PERFORMANCE RECIPE: THAI BEEF CABBAGE CUPS

Master the art of making healthy food delicious with TDAE Performance Recipes

Here's an easy to make recipe that brings excitement and nutrient intensity to your plans for that pack of frozen grass-fed beef in your freezer: 

ingredients:

• 2 1/2 teaspoons peanut oil
• 2 tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 lb grass-fed ground beef
• Juice from 1 lime
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 cup sliced red onion
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 avocado peeled and sliced
• Leaves from 1 head green cabbage
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped peanuts 

*Sub ground lamb, chicken, turkey, bison or pork for the ground beef to mix it up or depending on your preference. 

**If your goal is to add muscle or prep for competition then post-workout is a great time to consume carbs. Post-workout carbs help to top off glucose/energy stores and also promote muscle growth. In this case steam some rice and mix it in with the ground beef or add a big scoop to each cabbage cup.

directions:

Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add ground beef and cook until no pink. 

Combine lime juice, fish sauce and crushed red pepper in a large bowl. Add ground beef and toss to mix. Spoon beef mixture evenly into cabbage cups. Top with with sliced red onion, avocado, chopped cilantro, roasted peanuts and your favorite hot sauce.

nutrition:

• Grass-Fed Beef: Conjugated Linoleic Acid is the star here. This coveted fatty acid has been shown to promote fat loss and preserve muscle tissue among many other powerful health benefits. CLA isn't produced in the human body and grass-fed animal proteins/dairy products are some of the best sources. CLA gets all the pub but there's a cornucopia of other vital nutrients stashed in grass-fed beef that tend to get ignored such as B vitamins, vitamin D, zinc, magnesium and more. 
• Avocado: Avocados bring more to the table than guacamole! This creamy green fruit will provide you with more potassium than a banana and a healthy dose of oleic acid - the same fat that makes olive oil a nutrition stud. 
• Cilantro: Stop looking at fresh herbs as just a garnish - they tend to offer a bounty of important vitamins, minerals and nutrients. This makes them a great secret to adding nutrient intensity along with flavor to any of your dishes. Cilantro is known for being a powerful source of antioxidants that can help to neutralize excess levels of free-radicals/toxins in the body.
• Peanuts/Peanut Oil: Almond butter might be the new peanut butter but be careful to turn your back to peanuts completely. When consumed responsibly, peanuts can be a great source of vitamin E (antioxidant), phosphorus (promotes bone/body tissue growth) and even the antioxidant that red wine made popular: resveratrol. As for peanut oil - this is one of the good guys! It's robust enough to stand up to reasonable high heats so peanut oil should be on your list of oils that are safe and healthy to cook with. 

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Enjoy,
TD

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Tim DiFrancesco, PT, DPT, ATC, CSCS is the Head Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Los Angeles Lakers and founder of TD Athletes Edge.  He is nationally renowned for his evidence-based and scientific approach to fitness, training, nutrition, and recovery for athletes and fitness enthusiasts.

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