Staple Grocery Store Items to Buy For Low-Carb Cooking:

1. Ground Beef, Ground Turkey, Ground Lamb
2. Pastured Eggs
3. Bacon
4. Salmon
5. Chicken Thighs
6. Chicken Wings
7. Turkey Burgers
8. Breakfast Sausage
9. Sour cream
10. Salsa
11. Gluten Free Tortillas 
12. Cucumber, Red Onion, Red/Green Peppers, Green Onion, Jalapeno, Your fav lettuce, grape tomatoes, avocado
13. Feta Cheese, Mexican Cheese Mix (shredded)
14. Black Olives (sliced, in can) 
15. Jasmine Rice (yes rice!)
16. Cauliflower Rice 
17. Cilantro

So, here is where the Mix & Match part comes in and this is the more informal part of this post. I’m sharing with you this Mix & Match Bowls and Plates concept so you can find it even EASIER and more stress-free to make DELICIOUS TASTING low-carb keto friendly meals– fast and delightfully easy. When I say “Bowl” I’m talking about creating a fantastic flavorful combination of layers in a – wait for it- bowl, where you typically layer the bottom with rice/cauliflower rice (depending on where your macros/carbs are for that day, hopefully you have left yourself a good amount so you can enjoy some rice etc.) then start adding things like cooked or raw veggies, cheese, protein and other toppings like cilantro or olives or sour cream etc. With a PLATE, I’m referring to something where you are combining maybe more simple versions of foods– say for example, some great cooked chicken thighs with cauliflower rice and a big side of grilled vegetables topped with parmesan cheese served with a side salad. (Hungry yet?) That’s a PLATE for me. When I make a BOWL I intend to chop it all up and mix all the ingredients up together whereas with a plate it’s eaten more like a regular dinner serving. NO rules though. 

Some ideas and combos to consider:

1. Greek Lamb Bowl: Cauliflower Rice in the bottom of a bowl, topped with seasoned cooked ground lamb and spinach, topped with feta cheese, olives, diced mint, oregano, diced grape tomatoes and tzatziki sauce.
2. Greek Chicken Bowl: Same as above but make with cooked chicken thighs- see how that works? Bam.  
3. Spicy Salmon Bowl: chunks of spicy salmon cooked in the air fryer served on top of jasmine rice or cauliflower rice (dealer’s choice!) with a vegetable “salsa” of: avocado/cucumber/jalapeno/feta/pickled onion topped with spicy sriracha mayo. We make this weekly. 
4. Fish Tacos: Get your favorite fish- we use Tilapia a lot for this, cook in pan- option to use blackening seasoning– this takes like 3-4 minutes to cook up 4-5 filets. Easy. Cook your gluten free tortillas and prep: pico de gallo (we buy pre-made from grocery) cilantro chopped and chopped lettuce or cabbage then spicy mayo (sriracha plus mayo). Create your tacos with simply: tortilla + spicy mayo inside then add fish, cabbage, option to add cheese, then add cilantro (a must) and lime juice. Absolutely divine. You can make with salmon too, 😉
5. Start thinking how you can take these recipes and mix them up: you can make a fish taco BOWL. You can make a bowl out of anything. Just line the bowl with rice, add a ton of veggies, grilled or sauteed, then your favorite seasoned well protein, add some fresh herbs and maybe top with a dressing — drizzle with a spicy mayo or guac or hummus. The combos are endless. Do you see all the possibilities??

By the way, if you are reading this far and are like, “WAIT WHAT I am confused…how can I eat rice on keto? How can I eat tomatoes or cheese or sour cream? My friend said you “can’t eat that on keto”— well, here’s the deal.

Everything I’m sharing here is what I ate on keto to lose weight and it’s “my version” of keto that my doctor put me on (so higher carbs per day than that 20g per day that’s wayyyyy too hard for most people to stick to and not necessary for weight loss).

If you want to feel more comfortable understanding how to do keto, I have an online video taught course, my 5-day Keto Bootcamp (HINT: it won’t take you 5 days I promise!) – and it’s just $35.95. Snag it, watch the video tutorials and you’ll feel on top of the keto world. Happy to help.