Crock pot beef simplicity plus raw stuffed peppers
Sometimes I feel like I’m the only person who hasn’t gotten into the Insta Pot or Air Fryer yet, but I am a big fan of using the crock pot. While I’m not afraid of trying new marinades and recipes, this week I used the “dump a bottle in” kind of keeping it simple and it really worked. Primal Kitchen is one of the few store bought brands that’s cleaner ingredient-wise so I grabbed their Cilantro Lime while I saw it on sale. I ended up adding just a few more things but it would have been great without the additions. Check out this easy weeknight dinner that I adorned with coconut rice and simple broccoli. You could do any kind of side but I noted my ingredients below for the rice.
Crock Pot Cilantro Lime Beef
Ingredients:
1 beef chuck roast (mine was about 3.5 lbs)
1 bottle of Primal Kitchen Cilantro Lime dressing and marinade
1 - 2 limes
1 cup cilantro chopped
Assembly:
Place roast in the crock pot. Dump the sauce over and around the meat. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook in crock pot on high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-7 hours. I checked every hour or two to flip it or move a bit. Towards the end of cooking, add the juice of two limes over the meat and add 1 cup of chopped cilantro.
Serving Options:
Every once in a while I love a good coconut rice (especially with an asian flavored beef) but any quinoa, sweet potatoes, farro or riced cauliflower could also be a lighter accompaniment. Here’s how I make my coconut rice: 1 cup white rice cooked in coconut milk for the water/broth. Sprinkle garlic powder, salt and sometimes I add minced ginger if I have it and have the time. Steamed broccoli is great with this or you can even throw frozen broccoli in the crock pot for the last 2 hours on low or 1 hour on high. I forgot to do it that way so had to stream on the stovetop at the last minute!
Chicken (or Tuna) salad peppers
Red bell peppers are a great source of vitamins C and A, fiber and antioxidants. The pepper swap cuts out the bread and ups the nutrients. These can be made with any protein - tuna/chicken/salmon/sardine/egg salad. Anything you have or are craving but my below version is with chicken.
Ingredients:
2-3 red bell peppers - depending how many you want to make
1 Rotisserie chicken chopped (or the equivalent of 3 cups of meat)
Everything bagel seasoning
1/2 to 3/4 cup of mayo, depending on your mayo intensity preferences
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
chopped pickles to taste (I love Grillo’s brand available at many stores)
Assembly: Core and clean out your red peppers. Cut off the top, segment the core, pull out the remaining chunks with your hands. (Pull up a YouTube video if you want the added visual!) Once you’ve assembled the chicken salad (or whatever protein type) stuff your peppers. They can be eaten whole or if it’s easier cut the peppers into large chunks to work like “crackers” for your protein salad. Works both ways!