Third week down and it feels good. This week was a challenge as it was one of the weeks were we ate out more. For the weeks before, I was very diligent in eating at home as I know that all ingredients would be whole30 compliant. This week we ate out 3x and got invited to a family friend's house. We had to spend some time explaining what we could and could not eat. They were wonderful hosts and did not force anything on us.
On the plus side, I have been running and walking more and I'm not feeling as tired. I also have not needed to drink as much coffee. In fact, I have to watch my coffee in take as it definitely spikes my heart rate a bit due to the caffeine.
What Went Well
- We went out to a restaurant 3x and was able to stay compliant.
- We had dinner at a friend's house and stayed compliant as well.
- This week, successfully tried more Asian flavors, but I definitely miss rice.
What Did Not Go Well
- I definitely had two days where I wanted to just go out and pick up food and just eat a sandwich, then I thought about the past 2 weeks and what kind of sandwich would really satisfy me now.
- Not a god idea to watch "Chef's Table" but it made me appreciate good food outside so I now think twice about getting food outside as I am not sure it will be as good as what I could cook at home.
What Can Be Improved
- Still need to continue with food exploration and new flavors.
- Still need to have some prepared foods or at least cook more so that there are leftovers for the next day as sometimes cooking everyday is a hassle.
Menu
Asian Inspired Chicken Wings and Chicken Thighs
I missed some of the Asian flavors that I grew up with, but as soy sauce is a no-no, I had to come up with similar flavors. This week, I played around with the marinade below on both chicken wings and chicken thighs. Both times, they tasted excellent. The chicken wings were oven roasted, the chicken thighs were pan roasted.
Asian Inspired Marinade
- 1/4 sesame oil (to be used sparingly)
- 1/4 coconut aminos
- 1/2 freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp crushed garlic
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp parika
- Marinate chicken at least 1 hour prior to cooking. Sesame oil is whole30 compliant but should be used sparingly. My husband has been eating oranges for the past 2 weeks and buys a box each week so this was a good use of them as well. The marinade can end up sweet to adjust accordingly by lessening the orange juice or coconut aminos. When cooking, you'll also need to pay attention as the sugar from the juices can caramelized pretty quickly.