burgers: are they paleo?
- Thread starter scedastic
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If you bludgeon the animal old timey style with a big rock, you will produce hamburger-like consistency. And we've been cooking since the Lower Paleolithic, so yes, I think hamburger could be considered Paleo if it's served without a bun, as long as there are no pickles or ketchup on it.
Maybe a better question would be, how in the world do all you paleos afford the grass fed beef?
I would like to cut down on sweets and sugar and all that, and grains are probably excessive, so I can see the idea behind the paleo.
However, the one small farm nearby that sells grass fed beef (at least in the summer---not sure if they supplement w/ grain in winter), whew, I would be one skinny minny if I tried to eat my day's calories that way.
I'm with michael pollan that meat should cost more, because of the resources it uses given the population demand, but man oh man, it was hard to fork it over that one time, and I'm still saving it, b/c it's not quite enough for a meal for 4.
I would like to cut down on sweets and sugar and all that, and grains are probably excessive, so I can see the idea behind the paleo.
However, the one small farm nearby that sells grass fed beef (at least in the summer---not sure if they supplement w/ grain in winter), whew, I would be one skinny minny if I tried to eat my day's calories that way.
I'm with michael pollan that meat should cost more, because of the resources it uses given the population demand, but man oh man, it was hard to fork it over that one time, and I'm still saving it, b/c it's not quite enough for a meal for 4.
We just buy from the local butcher, who has excellent, semi-organic beef, but it's not grass-fed. We can get grass-fed at Whole Foods, but it's twice as much and a 15-20 minute drive, and doesn't always taste any better, and sometimes tastes a little corral-ly (although one of their ribeyes was fantastic -- and on sale).
My paleo diet is pretty half-assed. In the morning I eat a small bowl of mixed nuts and dried fruit (about a 80/20 ratio), then it's fruits and veggies throughout the day, and then at night it's some kind of animal flesh and more veggies (salad or cooked or grilled), and perhaps a little carb like corn or potatoes. I haven't really noticed any benefit in terms of energy levels or weight loss though, but I was already eating pretty healthily before and never had any problems with any kind of food. The biggest difference is switching out my morning breakfast cereal with fruit and almond milk for the mixed nuts & dried fruit. I also drink espresso and have a glass or two of wine or beer with dinner, so I'm by no means a paleo purist, and if I had to work long hours doing physical work, I wouldn't hesitate to add in some easy carbs. Humans evolved as omnivores in a wide variety of ecological niches, so I don't see the need to be too strict about the whole paleo thing, although the basic principles seem to make sense, and even pre-paleo, I avoided junk food and overly processed stuff. That stuff feels like a rock in my stomach, I don't know how people can eat that crap. Bon Appétit!
My paleo diet is pretty half-assed. In the morning I eat a small bowl of mixed nuts and dried fruit (about a 80/20 ratio), then it's fruits and veggies throughout the day, and then at night it's some kind of animal flesh and more veggies (salad or cooked or grilled), and perhaps a little carb like corn or potatoes. I haven't really noticed any benefit in terms of energy levels or weight loss though, but I was already eating pretty healthily before and never had any problems with any kind of food. The biggest difference is switching out my morning breakfast cereal with fruit and almond milk for the mixed nuts & dried fruit. I also drink espresso and have a glass or two of wine or beer with dinner, so I'm by no means a paleo purist, and if I had to work long hours doing physical work, I wouldn't hesitate to add in some easy carbs. Humans evolved as omnivores in a wide variety of ecological niches, so I don't see the need to be too strict about the whole paleo thing, although the basic principles seem to make sense, and even pre-paleo, I avoided junk food and overly processed stuff. That stuff feels like a rock in my stomach, I don't know how people can eat that crap. Bon Appétit!
Thanks for that Lee; a half-assed paleo is actually just what I am going for. It started when I was having issues digesting cereal in the morning. I've gone to eating dried fruits and nuts in the late am, fruit all day, maybe some yogurt (not primal, but again, meat is $$$), then meat and veg in the evening. I haven't been able to eliminate breads all the way, though, as I think my family might take issue with no more carb accompaniment (for now....).
Oh, and ice cream. That's so not paleo. Working on it.
I'm more primal I guess than paleo. I follow marksdailyapple and read his book. I usually stick to eggs though as my main source of protein since I can't afford choice cuts of meats. Difference is I eat dairy...there are some plus sides to dairy but not always...most important things are really no grains or legumes and no highly processed foods. Stick to yummy delicious animal fat...mmm...bacon. Also ground beef is alright. If you can't get grass fed organic regular is alright if you get the leanest stuff possible but then no flavor.
Nuts are good...can't go wrong with dried fruit or jerky either. Just don't go overboard on nuts because they are still high in phytates compared gram for gram to grains and legumes.
I read somewhere to watch it with dried fruits, because the sugar is more concentrated or something.
Sorry Josh, this is all kind of new to me: what's the difference between primal, paleo, and ancestral? I had thought they were all the same thing.
They basically are just taught differently...Mark Sisson describes his method as primal and adds dairy and dark chocolate as well as supplements if you want.
You are right about the dried fruit as well but when you lose a lot of the water you lose sugar too. I'm not saying go crazy on them just saying they are fine. Jerky is my go to snack though. I also eat pork rinds but try to stick to ones fried in lard rather than vegetable oil.
You are right about the dried fruit as well but when you lose a lot of the water you lose sugar too. I'm not saying go crazy on them just saying they are fine. Jerky is my go to snack though. I also eat pork rinds but try to stick to ones fried in lard rather than vegetable oil.
Would a caveman know what phytates are?
Aren't there less cultivated versions of legumes that our forebears would have eaten? For that matter, weren't there un-cultivated versions of grains that paleos would have eaten? I get that highly cultivated grain have tons and tons of carbohydrate - they might as well be sugar. But the idea that paleos in Europe would never have come across proto-grains seems suspect.
Aren't there less cultivated versions of legumes that our forebears would have eaten? For that matter, weren't there un-cultivated versions of grains that paleos would have eaten? I get that highly cultivated grain have tons and tons of carbohydrate - they might as well be sugar. But the idea that paleos in Europe would never have come across proto-grains seems suspect.
Studying hunter-gather tribes today they don't eat tubers more like just chew them so don't nearly get as many carbs. Studying all hunter gatherer tribes today they all got around 10-20% energy from carbs mostly from starches not fruit and about 50-60% energy from fat. Mostly from nuts, fatty fruits and meat.
It's really hard to generalize about hunter-gatherers. Some got a lot of meat, like Eskimos, some mostly ate carbs and just 5-20 percent protein, if I remember my paleoanthro correctly.
Why not legumes? Not to be dumb, but aren't they relatively high in protein/low in carbs? I'm not that much of a tree hugger, but I hate the impact on the environment of meat at so many meals, and the fancy schmancy grass fed/happy animal food is too expensive.
