If I say fried chicken to you what is your immediate thought? Southern-style fried chicken I’m guessing. The kind that’s covered in breadcrumbs and deep fried, right?
How is it that this is now what is nearly always meant by the term fried chicken? I had fried chicken twice this week and it wasn’t deep fried in a fryer. Nor was it covered in breadcrumbs. The one no-no of Paleo (that rhymes!) is no bread. No grain. We are going against the grain on this diet. So, how come I had fried chicken?
Fried chicken is HEALTHY!
Simples. I bought a 220 gram (8 ounces) packet of organic free-range chicken thighs for £2.68 ($4.04/€3.13) lightly seasoned with a little salt then fried them in butter. Served on a bed of lettuce, avocado and olives, topped with a sprinkling of Parmesan shavings and a dash of mayonnaise. Delicious. Healthy. Filling. Aids weight loss.
If you like chicken thighs, and fortunately I do, this is a very cheap meal. You can fry a load up and set aside for later, for healthy nibbles or for your next meal.
Cheap chicken
You can buy chicken far cheaper than this if you don’t go for the organic or free range kind. But I tend to think, with thighs so cheap, why bother? The cheap stuff is full of water and lacks flavour. It’s cheaper in the long run to buy the good stuff because it lasts longer and tastes better.
Salad days
We are having a typical British May right now, ie cold, wet and miserable. But it’s salad days in our house. We can’t control the weather but we can control what we eat and we’re eating Summer foods summery weather or not.
Salad followed by strawberries doused in a little sparkling Rosé and whole thing served with a chilled glass of Chardonnay (just the one) makes you feel like it’s Summer even though it isn’t.
Calorie counting
You don’t have to calorie count on this diet. That’s at least half the pleasure of it. But out of interest and because I’ve spent years calorie counting, I have added up my calories this week. It’s around 1300 to 1400 calories a day. So even if this wasn’t a high-protein Paleo diet, I would lose weight because I’m eating fewer calories than the average woman needs daily, about 2,000 (men need 2,500).
Deficit reduction
That creates a deficit of about 5/600 calories a day and they say it’s a 3,500 calorie deficit that loses you a pound in weight. So stick to this, and you lose about a pound a week. Seven day deficit of 500 calories = 3,500.
This will I hope satisfy those who say you can’t lose weight without cutting calories. The difference is, the average calorie-reduced diet makes you feel miserable and deprived. Which is why most dieters don’t, can’t, stick to it. And why crash diets are so popular.
This one’s for keeps.
This is a much easier diet to stick to. You’re far less likely to feel deprived. It’s enjoyable. The food is great. And really all you have to do is give up bread, other starchy carbs, and dairy if you can face it.
Think about what you CAN have instead of what you can’t! So many lovely foods. And it’s not necessarily expensive. Also, whisper it, an occasional piece of dark chocolate and one or two glasses of wine a week is fine. Enjoy eating. That’s the biggest message from Paleo. Enjoy your food. Don’t fear your food. Eat up, eat well and lose weight.
Have a lovely weekend – a holiday weekend for us here in the UK. And put Summer on your plate if the real thing continues to elude us.
