Minimalist Paleo

Many years ago, while living in Connecticut, I had a brief relationship with a scuba diving instructor. Despite our fondness for each other, we had to go our separate ways. I was moving to Manhattan and he was on his way to the Caribbean. As we said our good-byes, he pointed to the large duffel bag at his feet.

"That's everything I own," he said.

His final kiss left me with a strange feeling of envy. I wasn't envious that he was heading off to the Caribbean to spend his days swimming and lounging on beautiful beaches, I was envious that he could fit everything he owned into a single bag.

Minimalism speaks to me. Maybe that's one of the reasons I like Paleo so much. The Paleo diet is a back-to-basics, old-school, no-nonsense way of eating that our bodies thrive on. Created by nature and evolution, and absent of religious, political, social and economic ties, Paleo eating is minimalist to the core.

The foods which make up a Paleo diet:

Meat
Fish
Eggs
Vegetables
Fruits
Nuts

Along with a couple modern additions:

Fats & oils from natural sources like virgin coconut oil, virgin olive oil, grass-fed butter, and lard
Spices

You can create countless recipes using Paleo ingredients. The sky is the limit. Or, you can keep your meals really simple. One of my favorite Paleo meals of all time is roasted chicken.

The ultimate Minimalist Paleo recipe:
Roasted Chicken

Minimalist Roasted Chicken

Technically, you can put the chicken in a roasting pan, stick it in the oven and an hour later dinner is served. But Minimalist Paleo isn't about rushing, skimping, or being lazy. The focus is on making more with less.

The delicious flavor of roasted chicken is a result of alchemy. The chicken and the heat come together and create something greater than the sum of their parts. If you take a few minutes to truss the chicken with string (learn how to truss a chicken), which allows it to cook evenly, you will get a better result.

Ingredients:

3 pound chicken
Kosher salt

How to:

Heat oven to 450 degrees
Let the chicken come to room temperature
Place in a roasting pan and sprinkle with salt
Roast for 1 hour
Remove from oven and let chicken rest for about 15 minutes
Remove string (if you chose to truss your chicken), and baste chicken with pan juices

Roasted chicken goes well with a basic salad or roasted vegetables. Both can be topped with homemade vinaigrette made from olive oil, lemon and a little salt.

The Basic Paleo Kitchen:

Minimalist Paleo doesn't require a lot of cookware. Here's all you need to make excellent Paleo food:

Cutting board (wood or bamboo)
Chef's knife
Paring knife
Grill pan
Big pot
Roasting pan
Tongs
Wooden spoon
Mixing bowl

I also occasionally use:

Cuisinart food processor
Bialetti espresso maker
Baking sheet
Muffin tin for mini quiche

You can use fancy gadgets, but you don't need to. There are a couple additional things I wouldn't mind having in my kitchen, like a mortar and pestle and maybe an ice cream maker (for homemade coconut ice cream), but I'm not rushing out to buy them. I like having extra space in my kitchen.

If you like to make smoothies you might want a blender (in which case you probably don't need a food processor). Some Paleo cooks like to use crock pots, or you can just throw everything in a big pot and let it bubble on the stovetop.

Kitchen items you definitely don't need:

Juicer
Dehydrator
Waffle maker
Bread maker
Counter top mixer
Pasta machine
Rice cooker

Paleo eaters don't need a bunch of fancy gadgets to become good Paleo cooks. Fresh food does most of the work. I've discovered that the less I get in the way of the ingredients, the better the food is. At the same time, Minimalist Paleo can be really creative. Yeah, we could get by with just an open flame and a long stick, but that's not fun. Some days you'll want to keep food prep simple; other days, you might want to whip up something creative. The option is there for you to choose.

So that's it. Minimalist Paleo. If you like simplicity and great food, this is your best bet.