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Eliminating red meat from your diet will pave the road to a healthier lifestyle.
About 10 years ago I was employed as a Special Agent with the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Office of Inspector General (OIG). My job involved conducting criminal investigations of fraud, waste and abuse of USDA programs. Another area we investigated was criminal conduct as it related to food safety issues. During one investigation I spent two weeks at a cow slaughter plant interviewing its employees involving an alleged threat of contaminated beef. I visited the slaughter floor on several occasions and I found it hard to eat beef after I watched the process.
I spent most of my life hunting, fishing, and trapping as a child, but watching the slaughter of 1,800 cows a day turned my stomach. When I got home to my family, we made a decision that changed our lives. We quit eating red meat, pork, or any mammals. We decided to switch our entire diet to turkey, chicken, and fish. I guess it is good that I never visited a poultry slaughter plant because I might not eat the birds if I had:.) Immediately after we changed our diet my wife and I noticed changes in our physical appearance and general health.
Was it hard to change our eating habits? NO
We actually enjoyed eating out and cooking more. We realized that our entire life had been spent eating the same type of food on a daily basis. The new way of eating has exposed us to foods and tastes that I would have never experienced if we didn't make this change. I challenge you to try this type of diet for a month. Try new foods off of the menu next time you eat out. Go to the grocery store with eliminating the red meat in mind and you might find it fun to try new things.
The hardest part of this diet is dealing with relatives or friends when you eat at their homes. It took several years for them to realize that we were serious about our new diet. This initially made holidays a little tough but they began to serve different types of food when we visited.
What are the benefits of this type of diet?
- Turkey, chicken and fish are lower in fat then red meat.
- Our cholesterol levels have gone down.
- Our weight has decreased.
- I no-longer get constipation/stomach aches.
- Our overall fitness levels have increased.
We no longer feel sluggish.
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Ground Chicken or Turkey Burger Recipe
Most people would agree that they cannot imagine never having a hamburger on the grill again. Here is a recipe that our family uses that substitutes ground beef with either ground chicken or turkey. We think it tastes great and comes close to a "regular" burger.
- 1 lb. of fresh ground chicken or turkey (we find that chicken works best because it has a little more fat than turkey)
- Put the chicken or turkey in a bowl and to this add any or all of the following spices; Italian seasoning, pepper, lemon pepper, garlic and onion powder (use powder because this does not have sodium)
- Now add in about 3/4 cup of oatmeal, soda crackers, or bread crumbs to your mix, stir together.
- Parmesan cheese added to the mix (approximately 1/4 cup) is also great
- Form the meat mixture into patties (4 or 5)
- Put into the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to 1 hour (this helps the patties to firm up and will cook better)
- Put on the grill and cook until done.
Use the condiments that you would normally use on your "regular" burger
ENJOY!! | |
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