The title might seem strange but this stuff is addictive. I was a having a case of the empty fridges and shimeji mushrooms and an eggplant were the only things left. And I will never look back - I could eat this forever. The mushrooms have a really rich, nutty flavour. Personally I think these mushrooms would work brilliantly with seafood because their umami flavour is almost "fishy". The mixture of these mushrooms and eggplant is probably my favourite vegetable combo. 

Meal Suggestions: 

• pork chops and keto crack
• steak and keto crack
• shimeji mushrooms in Thai soup
• keto crack served over a bunless burger
• keto crack and pork belly 
• shimeji mushrooms in a stir fry
• meatball casserole with shimeji mushrooms 
• Pecan flour fried chicken pieces with keto crack

I am obsessed with Thai flavours at the moment and this soup ticks all the right Thai food boxes. I got dried lemongrass leaves from my mom so I have been adding it to all my food lately. This soup is a variation of my traditional chicken soup, so, if you don't like Thai food, you can easily substitute the flavours with others flavours like more traditional herbs, basil, rosemary etc.

Ingredients:

• 6 chicken pieces (thighs/breasts) - remove the skin and set aside for other recipes
• chicken stock (1 bullion cube and boiling water is fine, but I often use frozen stock from other meals)
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 garlic cloves
• thyme
• chilli flakes
• lemongrass
• 3 slices of fresh ginger (or 1 tsp. of ginger powder)
• mushrooms (I used a mixture of white button mushrooms and shimeji)
• bok choy
• 2 eggs
• cilantro (optional)
• Thai spices (I use a premix called Thai 7 spice - sugar/starch filler free)
• salt & pepper

It's still winter here and before keto, stew was always one of my favourite comfort foods. Admittedly, removing potatoes from stew, makes it much less "stewy" so we've just renamed it to "Stewp". Because, even if you have to eat it with a spoon, stew is still an easy and comforting meal.

I usually make mine in my crock pot (slow cooker), so by the end of the cook, the meat has pretty much melted into the rest of the dish. My standard vegetables in stews are: mushrooms, green beans, tomatoes, Brussels sprouts, pattypan squash, baby gem squash, cabbage,  and sometimes even bok choy. Usually not all at once, but if you experiment with a mix of these you might find something you like and that fits your macros. If you don't add too much liquid to the dish at the start and cook it for long enough, you can sometimes get a thick "real stew" consistency. Especially if you add vegetables that dissolve when cooked for long enough, like tomatoes. I usually replace the rice with gem squash, fried cabbage or fried cauliflower.

Pork belly is one of my favourite cuts of meat. We eat this more often than steak. And if you watch Masterchef, you will probably have noticed that it's growing in popularity. We are fairly lucky in South Africa because pork belly is available easily and relatively cheaply. I usually buy 3kg (6.6 lb) cuts, so they take a while to cook and because they are so big, they are often weirdly shaped. Sometimes they have bone, sometimes cartilage. When I buy the fancy looking, nicely cut ones, they are usually around 800g (1.7 lb) and cook a lot faster.

Before I started keto I had never even heard of pork belly. It has slowly become a staple in our house because, if done right, it can be breakfast, lunch and dinner for a few days. It freezes really well and is super versatile.

There are thousands of ways to cook pork belly, this is simply the way I prefer. It's a very easy recipe but one of my most impressive meals. People keep thanking me for going out of my way to make such fancy food for them. Just be aware that pork belly is quite high in calories, 520 calories per 100g (0.2 lb).

Pork belly meal ideas:

1. Sliced pork belly with steamed/roasted veg
2. Pulled pork on pumpkin puree/cauliflower mash
3. Pork belly and crackling served on sautéed spinach with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce
4. Pork belly with asparagus and fried egg
5. Pulled pork in a creamy alfredo-type sauce served with zucchini noodles
6. Pulled pork served with melted cheese and olives/nuts/cucumber (snack type foods)
7. Crispy fried pork belly strips in duck fat (I am dying to try this but I need a sharp knife first)
8. Shredded pork belly with stir fried vegetables