Now that summer is finally here and the weather is getting warmer, I thought I’d share my current favourite salad recipe with you. I eat salad everyday as well as cooked vegetables as they are full of nutrients needed to keep you healthy, full of energy and looking and feeling great!

Slimming Down, Building Up or Maintaining? – Salad’s Got Your Back

Salads are a great way to feel full and satisfied whether slimming down or maintaining your weight because they are low in calories (as long as you don’t add salad dressing) and full of fibre. Yes, I’m always banging on about fibre, and how it’s the missing food group, well it’s for good reason. You can read about it here in my Change Nothing About Your Diet And Still Lose Weight post. Salads are also great when your goal is to build muscle as your body has a higher demand on nutrients to do so, and salads are packed with them!

Beef Is Good For You Too

I used beef for this salad, but it works just as well with fish or organic chicken. I know a lot of people think beef, or red meat in general, is unhealthy, but it all depends on the quality of the beef. Always go for grass fed and if possible organic beef. Why?…

Aside from the health benefits to the animal to be able to roam free and feed on it’s natural diet of fresh green grass, this type of diet allows cows to produce naturally occurring CLA. CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) is a healthy fat that has been studied for it’s ability to reduce fat accumulation, particularly around the stomach. This has led to many weight loss pills using CLA as it’s main ingredient. Why not get it from your food? Grass fed beef produces 2 -3 times as much CLA as grain fed beef.

Beef is also a good source of Vitamin B12 and iron. If you do decide to use beef, go for leaner cuts such as striplion, sirloin, 95% lean minced beef or if your budget allows, fillet steak.

This salad can be used as a side dish for up to 4 people,  2 servings  for a woman or 1 serving for a man.

What You Will Need

4 oz organic beef tenderlion (or lean cut of choice)

1/2 yellow bell pepper

1/2 green bell pepper

1 carrot

1 purple carrot (optional)

1/2 raw baby beetroot

1 spring onion/green onion

1″ piece of ginger root

4 cherry tomatoes

handful spinach

3 – 4 large romaine/cos lettuce leaves

Let’s Go!

1. Wash and chop the peppers, onion and tomato. Peel and finely grate the carrot, purple carrot (if using), beetroot and ginger root.

2. Rinse and spin (in a salad spinner if you have one) the romaine and spinach. I like to use them as the base of the salad, placing them in the bowl first.

3. Next, slice the steak and add to the pan. Cook for about 5 minutes on medium-high heat. I didn’t use any additional oil for cooking as beef naturally has a some fat in it and works great if not cooked at too high heat.

4. Once the beef is cooked to your preference, remove from the heat and allow to cool for a moment before arranging it on top of the leaves (or just slop it on like I do, I’m not fancy).

5. Pile the remaining chopped veggies on top and you’re ready to supercharge your body with anti-aging antioxidants and keep your muscles (and face!) firm with the added protein!

I don’t add any salad dressing because the carrot and beetroot add plenty of moisture and the fresh ginger gives it flava’.

You can add a little sea salt and pepper if you like. I like to add dill when using fish as the protein source.

Got any suggestions on how to make this recipe even better? Let me know in the comments below…

Get more recipes, health and fitness tips and updates…‘Like’ the Facebook page!

This entry was posted on May 23, 2012 at 2:45 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted in Diet Lean Recipes by davidgowing No Comments Yet