AIP Hainanese Chicken

When I first starting focusing on healing my gut, I toyed around with different ways of eating to aid my digestion. I dug through my childhood food vault and remembered this long time favorite - Hainanese Chicken. I used think it must be difficult to make because it is so tasty.  Upon a little research, I realized that it is pretty easy and simple to make although does take a few extra steps. I assure you that the added effort is well worth it! The traditional recipe uses the whole chicken and is served with rice, but substitute with cauliflower rice or just eat it with a whole lot of steamed Asian greens like choy sum or Gai lan and you have an AIP and low FODMAP meal.

Serves 4 Prep time 15 mins Cook time 25 mins

Ingredients

• 1 whole non medicated chicken 
• 2 -4 stalks of green onions
• 2-3" ginger root
• 2-3 tbsp sea salt
• 1-2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive oil or melted lard
• coconut aminos

(Optional) Ginger Sauce

• 2-3" peel ginger root ( grated)
• 1 stalk green onion ( finely minced)
• 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive oil
• 1 tsp sea salt

Mix all ingredients together and store in fridge

Instructions

1. Prepare chicken by rinsing your chicken in water and pad dry with paper towel.
2. (Photo 1) Scrub the skin smooth with sea salt. Yes exfoliate your chicken! 
3. Stuff the chicken with ginger slices and green onion sections and tie off with legs to keep the herbs inside.
4. Prepping an ice water bath by fill a second pot ( same size as cooking one) with ice and water. This is an important step to shrink the skin and stops the cooking to make the skin springy and chicken juicy.
5. Bring a big pot of water to boil ( keep in mind if you are cooking the whole chicken that your pot has to be big enough to fit the chicken in with water covering)
6. add 1 tsp sea salt and 2" of ginger root in water  
7. ( Photo 2 ) put chicken in rumbled salted water now on med heat for 20 min. 
8. When the chicken is cooked (No more pink liquid running out), take it out of hot water and dunk into ice water bath.  This stops the cooking and shrinks the skin to make it springy. 
9. ( Photo 3 ) Let it sit for a few minutes.
10. The cooking water becomes the beginning of a broth. It's not the same as long simmer bone broth but add some sliced mushrooms and more fresh green onion  and you have quick tasty clear soup to go with your chicken.
11. Serve with Cauliflower rice, poached kale, pickled cucumbers and ginger sauce

What do I eat in a day

One of my group AIP & Paleo Canada have come up with an idea of posting what a day in our AIP life looks like. Guidelines are state the health issue you are trying to address with the AIP approach and list what we ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner along with any supplements we take. This is a great way to support each other and let others have a glimpse of our one day menu.

Diagnosed mild to moderate Ulcerative Colitis June 1, 2013 confirmed by colonscopy.

Short term ASACOL and Salafolk, unable to control bleeding.
August 12 Went to hospital for pain management and fluid rehydration
Start 5 weeks prednisone

Bought Against All grains book and starting my Paleo journey week 2 of steroids

6 months later, went into another flare, stress and stomach bug triggered. Lost excessive weight, rebuilt with Absorb Plus pre- digested meal replacements for 3 - 4 months. Slowly reintroduce foods.

Explore other diet options, SCD, GAPS, Listen to your gut, AIP

Breakfast: Smoothie - homemade Milk kefir, Coconut milk kefir, frozen banana, baby romaine leaf from garden, grass fed gelatin,  Udo's 3.6.9. oil, stevia drops

Lunch: AIP meatballs - pork and beef, beets, carrots, onions, pink himalayan salt, steamed broccoli and carrots

Dinner: Kombucha, AIP pork ribs - beets, carrot, onions, garlic, ACV, pink himalayan salt, steamed carrots, fresh blueberries, cherries, spinach, melon, cantaloup

Dessert: Acorn Squash coconut milk Faux-nomeal.

Supplements: 5000-10000 UI Vit D, slippery elm and marshmallow root gruel to soothe digestion track. George's Always alive aloe juice to heal bleeding ulcers in colon. Include food source probiotics daily - homemade Kombucha, Water, Kefir, Milk Kefir, Coconut Milk Kefir, fermented vegetables.

Current progress: If my worst flare was a 1 like back in January, I feel I am at a 6. My fatigue, inflammation and digestive systems fluctuate day by day. Diet focus AIP. Find grazing helps digestion.  Starting working with a homeopath beginning of July and seeing progress with improving energy and decreasing gut symptoms.

21 days Sugar detox meets Listen to your gut healing diet

Is that possible?

I have been dealing with a mild flare for over a month now. My symptoms haven't been bad, but my energy level is low.  I have more down days than ups. My weight has been stable but I still have a few more bathroom runs than I would like.

I do sometimes crave for sweets and would indulge in dates, larabars, ripe bananas, some homemade baked goods ( rice/coconut/ almond flour sweetened with maple syrup or soaked dates). I don't feel that I am out of control with my sweet cravings, but if I cut down the hidden sugar intake including starchy veggies like yams and sweet potatoes, I wonder if that would help my body battle the bad bacteria and replenish the good ones better. As a result it might get me in a better state with my colitis.

My good friend, who introduced me to Whole30 and Paleo mentioned that she is on the 21DSD and have been feeling great. Of course, everyone has specific health challenges, my is the gut.

I reviewed the 21 DSD YES/NO foods list and am trying to combine it with the LTYG minimizing gas and bloating healing diet and see if I have something that will work for me.

My main challenges are

• I do not want to loose weight, not even a lb. I feel that I am at the lower end of a healthy weight right now.
• I want to increase my energy by, not necessarily keeping my blood sugar level even, but by keeping the inflammation down.
• I sometimes have issues digesting meats and fats. Chicken and Fish are usually ok, but there are days when all I want is yams/ squash and maybe 1/2 avocado, ie. soft foods. 
• I have cut out gassy veggies in the family of garlic and onions, which also includes cauliflower and broccoli
• I have cut out night shades
• I am still not eating much raw veggies other than juicing them.

If I do this, I will still have my elemental shake even though it has whey. I can use more of the unsweetened vanilla to cut into the other sweetened flavors, which is what I have doing anyway.

Below are foods I feel comfortable eating from the YES list

All listed Meats and Fish

Vegetables
Asparagus
Carrots,
Celery root
Chard and Collard greens ( chopped and cooked)
Cucumber (peeled)
Garlic, ginger ( minimal)
Green Beans
Kale ( chopped and cooked)
Mushrooms ( cooked)
Parsnips
Rutabaga
Spaghetti squash
Spinach ( steamed)
Yellow Squash
Zucchini

Nuts/ Seeds
Flax, Chia, Hemp
Pumpkin, Sunflower

Fats & oils
Animals Fats ( minimal)
Avocado
Coconut oil/milk ( minimal)
Flax oil
Olive oil
Sesame oil

Beverage
Water
Unsweetened teas
Almond milk (unsweetened)

Fruit
Lemon, lime


21 days is not that long. The change will be like doing my first W30, I am having serious thoughts about this…

Can I do it?

My back up meal

Here is what I pack for a backup meal for when I am in a bit of a flare or just in case there isn't any safe food for me to eat around. 

• 1 mason jar with mixing wire ball
• 1 jar of homemades tummies from Emergen C and grass fed gelation
• some clean whey protein meal supplements - the only protein is from grass fed cow's, not crazy for the taste, the container is Absorb Plus, which is pre-digested and goes into blood stream within 20 mins. 
• 1 small jar of Udo's or Flax oil

I pack them all in a cooler bag with a small ice pack and it is good for the day, unless it's really hot out then I will have to find a frig.

Poached Basa in bone broth

Ingredient 

• 1 basa fillet 
• 2 cups bone broth or water
• mushroom of your choice
• 1/4 cup grated zucchini
• couple basil leaves
• Sea Salt to taste

sauce

• Fish sauce to taste
• 1 tbsp Coconut aminos ( this is a great soya sauce replacement ) 
• 1 tsp vinegar of your choice, I used Apple Cider Vinegar
• sesame oil to taste, can omit if you want nothing to do with seeds 

Instructions

1. Defrost 1 frozen basa fillet and pad dry with kitchen towel
2. Bring 2 cups of homemade bone broth to boil 
3. Add thinly sliced mushrooms, grated zucchini, cook for 2 mins
4. Carefully add basa and poach on low to med heat for 5 mins, watch over it as it can boil over easily like milk if you cover pot. 
5. Once cooked, laddle into bowl with some  broth and veggies, garnish with basil slivers and sauce 

For the sauce

Mix sauce ingredients together

PS. I added the veggies first into broth to make sure it's well cooked. It is easier for my digestions.