18 Easy Paleo Diet Recipes

Does the Paleo Diet work? Some men will answer that quesiton with a "Hell, yes!" Others? They're more skeptical.
But whether you've gone full Paleo, are simply dabbling in the diet, or know nothing more about it than its CrossFit association, one thing's for sure: Any gym-going dude is going to benefit from upping the protein and produce every once in a while.
So here, 18 healthy breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and desserts built for the fit guy—courtesy of Dana Carpender, author of 500 Paleo Recipes: Hundreds of Delicious Recipes for Weight Loss and Super Health. Use them to fuel up tonight.
(Please note: All recipes adapted from the book; however, the photos you see here do not appear in the book.)
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INGREDIENTS:

• 4 slices bacon, raw
• 6 eggs
• 1 tsp horseradish

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Put big, heavy skillet over medium heat. Use kitchen shears to snip the bacon into the skillet. Fry it crisp, separating the bits as it cooks. While that’s happening, whisk eggs with horseradish.
2. When the bacon bits are crisp, scoop them out of skillet to a plate and reserve.
3. Pour off all but a tablespoon or so of the grease. Now pour in eggs and scramble until they’re almost set. Then add the bacon bits and scramble them in. Serve.

SERVES: 2
NUTRITION: 450 calories; 39 g fat; 20 g protein; 2 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 2 g net carbs per serving.

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INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup flaxseed meal
• 2 cups shredded coconut meat
• ¼ cup sesame seeds (optional)
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup coconut oil, melted
• ⅓ cup honey (or more or less, to taste)
• 2 cups chopped pecans
• ½ cup sunflower seeds
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup shelled pumpkin seeds
• ½ cup sliced almonds

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 250ºF.
2. In big mixing bowl, combine the flax meal, coconut, sesame seeds, salt and cinnamon. Stir together so everything is evenly distributed.
3. In a 2-cup measure, measure water, oil, and honey; stir together. Pour this over dry ingredients and use a whisk to stir it till everything is evenly damp.
4. Turn this mixture into an 11 x 13-inch roasting pan—you might want to line it with nonstick foil first. Press it into an even layer in the bottom of the pan and put it in the oven. Set your timer for 1 hour.
5. When the hour is up, pull out your pan. Use the edge of a spatula to cut the whole thing into 1-inch squares, and then scoop up those chunks and stir them around in the pan. They’ll crumble somewhat, and you can cut into somewhat smaller pieces—maybe 1⁄2 inch.
6. Now measure and stir in the nuts and seeds. Put the pan back in the oven and set your timer for 20 minutes. When time’s up, stir and turn everything and put the pan back in the oven. Repeat two or three more times, till the nuts and seeds are toasted to your liking, then remove from oven, cool, and store in a tightly lidded container.
7. Serve with coconut or almond milk.

SERVES: 16
NUTRITION: 396 calories; 35 g fat; 10 g protein; 18 g carbohydrate; 8 g dietary fiber; 10 g net carbs per serving.

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INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lb fish fillets, cubed (get whatever’s freshest—shrimp or bay scallops work too)
• 10 limes
• 8 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp minced fresh cilantro
• 1 habanero chile or jalapeño
• 1 small red onion, sliced paper-thin
• Salt and black pepper
• 16 large romaine lettuce leaves
• 2 avocados, diced
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• Hot sauce

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cube fish and place in a nonreactive dish.
2. Juice limes into a food processor. Squeeze them well, but avoid the membrane, which can cause bitterness. Add garlic and cilantro. Seed hot pepper, remove white ribs, and whack it into a few pieces; throw it into the processor. Pulse until garlic cloves and pepper are finely minced. Pour this mixture over fish. Slice onion and add it to fish.
3. Refrigerate and let fish marinate overnight. Stir once or twice.
4. Next day, drain off most of the lime juice, leaving enough to keep fish moist. Salt and pepper to taste.

SERVES: 8
NUTRITION: 221 calories; 9 g fat; 23 g protein; 17 g carbohydrate; 3 g dietary fiber; 14 g net carbs per serving.

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INGREDIENTS:

• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 tsp Sriracha, or to taste
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 avocado, diced
• 4 scallions
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• Salt and black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Pour broth into big, heavy saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Stir in Sriracha.
2. While broth heats, dice chicken into bite-size pieces; ditto the avocado. Slice scallions, separating white and crisp green parts.
3. When broth is simmering, stir in chicken and white part of scallions. (Don’t just drop the diced chicken in without stirring! It’ll congeal into a lump in the bottom of the pot. Stir it in.) Crush in garlic. Bring back to a simmer, turn burner to low, and let simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Salt and pepper the soup to taste. Ladle into bowls. Now divide avocado and sliced green scallion shoots among bowls, and serve.

SERVES: 4
NUTRITION: 277 calories; 13 g fat; 34 g protein; 6 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber; 4 g net carbs per serving.

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INGREDIENTS:

• 4 chicken legs (leg and thigh quarters)
• ½ cup almond meal
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp cayenne
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 4 tbsp olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Cut drumsticks from thighs.
3. On a rimmed plate, combine almond meal with seasonings.
4. Rub each piece of chicken with a little olive oil, then roll in seasoned almond meal. Arrange in a roasting pan. Roast for an hour or so, until juices run clear when pierced to the bone, and the coating is crunchy.

SERVES: 5
NUTRITION: 405 calories; 30 g fat; 30 g protein; 4 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 4 g net carbs per serving.

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INGREDIENTS:

• 1 ½ lbs pork shoulder, exclusive of bone
• Water
• 1 tsp salt (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Trim any major layers of fat off your pork shoulder, but don’t try to get it too lean; you’ll need the fat later on. Cut your pork into chunks roughly 1 ½ to 2 inches.
2. Put the pork in your big, heavy skillet—you want a single layer, but the pork cubes can be very close together. Cover with water, add the salt, if using, and put over a burner set to medium-high heat. Bring water to a boil, then turn burner down to low—you want to keep the water barely simmering.
3. Now let your pork cubes simmer, about 3-4 hours. (If you happen to be wandering through the kitchen, turn the cubes over once or twice.)
4. Let your pork simmer until the water has completely cooked away. Continue cooking, letting the pork cubes brown in the fat that has collected in the bottom of the skillet. When they’re crisply brown, they’re done.
5. Serve over salad and topped with guacamole (See: Guacamole Recipe).

SERVES: 4
NUTRITION: 301 calories; 23 g fat; 22 g protein; 0 g carbohydrate; 0 g dietary fiber; 0 g net carbs per serving (of carnitas only).

INGREDIENTS:

• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• 4 cups shredded cabbage
• 1 apple
• 3 tbsp walnut oil
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• ¼ tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise (See: Mayonnaise in the Jar Recipe)
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• Salt to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Spread walnuts on a shallow baking tin and place in oven. Set your oven timer for 8 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, shred cabbage. Quarter and core apple, then cut in matchstick strips. Put cabbage and apple in a big mixing bowl.
3. Measure the rest of the ingredients into a bowl and whisk them together.
4. When the timer beeps, taste one walnut bit and see if they’re toasty. If so, add them to the mixing bowl. If not, give them another 2 minutes, then add to the salad.
5. Now pour on the dressing and toss to coat. You can chill this for a few hours, but it’s awfully good freshly made.

SERVES: 6
NUTRITION: 183 calories; 17 g fat; 3 g protein; 8 g carbohydrate; 2 g dietary fiber; 6 g net carbs per serving.

INGREDIENTS:

• 14 fl oz unsweetened coconut milk
• 3 tbsp honey
• ¼ tsp French vanilla liquid stevia, or to taste
• 5 eggs
• ⅛ tsp salt, scant

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Assemble everything in your blender and blend well, then taste. If you think it needs to be sweeter, add a little more liquid stevia.
2. Pour into a greased 1-quart Pyrex casserole. Cover with foil and put it in your slow cooker. Now fill the space around the casserole with water, up to 1 inch from the rim of the casserole. Cover the pot, set to low, and cook for 4 hours.
3. Turn off the slow cooker, remove the lid, and let the water cool till you can remove the casserole without scalding your fingers. Chill overnight before serving.

SERVES: 6
NUTRITION: 216 calories; 17 g fat; 6 g protein; 11 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 11 g net carbs per serving.