Whole Foods Lifestyle - SUPERFOODS -- Turkey?

I do not like to cook and need more protien in my diet I am thinking. Is there a way to add Turkey that is already cooked and chopped? LOL A place that sells it this way? Or am I going to have to buy a whole dang turkey and cook it and pull the meat off and freeze some?

All the processing of lunch meat I can not see being all that great and as of now that is all the turkey I am getting. :( Help!

A lot of stores sell ground turkey breast. I got some and made a shepherd's pie with it using mashed sweet potatoes. It was wonderful. I put lots of chopped veggies in the bottom of a big baking dish, poured Italian style stewed tomatoes over it, then the cooked ground turkey, then topped it with mashed sweet potatoes and baked. YUM... I made a huge one and ate on it for days... freezes well too.

I buy turkey breasts and cook them as needed in my crock pot with no seasonings, then use the meat in salads, pitas, sandwiches, or in recipes.

Same here - turkey breasts! You can roast them up just like a turkey, except they cook a LOT faster :) You can also get turkey legs, too - you can often find them on sale and if you roast them and get rid of the skin you'll get quite a bit of meat off them, so they're pretty good value.

I do use ground turkey breast a lot, too, for turkey burgers or meatballs.

I buy turkey breasts and cook them as needed in my crock pot with no seasonings, then use the meat in salads, pitas, sandwiches, or in recipes.

A crock pot I can do! No way for me to really burn anything! So how do you do this?

Though I've read the book I am so not sure why turkey breast is considered a superfood. I mean of all the foods in the world...

I realize it is a better choice than beef or dark poultry.. but I'm not convinced we should be making an extra effort to consume it. Any other thoughts on this?

I agree with you, Jayde. I question whether turkey breast is really all that "super" for you. And white meat poultry is really not all THAT much better for you than dark meat.

I wondered about turkey too, but I haven't read the chapter on it yet to find out the health benefits. I haven't gone out of my way to incorporate it yet, either.

I wondered about turkey being a superfood too!

However, I go to the deli, buy turkey breast there and have sandwiches or add it to my salad.

here's a question: lots of poultry is injected with 'stuff' -- is that stuff bad from a health perspective?? (not sure I WANT to know the answer, as I will likely keep eating it, but curious anyway).

I haven't read the chapter on Turkey yet either but I am curious. I am guessing it provides protein and is lean? I bought canned Turkey from Costco but haven't eaten it yet. I also buy ground turkey ocassionally. Personally, I think I rather stick to Wild Salmon for a meat source.

I brine the turkey before I put in the crock pot for 10 hours on low. Here are the brining directions--best turkey I have ever, EVER had:

1/2 C sea salt
1 pkg fresh herbs for poultry (rosemary, thyme, sage)
1 pkg fresh marjoram
5 big cloves garlic, halved
2 big shakes celery seed
5-6 smallish bay leaves
1/4 C soy sauce
1/2 bottle white wine
4 slices fresh ginger
2 Winesap apples, quartered
2-1/2 gallon cold water
2 trays ice cubes

Heat water in big saucepan; add salt and herbs. Turn off just before simmer, and leave to cool, stirring once or twice until salt is dissolved and fresh herbs are wilted. Combine rest in cooler, add salt & herbs solution, stir and immerse bird. Leave for 8-12 hours, replentishing ice as needed.

I skipped the wine because I didn't have any. I used dried herbs because I didn't have fresh. It was still delish.

here's a question: lots of poultry is injected with 'stuff' -- is that stuff bad from a health perspective?? (not sure I WANT to know the answer, as I will likely keep eating it, but curious anyway).

The "stuff" in deli meats is often nitrates, which you want to be cautious of, and a lot of sodium.

With fresh poultry, they often inject a lot of salt and water - this makes the breasts, for example, appear larger, and the chicken seem "juicier" once cooked. It's not really bad for you, but the excess sodium is something to be aware of. I've always, always avoided any meat that has had extra things done to it - pre-stuffed chicken breasts or pork chops, for example, or poultry that comes in a marinade - there's just no way to know who has handled your food, or what exactly they've done to it. With raw meat especially, that bugs me more than anything!

Kontessa - the skinless kind I buy comes tied to keep it together where the bone was removed, so I just snip the string to remove it. This makes the breast fall into sections, so I cook it on low about 6 - 7 hours.

This is the wrong heading to ask this by while ya'll are questioning a superfood, how about dark chocolate. Sure it has antoxiants but I don't feel I should go out of my way to eat it. So far I've managed to only have 60 cal stick once daily but every time I eat it I feel like eating a bag of hugs.

My personal opinion on the dark chocolate is that if it triggers cravings or the possibility of a binge for you, you shouldn't go out of your way to eat it - there are plenty of other antioxidant-rich foods out there you could eat instead.

For me, though, dark chocolate is one of those things that I really only enjoy in small quantities anyway - a little is really satisfying, and I love the fact that I don't need to feel bad for choosing to have a little every other day. I think the key is in finding what works for you, and modifying the lifestyle to suit - I'm never going to love tofu (believe me, I've tried!), so I don't eat it. If I couldn't eat a little chocolate without battling with myself over wanting to eat more and more of it, I'd stay away from it - just try to keep things as simple as possible for yourself, IMO :)

I don't eat dark chocolate every day, but if I find myself wanting some kind of treat, I grab one of those bite-sized dark chocolate Lindt candies or a dark chocolate candy bar instead of ice cream or whatever.

My personal opinion on the dark chocolate is that if it triggers cravings or the possibility of a binge for you, you shouldn't go out of your way to eat it - there are plenty of other antioxidant-rich foods out there you could eat instead.

I totally agree. If it triggers "naughty" behavior or binges don't go out of your way. For me it appears as if the opposite is true. It really feels like a bit of dark chocolate every once in awhile keeps me on track. Not to mention that I thoroughly enjoy the experience. :D

I did read the chapter on turkey breast when I bought the book.. it just didn't convince me.

As far as additives.. I never buy deli poultry. And even the "fresh" raw poultry that I buy.. I know it has additives and the birds themselves are not fed the best meals. But even if they were free range.. I still question what is so special about turkey or chicken breast that it is a super food above all the other foods in the world that were not included on the list.

Luckily my brother and dad are hunters, and they bring home wild turkies every year. So for one portion of the year, i am having all natural turkey, nothing at all added.

I also enjoy my 1-2 (depending on my calories) square a day dark chocolate habit. I also think it keeps me on track, having a little treat.

Personally I don't care what someone else calls a "super food" as I think I pretty much know what is healthful and what is not. But I am finding that the ground turkey breast is actually very GOOD either on the GF grill or especially in my shepherd's pie. That has become one of my favorite dishes.