Shrimp and Broccoli Recipe - Whole 30 Challenge - Day 29

It's hard to believe tomorrow is the last day of this challenge. I'm looking forward to getting my physical results--inches and pounds lost--but the health results are already known to me. I feel really great and I've already learned the lesson for me: eat real food and always make the better choice. The better choice will never be processed, packaged foods, weight-loss shakes, or the latest fad. Everyone looking to lose weight and get stronger knows that, but quick and easy is a tough message to resist.

I'll start reintroducing some foods in the next few days and see how I feel. In the meantime, here's a very simple recipe that's a take-out fake-out. Mr. Crying Cook cannot eat peanuts, but you can add that to this recipe to make it more Thai-like. Brown rice is also an option for those not eating the paleo way.

Ingredients & Tools

• a crazy ton of broccoli or 3-4 large heads
• 1 lbs. shrimp
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons of chili garlic sauce or to your taste
• salt
• large pot with lid
• large bowl
• potato masher or large slotted spoon
• cutting board
• chef's knife

The wonders of coconut milk. I've made this many times and it took me too long to realize that I needed to make sure that the coconut milk was well mixed before adding it to this dish. The fat from the coconut milk separates in the can, so you'll open it and realize there's coconut water and very chunky/solid coconut. 

Empty this out into a large bowl and mash or mix it really well. Shaking the can won't do the trick and skipping this step results in separated coconut milk in the dish. It doesn't affect the taste, but it's isn't visually appealing.

Add the chili garlic sauce. You can find this with Asian foods in your supermarket. As you experiment with this recipe, determine the precise amount for your taste. For me, 2 tablespoons is the perfect balance for the sweet coconut milk and the huge amount of veggies.

Stir well.

Speaking of vegetables, this is a lot of broccoli, but there's no rice in this dish and more vegetables never hurt anyone. There's no portion nitpicking on paleo and no calorie counting. Go nuts with the vegetables!

Add the now mixed coconut milk and chili sauce combo to a large pot. Add the chopped broccoli, season with salt, and stir.

Cover and cook over a low flame for 10 minutes.

In that time, prep the shrimp.

Add the raw shrimp to the tender broccoli, cover, and cook over a low flame for 10 minutes. I like to give the pot a good shake with the cover on about half way through.

A super simple and really healthy, not all Thai, dinner.