As the popularity in living a paleo lifestyle grows, so do the questions about the right foods to eat. Some food choices are obvious, while others not so much.
Of course, there are also many of us “wishful thinkers” who want to eat certain foods we know are not paleo – so we try to figure out a way we can make them OK to eat…
This comes up a lot with snacks.
We want something easy and convenient when we don’t have time to cook or we don’t have access to a kitchen. We could be traveling, working long hours or need a quick re-fuel after a workout.
Having some ready-made healthy paleo snacks that you can just grab-and-go make it a lot easier to stick to a paleo diet because you don’t have to think about meal prep all the time. They can be really easy, convenient and tasty as long as you know what your options are and where you can get pre-made snacks.
Some paleo snack foods you can buy, others require some preparation. I don’t especially like to cook, so I find that preparing large batches of snacks makes the job a lot easier and less time consuming.
Something to think about when putting together snack is that you want them to be filling. Plain celery sticks usually wan’t cut it. High protein or high fat snacks can work really well here (as long as they contain healthy fats).
1. Jerky
Jerky includes all meat types like beef, turkey, buffalo, etc.. You can buy natural organic jerky online or at your local store. You can also make your own by cutting the meat into thin strips and baking it for several hours in an oven on low heat (no less than 165 degrees). You can season your jerky with spices or other paleo marinades.
2. Nuts
Raw almonds are a good healthy paleo snack, but there are several other varieties that work as well, like macadamia nuts. Although I am a big fan of almonds, I find that if I eat them all the time, I get bored, so keep that in mind if you are making snack packs for yourself.
3. Seasoned Chicken Strips
Cook up some chicken breasts and season them for full flavor. This can be a really satisfying and filling snack – plus you can now pick up pre-cooked chicken breast strips at many grocery stores.
While plan chicken strips are healthy, they don’t travel so well unrefrigerated for long periods of time. You’re better off with jerky if that’s the case.
4. Hard Boiled Eggs
Hard boiled eggs are so easy to prepare, some people may not really even consider it cooking. If you are short on time in the morning, or a high-protein low-carb snack during the day, this is a great option.
If you want to make your eggs a little more exciting, try a few different spice mixes like pizza or taco seasoning.
5. Dried Seaweed Snacks
I’ve started seeing these seaweed snack packs in stores. They may not be as filling, but if you just need a salt fix and don’t have access to a pickle nearby, these items are really easy to carry with you and don’t need refrigeration.
6. Sunflower Sesame Crackers
Crackers can be an easy, convenient snack, but they usually aren’t paleo. I recently found a recipe, however, for sunflower sesame crackers that you can make at home with seeds – and they are paleo.
Also more time-consuming to make and not as convenient as some of the other options, this snack can be a good choice for people who need a cracker fix.
7. Veggie Sticks with Nut Butter
One of my favorites here is celery sticks with almond butter, but you can dip lots of vegetables in nut butter. They don’t even need to be sticks. The fiber in the vegetables combined with the healthy fats in nuts can be very filling, not to mention nutritious.
8. Paleo Snack Bars
Of course, the easiest option is buying your snacks pre-made. There are a variety of different paleo snack bars and protein bars that can help you keep your snacks interesting while still being easy and convenient.
These are only a few of the many paleo snack ideas out there. There are lots of free recipes online and also many in downloadable books like paleo cookbooks.
