the meal but have to cook it yourself.  I guess that might be better for people who actually like to cook, I'm just not one of those people .

[BonitaApplebum]

That could work if I lived alone, but I need to feed a family of four, so it doesn't seem practical.

I can cook just fine, I'm just looking for a few new menu ideas to expand my options, really.

[picote]

We do a lot of protein first dinners. Roasted salmon with lemon, butter and dill, seared tilapia with olives, cherry tomatoes and feta, crispy chicken thighs, shrimp linguini with the seaweed pasta, shrimp bake, seared scallops, seared tuna with cilantro lime and avocado, pork tenderloin, etc… We usually pair it with a pile of roasted veggies and a salad, which may put your carb count too high.

I do best with low carb too, but have probably managed to find the high carb versions of healthy. I haven’t actually plugged the meals into anything in a while.

These are my go to meals. All are good, but I need new ones. So bored.

[BonitaApplebum]

Thanks! I don't tend to cook a lot of seafood, that might be a nice way to shake things up.

What is seaweed pasta?

[picote]

Thanks! I don't tend to cook a lot of seafood, that might be a nice way to shake things up.

What is seaweed pasta?

Seaweed pasta is disgusting. I’m not actually sure it’s made from seaweed, but that seems like a reasonable guess. But it has like 2 calories and if your sauce is flavorful enough you can almost forget it’s so disgusting and pretend it’s pasta. Just rinse it like crazy before you make it. It’s sold in the same place as tofu.

The upside of all of the above dishes is they take very little hands on time to make.

[picote]

Here are links to some of our regulars. All are pretty good. The only on that takes a while to make is the salmon burgers, but we usually make a ton and freeze them.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/5703-salmon-roasted-in-butter
https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/seared-tilapia-lemon-caper-sauce-with-orzo-zucchini-peppers
https://www.fifteenspatulas.com/how-to-sear-scallops-wet-vs-dry-scallops/
https://laughingspatula.com/sheet-pan-chili-lime-shrimp-fajitas/
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019950-roasted-salmon-with-fennel-and-lime
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/one-pan-mediterranean-baked-halibut-recipe-with-vegetables/
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/shrimp-scampi-with-linguini-recipe-1942429
https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/seared-salmon-lemon-caper-sauce-with-roasted-broccoli
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/83727/red-cabbage-salad-ii/
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/7131-salmon-burgers
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/pan-seared-tuna-with-avocado-soy-ginger-and-lime-recipe-1914316
https://natashaskitchen.com/roasted-pork-tenderloin-recipe/
https://thesaltymarshmallow.com/crispy-baked-chicken-thighs/
https://www.seriouseats.com/pressure-cooker-fast-and-easy-chicken-chile-verde-recipe

The chicken thighs and the pork use essentially the same seasoning, so I make up a spice jar at a time.

[rocketgirl]

That could work if I lived alone, but I need to feed a family of four, so it doesn't seem practical.

I can cook just fine, I'm just looking for a few new menu ideas to expand my options, really.

I know that a lot of friends who have used those mail order meals that you have to assemble and cook have used the knowledge gained from those meals to add to their cooking repertoire.  I assume those kits come in low carb and family size versions so that you could throw one in once every week or two just for something new and different - then if you like it, you know what to do next time.

[BonitaApplebum]

I know that a lot of friends who have used those mail order meals that you have to assemble and cook have used the knowledge gained from those meals to add to their cooking repertoire.  I assume those kits come in low carb and family size versions so that you could throw one in once every week or two just for something new and different - then if you like it, you know what to do next time.

Gotcha.

I am a pretty experienced cook, so those kits don't really appeal to me. I'm really just looking for inspiration and can take it from there.

[ihop]

Seaweed pasta is disgusting. I’m not actually sure it’s made from seaweed, but that seems like a reasonable guess. But it has like 2 calories and if your sauce is flavorful enough you can almost forget it’s so disgusting and pretend it’s pasta. Just rinse it like crazy before you make it. It’s sold in the same place as tofu.

The upside of all of the above dishes is they take very little hands on time to make.

This is a ringing endorsement!  I am going to run out to the store and look for it!   

[BonitaApplebum]

Here are links to some of our regulars. All are pretty good. The only on that takes a while to make is the salmon burgers, but we usually make a ton and freeze them.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/5703-salmon-roasted-in-butter
https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/seared-tilapia-lemon-caper-sauce-with-orzo-zucchini-peppers
https://www.fifteenspatulas.com/how-to-sear-scallops-wet-vs-dry-scallops/
https://laughingspatula.com/sheet-pan-chili-lime-shrimp-fajitas/
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019950-roasted-salmon-with-fennel-and-lime
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/one-pan-mediterranean-baked-halibut-recipe-with-vegetables/
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/shrimp-scampi-with-linguini-recipe-1942429
https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/seared-salmon-lemon-caper-sauce-with-roasted-broccoli
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/83727/red-cabbage-salad-ii/
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/7131-salmon-burgers
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/pan-seared-tuna-with-avocado-soy-ginger-and-lime-recipe-1914316
https://natashaskitchen.com/roasted-pork-tenderloin-recipe/
https://thesaltymarshmallow.com/crispy-baked-chicken-thighs/
https://www.seriouseats.com/pressure-cooker-fast-and-easy-chicken-chile-verde-recipe

The chicken thighs and the pork use essentially the same seasoning, so I make up a spice jar at a time.

Thanks for taking the time to post all of these! I will check them out.

[BonitaApplebum]

This is a ringing endorsement!  I am going to run out to the store and look for it!   

I think I know what they are now, I've had them before. They really are not very good, but can kinda sorta scratch the noodle itch.

[picote]

This is a ringing endorsement!  I am going to run out to the store and look for it!   

Lol. I know!! But they do work for me in the scampi scenario. Still, I wouldn’t want anyone going into it thinking they were like pasta, because that’s setting yourself up for severe disappointment!

[picote]

Thanks for taking the time to post all of these! I will check them out.

The paprika recipe all makes it easy to post them! They are mostly super easy/low prep, which is why they’ve entered the regular rotation. We love them all. But I’m so, so bored. I swear all I want are carbs and sugar right now.

[DocBuzzkill]

This is a ringing endorsement!  I am going to run out to the store and look for it!   

Seriously.  Why not just spiralize zucchini or another squash?

Bonita, you said you do OK on 50 g net carbs.   What's your dietary source of fiber to get the "net" effect?

[BonitaApplebum]

Seriously.  Why not just spiralize zucchini or another squash?

Bonita, you said you do OK on 50 g net carbs.   What's your dietary source of fiber to get the "net" effect?

If I count carbs, I calculate net carbs as I go, factoring the fiber on an individual food basis. So, if I ate a food with 10g total carbs and 4 grams fiber, I'd log 6 net grams of carbs toward my 50 gram target for the day.

I could probably stand to eat more fiber in my diet. I don't do any fiber supplements or anything like that.

[picote]

Seriously.  Why not just spiralize zucchini or another squash?

Bonita, you said you do OK on 50 g net carbs.   What's your dietary source of fiber to get the "net" effect?

I think these are better than squash as a noodle substitute. I like squash noodles, but as their own thing.

[BonitaApplebum]

I need to give squash noodles another go.

I feel like the key in enjoying something like that is to go in with zero expectations.

[diablita]

I like squash as noodles with some things.  I can't eat them with all things.

Really like the miracle noodles that are shelf stable.  Not sure if that's the one you go for, picote.  The refrigerated shiratake noodles you find refrigerated in lots of liquid, notsomuch.

[BonitaApplebum]

Yes! Shiratake! That's what the ones I'm thinking of are called.

I don't think I've tried Miracle.