This is an addictive little hit of Summer sun in a bowl; perfect for those mid-Winter blues.
gluten-free, paleo, pescatarian
Sunshine Shrimp Chopped Salad
Protein
1 – 1.5 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
Juice of 2 oranges
3 Tbsp salt
1/2 yellow onion, chopped rough
2 cloves garlic, chopped rough
Hand full cilantro
3 c water
First, poach your shrimp in the mix above a couple minutes or until cooked through. Remove. If your shrimp were frozen and pre-cooked like mine, heat till warmed through. You’ll still get a bit of that delicious poaching liquid taste. It’s fine.
Dressing
4 Tbsp cashew butter
1 tsp your favorite sweetener (I used date molasses)
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
1-2 tsp sambal olek
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
Sprinkle salt & pepper
Salad Base
Couple hand fulls green beans per serving, cut in thirds and poached in the shrimp liquid until crisp-tender
1/2 avocado per serving
1/2 – whole segmented and chopped orange per serving
6-10 cherry tomatoes, halved, per serving
Sprinkle soy
Sprinkle sesame seeds
Sprinkle flaky salt
How many this serves depends on how starving you are – this *could* serve 2 for lunch as written, or just a really hungry me. You do you
These are addictive. I’m not sure why, since they’re so simple, but they are. It’s probably the chive. So good, I’m keeping some on hand for snacking.
gluten-free, paleo, Whole30
Air Fryer Sweet Potato & Chive Chicken Meatballs
1 pound ground chicken
1 small sweet potato, peeled & rough chopped (about 2 cups when shredded)
1/4 cup chives, snipped fine
1 small shallot, peeled & rough chopped
Salt & pepper
Whack your chopped sweet potato and shallot in a food processor until the pieces look like small shreds. Mix with the ground chicken and hit with generous salt & pepper.
Preheat your air fryer to 200C/400F for 3 minutes.
When your air fryer is done heating, form the ground chicken mix into roughly ping pong ball sized meatballs and drop into the basket in a single layer, leaving a little space around each ball to breathe. I did mine in 2 rounds. Air fry 7 minutes per batch, shaking a few times during the cooking process to avoid sticking. Mine wanted to stick a bit, but with the shaking, the balls stayed together and ended up coming out just fine.
Serve with pretty much anything – I had some for a super simple ‘I’m not that hungry’ dinner with some babaganoush one night, nestled in a mess of stir-fried snow peas for lunch, and alongside some lazy af Ranch-y zucchini for another dinner. These babies are versatile. Would also be great with pasta.
Although it is not, regrettably, high mango season where I live – I just couldn’t resist some particularly tantalizing ruby red beauties in the grocery last week. Here, we are starting to dread the summer heat – while hanging on to every last shred of cool weather (and the winds they bring). I thought a nice, refreshing salad was just the thing to combat those spring ‘I’m not ready for surface of the sun temps’ blues.
gluten-free, paleo, vegetarian, vegan
Mango Chive Salad
1 large mango (if you’ve got a big boy, or 2 smaller), skinned and chopped
3 small Persian cucumbers or 1 large English variety
1/4 c chives, snipped
1 jalapeño, seeded
1/4 c pepitas
2 Tbsp lemon juice (or more to taste)
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp your favorite mustard (I used Dijon, but my love – grainy Maille – would also be great here)
2 tsp honey, agave or date molasses
2 Tbsp your favorite neutral oil (or neutral-ish; I used olive)
2 tsp any fruit vinegar (I used ume plum)
1 red bell pepper
Optional add-ins for bulk: Hand full simply stir-fried snow peas, 1/4 – 1/2 avocado per serving
Optional add-ins for protein: rotisserie chicken, shrimp or sesame tofu
Chop the cucumber into bite-sized pieces and add to a large bowl.
Chop and add the red pepper & half the jalapeño and add to the bowl.
Snip the chives into small bits and add.
Add half the mango (I had a big boy so I added about a cup and a half, reserving about half a cup of mango for the dressing).
Toss all and set aside.
In the carafe of your blender, add: the other 1/2 cup or so of mango, the second half of the jalapeño, garlic, pepitas, lemon juice, mustard, sweetener, oil, and vinegar. Whiz to combine. Salt to taste.
Toss the salad with the dressing and any add-ins. Whack with a sprinkle flaky salt & black pepper to finish.
Serves 2 as a big meal-sized salad; 4 if you’re adding in the proteins & bulk items
Ooh man, the air fryer can make some delicious nuggets. I let this batch marinate longer than anticipated (afternoon + over night instead of for like an hour) and the ginger garlic was definitely noticeable in every bite.
gluten-free
Air Fryer Honey Garlic Chicken Nibbles
1 pound chicken thighs, chopped into bite-sized pieces
Marinade:
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp soy sauce or coconut aminos
2 tsp your fav vinegar (I used ume plum)
1/2 inch grated ginger
2 cloves grated garlic
Sauce:
2 Tbsp soy sauce or coconut aminos
1.5 Tbsp honey
2 tsp sambal olek
1 tsp vinegar
2 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp grated horseradish
Cornstarch
Black pepper
Spritz oil (I have flaxseed, but any kind will do)
Add your marinade ingredients and chicken to a large bag or bowl. Shake well to coat and marinate for at least an hour, but I would suggest over night. Mine went for almost a full day because my chicken was still a bit too frozen and it was magnificent.
Preheat your air fryer to 200C/400F for 3 minutes.
While the air fryer is warming, add your chicken to a large bowl (trying to get as little of the marinade as possible). Generously sprinkle with cornstarch and black pepper. Toss. Hit again with cornstarch and pepper – you’re looking for most if not all of the pieces to be coated.
Add to the basket of your air fryer and blast with a few spritzes oil.
Turn the timer to 10 minutes and fry, shaking vigorously to break up any clumping and spritzing with oil 3-4 times while the chicken cooks.
While the chicken is going, whisk together all the sauce ingredients.
This is great served with some veggies (I did peppers, onions & portobello mushrooms) simply air fried with salt, pepper and a blast of spritz oil until a touch browned (takes about 12 minutes).
I don’t know what else to call this dish that’s flattering. Potato mush? Delicious potato hug on a cold Winters’ night?
Name aside, it’s good.
gluten-free
Kielbasa and Potatoes
1 yellow onion, sliced thin
3-5 small yellow potatoes, cut into 1/3 inch chunks
Scant teaspoon oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 c. vegetable stock (I used a mushroom onion variety)
2 Tbsp. mushroom powder
1 Tbsp. gravy granules (I used onion flavor)
1 Tbsp. grainy mustard (Maille FTW)
1 Tbsp. butter
Salt & pepper
Kielbasa (I air fried kielbasa links for 7 minutes in the air fryer and sliced on the bias to serve)
Slice the onions thinly and cut the potatoes into 1/3 inch chunks.
Preheat a large pan over medium-high. Add a scant teaspoon oil.
Add the onion and sauté until translucent.
Chop the garlic while the onions are going.
Add the potatoes and garlic with 1 cup stock.
Knock the heat back to medium and simmer 20 minutes or so until the potatoes are almost done and the liquid has mostly evaporated.
If your potatoes get too dry before they cook, add a little more stock or water.
Add the mushroom powder, gravy granules, grainy mustard, butter and a generous hit of salt & pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until potatoes are fully done. I bashed some of my potatoes so the sauce would thicken a bit and they ended up kinda mashing. Delicious.
Taste and add a little more seasoning if necessary.
This recipe is enchanting. Not 100% what I had envisioned (no sichuan peppercorns or deep fried taste), but gone in seconds.
Note: I ran out of cornstarch about halfway through making this chicken and had to finish the rest without it. It was also delicious.
gluten-free, paleo
Air Fried Pepper Chicken
500g chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp. soy sauce or coconut aminos
1 inch ginger, grated
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
1 c. cornstarch or arrowroot powder
2 eggs, beaten
Generous shake salt & pepper
Oil for spritzing
Sauce
2 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. Togarishi seasoning
2-4 tsp. sambal olek
Generous shake black pepper
Cut your chicken into bite sized pieces. Grate the ginger and add ginger, soy and rice vinegar to the chicken. Marinate :30 or overnight.
When you’re ready to cook, cut a piece of baking paper to cover the bottom of your air fryer basket. Preheat the air fryer for 3 minutes.
While your fryer is warming, set up a dredging station – 1 plate of cornstarch seasoned with salt & pepper and 1 shallow bowl of beaten egg.
Dredge the chicken chunks in cornstarch, egg, and back into cornstarch. Add to the preheated and lined air fryer basket in a single layer with a little room around each piece (you will need to do this in multiple batches).
Spritz with a little oil and air fry 8 minutes, flipping and re-oiling if necessary halfway through.
Continue on with the rest of the chicken.
While the chicken cooks, combine the butter (melted), togarishi and sambal in a small bowl; hit with a generous amount of black pepper.
This is a satisfying sweet and spicy bowl that makes great use of a pantry staple – the humble chickpea. While it’s not as high protein as a dish including meat, 100g of tofu gives you 8-10g and the chickpeas give another 5. Not too bad, and if you know of a good vegan protein powder to add you can bulk it even more.
gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan
Vegan General Tso-Style Protein Bowl
1 can chickpeas
1 block extra firm tofu
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 bunch broccolini, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 thumb ginger, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp. tamari, soy sauce or coconut aminos, divided
4 Tbsp. rice vinegar, divided
1/3 c. broth (I used mushroom onion; faux-chicken or any other stock would work just as well, you just want something with a little extra flavor to layer)
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp. nut butter (I used peanut, but any nut butter would do)
2 Tbsp. sweetener (I had date molasses on hand but your favorite sweetener will do – if you go for something sweeter than molasses, consider halving to 2/3-ing the amount
2 tsp. heat (don’t be like me and use ghost pepper garlic sauce unless you want a punch in the mouth – go for something saner like a nice sambal olek for the same spicy garlic without the shock)
1 tsp. + sesame oil
1 tsp. grainy mustard (y’all know I love my Maille)
2 tsp. cornstarch or arrowroot powder +
Generous grinds pepper
Toppers: thinly sliced scallions, sesame seeds
Drain the chickpeas, add to a bowl and marinate in 1 Tbsp. soy + 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar for half an hour – a couple hours.
Press the tofu, chop into half-inch cubes, and add to a large bowl. Add 2 Tbsp. soy & 2 Tbsp. rice vinegar. Let marinate alongside the chickpeas.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining Tbsp. soy & Tbsp. vinegar, broth, tomato paste, nut butter, sweetener, heat, 1 tsp. of the sesame oil, grainy mustard, 2 tsp. cornstarch and a few grinds pepper.
Chop the veggies and get everything ready.
Add a couple Tablespoons cornstarch to the tofu mix and toss vigorously to coat. Air fry 7-8 minutes, tossing often to ensure even crispiness.
While the tofu is crisping, sauté the onion over medium heat in a couple teaspoons sesame oil until translucent. Add the ginger, garlic and broccolini and continue sautéing 2-3 minutes or until the broccolini looks like it’s beginning to soften a touch.
Add the peppers and let go another 2-3 minutes until those begin to soften, stirring often to avoid burning.
Add the bowl of sauce and the chickpeas. Stir well and sauté until the sauce is nice and thick and everything is well incorporated.
Add the tofu to each bowl individually (100g gives you 8g; 1c. of the chickpeas gives you 5), top with scallions and sesame seeds and serve.
This is a nice and simple sandwich that can be dressed a bunch of ways and has a good mix of protein, fats and carbs. I served these as a stand-alone for dinner and was satisfied.
high protein
This picture is tragic, but I was starving
Zaatar Chicken Sandwiches
150g chicken breast per person, sliced into thin strips
2 Tbsp. zaatar
Salt & pepper
Drizzle chicken with a touch of oil (a teaspoon worth max), toss with spices and air fry 7 minutes, shaking a couple times during cooking.
Whisk together:
1/4 c. yogurt
2 Tbsp. fresh dill, minced
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
2 Tbsp. lemon juice (more if necessary to add more zing – I started with this amount and kept adding to mask the taste of coconut yogurt)
1 Tbsp. garlic powder (more if necessary)
Salt & pepper
Toppers:
Sliced avocado
Sliced cherry tomatoes
Sautéed mushrooms & bell peppers
Sliced olives
Cucumber strips
Stuff a pita with chicken, top with veggies of your choice & yogurt sauce.
My pita ended up not being able to hold all the chicken I needed to hit my 150g protein macro, so I had a little extra in the side – along with the avocado, which kept leaping out of my sandwich. Delicious.
This spin on a bulgogi bowl was my favorite dish of the week, and with a 150g of chicken serving, it helped meet my protein goal for the day with 33g.
gluten-free
Bulgogi-Style Chicken Bowl
500g boneless, skinless chicken, chopped into bite-sized pieces
Marinade
1 crisp apple, grated
1 pear, grated
2 inches ginger, grated
4 cloves garlic, grated
1/4 onion, grated
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. gochujiang
2 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 tsp. date molasses, honey or sugar
Combine all ingredients and marinate chicken for a few hours. To cook, I air fried the chicken for 10 minutes, shaking every few. Note: this marinade is a bit wet for the air fryer and it kind of made a mess, but it was workable; I just had a bit of cleaning to do afterward.
Bowl Base
1 package broccolini, chopped
Optional: shiritaki noodles, rice, etc.
Prep your bowl base. I air fried broccolini tossed in a scant teaspoon oil, salt and pepper for 7 minutes. I meant to bulk the dish up some with shiritaki, but ended up being not so starving for dinner. Broccolini worked great.
Toppers
1 scallion, minced
Nice amount of kimchi
1 cucumber, cut into matchsticks
1 fried egg
Optional: sesame seeds, teriyaki sauce, sriracha mayo, sliced nori
The chicken makes 3 servings, the toppings as written 2
Gastography 