Reduce the meat you eat & make it count

Reduce the meat you eat & make a little go a long way

Reduce the meat you eat & make it go a long way to help health.  Boost the familiar flavor of animal protein you use by using the best quality meats.  Once in a fabulous Midwestern city I was out on a business dinner.  At the time I was a vegetarian.  So after much ribbing, I got a veggie plate.  The gentlemen with me all ordered steaks.  The size of the plates should have been a warning.   Everything was big, but no one needs a 2 pound t-bone steak for dinner.    On average meat eaters in this country eat more than recommended even by the USDA.   Americans eat more meat than almost every other country.

A vegetarian when diagnosed with Lyme disease, I argued with my doctors about eating meat.  But as I struggled with symptoms, I decided to try it their way and add bone broth and meat to my diet and get the health benefits.

So I buy all meat from a local organic meat CSA. Look for local, organic, and naturally, ethically raised animals, the best quality you can find.  They are out there.   You get all the meat frozen, so it requires planning and defrost time.  The flavor is really amazing, it spoils you for anything less.

Natural organic meat is so far from CAFO meat.  A quality product costs more but the ethical animal treatment and healthier muscles and organs are worth it!   How do you reduce the meat you eat and get the most nutrition and flavor?

First eat more organ meat which costs a lot less and is nutritionally dense. Be the person at the farm who wants the stuff, bones weird meat like goat and offal that no one else wants.  Your local farmer will love you for it.  Click this link for a couple of organ meat recipes. But many people just want to eat muscles.

Stretch the muscle meat you eat.

Five easy ways to reduce the meat you eat & the meat dollars you spend.

1. Make the meat you eat the appetizer portion of the meal. Have a shrimp cocktail and a vegetarian entrée.
2. Soups on! Soups are filling and nourishing with from 1 – 3 ounces of protein per serving.  Vegetable soups make with chicken or bone broth, have wonderful depth of flavor.
3. Stir Fry you veggies, really make each plate 2/3 to ¾ vegetables.
   •  Serve your very small steak on top of a grilled Portaber dinner. Stir-frys are quick to cook and satisfying way to eat less meat.  Gradually go down in meat per portion and go up in vegetable.Build you meal aroundlla cap.
   • Sprinkle bacon on greens to punch up the flavor.
4. Put the meat in the back seat of the vehicle. Fill each of these with plenty of veggies.  Make your wraps and tacos with collard green leaves or cabbage leaves to increase your greens while you manage your protein.
   • Taco
   • Sandwich or Wrap
   • Pizza

Most of these are on or easy to get on your menu.  With a slight shift in these dishes you can align your meat consumption with your health goals.  Go the extra step: buy the healthiest meat you can afford and  reduce meat consumption to support  budget and your health.

References:  http://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/how-much-meat-do-americans-eat-then-and-now-1792/