Lean Protein, Picky eatter

[Samantha]

I have a bit of a protein dilemma. I only like to eat lean proteins…pork tenderloin, beef tenderloin, chicken breasts, and shrimp. I can’t textually handle most fatty meats. I can do ground beef, but prefer it if I add ground turkey. I will not eat dark meat or anything off the bone and also keep away from most fish. I won’t eat any canned meats or fish as well. I do eat bacon on the weekends but try to keep it limited because we are trying to avoid processed meats. I also don’t eat sausages because of the casing and I just don’t really like them.

My problem is I am eating too much protein because I am trying to reach my fat counts with lean meats. Yes I do cook them in avocado oil and coconut oil but I can’t seam to eat enough to make the fat 70% of each meal. I have attempted other cuts of meat and have been trying to down what I can, but it make the diet harder for me if I am not enjoying what I eat but, I also can not eat beef tenderloin and shrimp at every meal. What do you do when eating lean protein? Do I need to just dunk my chicken breast in butter in order to reach my fat counts? It is frustrating because the scale is not moving and I am coming in at the 20 carbs a day, many times under.

Typical Day of Food:
Breakfast
Keto coffee- cold brew coffee, HWC, MCT oil, SF flavoring
One large piece of string cheese from local cheese store
Lunch
8 1oz- Keto meatballs covered in mozzarella and 1 oz of pizza sauce
Dinner
Chicken or Pork tenderloin
Steamed broccoli, cauliflower or green beans with shredded parmesan
Dessert
Sugar Free Jello w/ 1/4 of a cup of whipped heavy cream

Any suggestions of how to add more fat and cut back on protein is much appreciated! My husband and wallet would thank you!

[KatieMR]

Hi Samantha, I don’t really know the answer to you question. I am new to Keto (2 weeks) but I just wanted you to know you are not alone. I am also a picky eater. I don’t like sea food, can’t eat anything off the bone. Etc… And I HAVE covered my chicken in butter just to reach my fat goal! so I am interested to hear the answer too. Good luck1

[Dread1840]

This is more of a problem than you’re getting. Your meal plan in the bottom of the post lists a lot of fatty foods…that are free of micronutrients for the most part. Fat from meat is loaded with essential micronutrients that you really can’t get elsewhere, reliably. Best bet is to start to learn to love animal fats. Turkey breast and skinless chicken breast is some of the least nutrient-dense food on the planet, even for meat.

[LeCheffre]

Compound butters to the rescue.

Top that chicken or pork tenderloin with a big cut of a homemade flavored butter.

Ideas are endless, and important to keep low in carbs, but here are some ideas:

How to Make Compound Butter (6 Recipes!)

Paprika and rosemary for chicken or shrimp
Skip maple
Herbed for chicken and veg
Jalapeno lime for pork
Honey orang skip
And gorg sage should work nicely for pretty much anything.

But you see the sky is the limit for flavoring here. Any rub that you might use could be made into a compound butter.

[LeCheffre]

An idea here is to go from light meat to dark meat. They are richer, both in terms of nutrients and fat composition. And even better protein per ounce. Chicken and turkey thighs are very workable even without the skin. A way to learn to eat more fat.

I am a picky, along different lines. bitterness, vegetal flavors… it’s a struggle and some can’t work through it. I find it’s helpful to have a process.

[Samantha]

This is great, thank you!

[atomicspacebunny]

Essential Fatty Acids The capacity to generate DHA from ALA is higher in women than men. Studies of ALA metabolism in healthy young men indicate that approximately 8% of dietary ALA is converted to EPA and 0-4% is converted to DHA (6). In healthy young women, approximately 21% of dietary ALA is converted to EPA and 9% is converted to DHA (7). The better conversion efficiency of young women compared to men appears to be related to the effects of estrogen (8, 9). Although ALA is considered the essential omega-3 fatty acid because it cannot be synthesized by humans, evidence that human conversion of EPA and, particularly, DHA is relatively inefficient suggests that EPA and DHA may be considered conditionally essential nutrients. …More

Note: 1 to 1 balace ratio of omega-6 & Omega 3 (PUFA): A balanced omega-6/omega-3 ratio is important for health and in the prevention and management of obesity.

References:

1. The importance of the ratio of omega-6/omega-3 essential fatty acids.

2. An Increase in the Omega-6/Omega-3 Fatty Acid Ratio Increases the Risk for Obesity

3. Total Amount of Omega 6 Calories Consumed Per Person Per Day Over 100 years. Source: Perfect Health Diet Book

4. Neuroprotection for the Warrior: Dietary Supplementation With Omega-3 Fatty Acids

5. Are Omega’s 6s Healthy or Unhealthy?

6. THE BRAIN AND DHA: Let us look deeper into the secrets of the neural lipid membrane for our health. DHA is concentrated in the brain and in neural lipids, especially cell membranes. The reason is simple. DHA allows for complex signaling that no other lipid can match from a chemical standpoint. Brain DHA concentrations are remarkably constant accross many terrestrial species irrespective of the diversity of the natural diets. This has deep implications for all of us with respect to health. Moreover, this finding is also found in many fish species living in environments over a very broad temperature ranges too. The colder the temperature of their environment, the more DHA the fish species tends to have. This is also true in sea mammals. The reason for this, is the more DHA a fish has the better fluidity is found in their cell membranes to allow for optimal cellular signaling of complex systems. All of this data implies that DHA has a very specific molecular role in life. Many detailed studies show that omega 6 PUFA’s can not replicate what DHA can do in the brain or in nerves. Vegetarians do not seem to realize this. The closest omega 6 PUFA is docasapentaenoic acid (22:5n-6, DPA omega6) which has the same number of carbons but only has one less double bond compared to DHA. Otherwise, it is bioidentical to DHA. Dietary deprivation of DHA in many species experimentally shows a rise in tissue DPA omega 6, and a big fall in DHA. This result than impairs cellular physiology directly, by altering signaling. This implies DHA has special cellular signaling properties that can not be replicated by any other lipid. The real interesting part of the story is that animal based omega 3 DHA is only found in the marine food chain. …More

[LeCheffre]

A: Hunh?
B: ALA conversion even at 21% to DHA and EPA requires a lot of flax digestion to get you to where some fish oil might get you.

[Tmdlkwd]

Do I need to just dunk my chicken breast in butter in order to reach my fat counts?

         😍Yes😍

Great way start and plan​:grin:

[JustPeachy]

You can do fattier sauces like Hollandaise, Bearnaise and Mayo if you like only lean meats.

[SarahJustMe]

Sauces gravies dips mayo cheese etc…

Also add more fats to veggies, eat some fatty nuts like macademia, and consider fat bombs, I’m currently enjoying my coffee with butter cream and MCT oil, about 45 g fat. This would have literally made me sick a few months ago (I’m 6 months in). Now it’s my morning treat, There are tons of sweet or savory fat bomb recipes online too. And you can occasionally eat a spoonful of cream cheese or such.

Also I predict your palate will change over time, and you’ll find fat sources that you prefer over others, for intance, dill pickle chips dipped in sour cream are actually yummy. Who knew. I hope I haven’t totally discredited myself.

[Samantha]

Thanks Sarah. I do drink coffee in the morning with MCT oil and HWC. Good to know that it can make you feel a bit sick the first few months. I am in week 3 and find it hard to finish it. It is also hard to eat foods with too much fat on them.

Hopefully this will change over time and I will feel less gross eating it!!! haha

[SarahJustMe]

Also, looking at your meals… why steamed broccoli? Why not sautee?

[Samantha]

I like steamed veggies over sauteed…textural thing. I also like to keep my veggies crunchy so I don’t steam them long. I did put some cheese on my broccoli last night and broiled it. That was okay. I guess I could try sauteing them for a short period of time.

[SarahJustMe]

I can eat way too much fat at this point. I’ll really over eat fat (being over full on fat is extremelyicky feeling) on occasion, if given the chance, and don’t eat the meat/fish and veggies that I need. Who knows what your “set point” will be like. Don’t rush, your body will do its thing, keto is a long term way of eating. It is what it is. You may be someone who eats smaller amounts of fat at a time all day long, you may change to I ne meal a day. Youll find your carbs sweet spot (15? 25? 40?) And it’ll all change over time. It’s slow, but your body will do this “right” if you’re just there to support it.

[SarahJustMe]

You could also try grilling. I don’t know what you have access too, but there are grilling pans for the stove, or out door grills. Veggies on a skewer, with meat of choice, maybe drizzled with a little oil… yum…

[Samantha]

We grill all summer long…but I live in Wisconsin so summer is like two months long! The weather never can make up it’s mind here. We will go from 50 to 60 degrees to 5 inches of snow the next day…that actually just happened. haha. Maybe a grill pan would be a good investment.

[Melanie]

I partly steam them (usually with stock for more flavour) then finish either in the pan or oven with some butter (or duck fat or whatever) - that way the texture is similar but with extra fat. I also made a big batch of cheese sauce and froze it in small batches so I can chuck that on whenever.

Another favourite is fillet Mignon (bacon wrapped around a fillet steak). When the meat is done, I cook some chopped mushrooms in the pan, add a splash of Worcestershire and some cream, a little bit of salt and reduce it for a few minutes.

[Samantha]

The cheese sauce is a great idea! I should have thought of that living is Wisconsin. They put cheese sauce on almost every carb…might as well put it on meat too. I get to have beef tenderloin steaks once a week with my hubby’s Cajun shrimp. Lord knows I would eat that every day with a buttery steak pan sauce, but I can not afford to eat like a Queen every day of the week and I would hate to get sick of something so so yummy.

[Melanie]

I’ve also been known to make my own “fillet” out of a cheaper piece of meat like a porterhouse!