Cheese

[Karen P]

Originally Posted by Cynic

You don't want to cut the fat. The fat gives a feeling of fullness. You'll likely be eating less cals anyway on a low-carb diet because you'll be satiated sooner and longer than on a low-fat diet.

Thanks for the advice. I guess it's just hard to get used to eating the more fatty foods. I just don't want to be one of those people who think they can eat fried egss, bacon, and pork rhinds every meal just because they are on a low carb diet. I want to focus on lean protein but you're right I certainly am eating less calories and I'm not ever hungary between meals, so I'm not gonna focus on fat as much.

[Lost Dog]

Only the bacon is questionable... and only because of the nitrates.

Good pork rinds are just protein and pork fat, which is about 30% monounsaturated fat. Bad pork rinds might be friend in some bad for you oil like soybean or corn oil.

Fried eggs are good, too. Watch what they are fried in. They should be fried in butter, olive oil, canola oil, or lard (mmm... lard...).

You don't have to eat tons and tons of fat, but my low carb days are up to 60% fat calories.

Some people aren't satisfied by fat, so those people don't have to look for more, as long as you're getting a decent amount of it. I'd say about 50% or more on a low carb diet is good.

A low carb diet should not be confused with a high protein diet. Lots of protein, too few carbs, and not enough fat is a miserable existance.

[Karen P]

Are pork rhinds really not that bad? There something about fried skin that just seems so UNhealthy. There just nothing to it but the fried. A friend of mine bought some that you actually cook yourself in the microwave. They come in a popcorn-like bag, starting off as little pink skin triangles that pop and poof after being heating and finally turn into the pork rhines that we are all familiar with. That turned me off to them completely. But that's not really the point, I know.

[Lost Dog]

Granted, they sound gross. And do-it-yourself pork rinds aren't going to happen with me, but if you're going to eat protein and fat...

You have to think salt, pork, and pork fat are bad for you for pork rinds to be bad. Of course, you can eat too much of anything.

I had some yesterday. The ingredients were pork rinds and salt.

I wonder why pork rinds are the only skin that's been made into a delicious snack food. Chicken rinds could be tasty. I eat salmon skin rolls at the sushi place...

[DirtyMartini]

Man, I could eat a whole bowl of chicken skins; they're so good. We make chicken wings at home sometimes, and bake them in the oven instead of frying them. The skins become crispy and delicious.

Maybe they don't keep well like pork rinds do. Who knows!

While it's on my mind, pork rinds also make excellent chip substitutes for low-carb nachos.

[Karen P]

Originally Posted by Lost Dog

Granted, they sound gross. And do-it-yourself pork rinds aren't going to happen with me, but if you're going to eat protein and fat...

You have to think salt, pork, and pork fat are bad for you for pork rinds to be bad. Of course, you can eat too much of anything.

I had some yesterday. The ingredients were pork rinds and salt.

I wonder why pork rinds are the only skin that's been made into a delicious snack food. Chicken rinds could be tasty. I eat salmon skin rolls at the sushi place...

Good thought. I could eat the hell out of some chicken rinds, Might taste like fried chicken, hold the meat. There aren't too many crunchy snacks for the low-carbers, so that would be a great idea.

[Espi]

There's smoked cheese in our country (Netherlands). Putting it in the microwave for e.g. 60 seconds makes it into a perfect crispy snack. It's a favourite among low-carbers here.

[Phaedrus49er]

Originally Posted by Espi

There's smoked cheese in our country (Netherlands). Putting it in the microwave for e.g. 60 seconds makes it into a perfect crispy snack. It's a favourite among low-carbers here.

Do you know what kind specifically? That sounds awesomely yummy.

[Espi]

I just don't know, smoked cheese is the generic name for it. It looks very much like processed sausage as the cheese is perfectly circular and has a small brown (edible) lining as opposed to the normal yellow lining.

Smoked cheese - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Smoked cheese is any cheese that has been specially treated by smoke-curing. It typically has a yellowish-brown outer "skin," which is a result of this curing process.

Smoke curing is typically done in one of two ways: cold-smoking and hot-smoking. The cold-smoking method (which can take up to a month, depending on the food) smokes the food at between 70° to 90°F. Hot-smoking partially or completely cooks the food by treating it at temperatures ranging from 100° to 190°F. Another method of "curing" used in less expensive cheeses is to use artificial smoke flavoring to give the cheese a smoky flavoring and food coloring to give the outside the appearance of having been smoked in the more traditional manner.

Some smoked cheeses commonly sold include smoked Gruyère (french), smoked Gouda (Dutch), Rauchkase (German), Scamorza (Italian?) and smoked Cheddar (British)

[Phaedrus49er]

Awesome. That just makes it easier to find. I'll give the microwave thingy a shot next time I pick up some cheese from Trader Joe's

[DirtyMartini]

TJ's sells some awesome smoked gouda - definitely look for it there

Speaking of smoked cheese, Rogue Creamery out of Oregon makes this smoked blue cheese which is unlike anything I've ever had before. If you ever see it, even if you're on the fence about blue cheese, definitely pick some up. It's incredible.

[Phaedrus49er]

Rogue has a creamery, too??? And here I was just keeping their brewery in business all this time.

[PerfectMartini]

Originally Posted by Phaedrus49er

Rogue has a creamery, too??? And here I was just keeping their brewery in business all this time.

Technically it is called Rogue River Creamery (both businesses are named after the river) and it long predates the brewery. At some point one or more of the owners of the brewery bought the creamery and so now the brewery's restaurants carry the cheese and some of the cheese is made with the brewery's beer.

So separate businesses technically but some common ownership and partnership.

[Phaedrus49er]

I am so making a trip to Oregon.

[Espi]

BTW, if you do try to make cheese crackers with smoked cheese, use those silicon thingies or else you'll be cutting the cheese off the plate. It really STICKS and once I even had 1 plate crack because of the heat.

[Blindside361]

Originally Posted by Lost Dog

Only the bacon is questionable... and only because of the nitrates.

Good pork rinds are just protein and pork fat, which is about 30% monounsaturated fat. Bad pork rinds might be friend in some bad for you oil like soybean or corn oil.

Fried eggs are good, too. Watch what they are fried in. They should be fried in butter, olive oil, canola oil, or lard (mmm... lard...).

You don't have to eat tons and tons of fat, but my low carb days are up to 60% fat calories.

Some people aren't satisfied by fat, so those people don't have to look for more, as long as you're getting a decent amount of it. I'd say about 50% or more on a low carb diet is good.

A low carb diet should not be confused with a high protein diet. Lots of protein, too few carbs, and not enough fat is a miserable existance.

So frying things in EVOO is alright? I was always confused about the whole frying thing (as in it changing the oil to unhealthy).

[Lost Dog]

Originally Posted by Blindside361

So frying things in EVOO is alright? I was always confused about the whole frying thing (as in it changing the oil to unhealthy).

It's just fine, but EVOO is pretty expensive for frying. I'd go with light olive oil for cooking and save the EVOO for when you want to taste the oil.

Here's more than most people want to know about olive oil. Cooking with olive oil - The Olive Oil Source