Ground Turkey...what gives?

[Tipsy]

I am sure the answer is on the board somewhere but I cannot find it.

Is there a reason behind not using ground turkey? I have been looking at the 99/1 ground turkey and I am not going to lie I am oh so tempted to get it but have not yet. I have been grinding my chicken breast for my stuff but it would be SOOOOO much easier to buy the ground turkey 99/1.

Do you use ground turkey? Any slwoing down going on with the scale?

Thanks for your help!

[Nicole T]

I've used it on my second round A LOT and am losing just as well as I did in my first round. Makes no sense that you can eat higher fat ground beef but not eat 99% ff ground turkey ya know?

[privatediva]

I suspect that the primary reason that it isn't included in the original plan is that it would have been impossible for Dr. S. in 1954, to have foreseen the availability of little packages of ground turkey in a common grocery store. The availability of turkey "off-season" (outside of the holidays) is relatively recent (last couple of decades) in most areas. In the 50s, you bought the bird, not the bits...and only when you could get a whole bird. I wish I wasn't old enough to know that. You would have to have been very wealthy to sacrifice an entire Thanksgiving bird for 3.5 ounces of breast meat. I think that exclusion was a matter of practicality, and not related to nutritional makeup. I haven't had turkey on this round because I'm not sure what I want to do with the ground stuff. Nicole, can you share how you've used it?

[metqa]

Two answers:

1) Because the Dr. Said so...
2) Why not, it's got less fat and more protein than lean beef.

It makes good stirfry with veggies but you have to mash the seasonings into it before you cook it.

[Tipsy]

Originally Posted by Nicole T

I've used it on my second round A LOT and am losing just as well as I did in my first round. Makes no sense that you can eat higher fat ground beef but not eat 99% ff ground turkey ya know?

That is exactly what I was thinking myself. I would do like taco meat on lettuce just sounds wonderful. What all have you used it for??

Originally Posted by privatediva

I suspect that the primary reason that it isn't included in the original plan is that it would have been impossible for Dr. S. in 1954, to have foreseen the availability of little packages of ground turkey in a common grocery store. The availability of turkey "off-season" (outside of the holidays) is relatively recent (last couple of decades) in most areas. In the 50s, you bought the bird, not the bits...and only when you could get a whole bird. I wish I wasn't old enough to know that. You would have to have been very wealthy to sacrifice an entire Thanksgiving bird for 3.5 ounces of breast meat. I think that exclusion was a matter of practicality, and not related to nutritional makeup. I haven't had turkey on this round because I'm not sure what I want to do with the ground stuff. Nicole, can you share how you've used it?

That was what my husband said when I asked him his thoughts...but even the OWL version of the diet doesn't include it.

Totally thinking I might add it in. I am not a huge beef fan and making my own ground chicken from the breast is getting old to make 'taco meat' for a salad or to put with my cabbage; ect.

[C'Marie]

Tipsy, the OWL version doesn't include it? Hm. I am trying to remember if Diet Center includes it but I don't think so (I think that whole diet was an offshoot of the hcg diet - almost very same foods, slightly larger amounts, and the very same maintenance and steak days, etc......I did that one back in the early 80's and wish to heck I'd gotten steak days and maintenance down then! LOL )

I don't eat it because of Metqa's #1 answer LOL

[privatediva]

My Dr's version does include turkey...and a couple of other cabbage family vegetables. It excludes the grains. I will ask him on Monday what he thinks about the turkey. So it's "legal" for me anyway...I just haven't tried it yet.

[dazygyrl]

Originally Posted by Tipsy

That is exactly what I was thinking myself. I would do like taco meat on lettuce just sounds wonderful. What all have you used it for??

why not just add taco seasoning to shredded chicken...doesn't have to be ground meat, does it?

[Tipsy]

Originally Posted by privatediva

My Dr's version does include turkey...and a couple of other cabbage family vegetables. It excludes the grains. I will ask him on Monday what he thinks about the turkey. So it's "legal" for me anyway...I just haven't tried it yet.

Thanks, I am just curious as too why. My doctor said I can have it but I was just wondering; ya know. :-)

Originally Posted by dazygyrl

why not just add taco seasoning to shredded chicken...doesn't have to be ground meat, does it?

No it does not have to be ground but a texture change is what I was going for. :-)

[privatediva]

Yes, I do know I am not content with the answer "because" or "because I said so". I never have been, not since my Mom tried that when I was three. I am smart. There is little I can't understand when it is well explained. Intellectual curiosity is, in my opinion, the absolute core of creativity and discovery in the human race. Therefore...I am SO with you. I want the "why" always!

[Nicole T]

One of my favorite ways to eat ground turkey is to saute it with some onions and cabbage (yes, I mix onions with cabbage) and then once it's all cooked add about 1/3 can of the fire roasted canned tomatoes (when I do this I consider the tomato a replacement for my apple for the day).

Going to the store to get some turkey and making this today

[metqa]

Originally Posted by dazygyrl

why not just add taco seasoning to shredded chicken...doesn't have to be ground meat, does it?

it's hard ( near impossible)to find ground chicken BREAST. So it's not a matter of seasoning or flavor but the fact that you have to go through the trouble of grinding the chicken breast at home. My store doesn't and won't carry ground chicken breast and the butcher says it's a pain to switch out the grinder for one small order.

[mousie tartufo]

One thing to remember, is that in the 50s, ground beef was quite lean. Modern CAFO has fattened up our beeves, and now it's completely different than it was 50 years ago (in a similar note, pork has been bred and fed to produce very lean meat, in comparison to what was available 50 years ago). No one has really bothered to take modern ag. practices and foods into account with regard to Dr. S's protocol (which is now nearing 60 years old). There's no reason, outside of food allergies, that you couldn't have the 99% lean ground turkey - breast meat turkey is actually fattier than that (about 94% lean). Knock yourself out.

[emel]

OWL plan doesn't include turkey, but if you scan through the comments on the OWL page, you'll see the doc says turkey may be used tentatively. (he says tentatively when he means "try it and if it works for you, go for it").

My thought is that they didn't have skinless turkey breast available in Italy in the 50's, but sometimes I worry that turkey is one of those foods that causes less weight loss for unknown reasons (like okra and peppers, or pimentios as Dr S called them)

[dazygyrl]

Originally Posted by metqa

it's hard ( near impossible)to find ground chicken BREAST. So it's not a matter of seasoning or flavor but the fact that you have to go through the trouble of grinding the chicken breast at home. My store doesn't and won't carry ground chicken breast and the butcher says it's a pain to switch out the grinder for one small order.

i know...i just meant chunked up or chopped with a knife fairly fine....not ground.

[privatediva]

Just FWIW, my Dr's plan says "absolutely no ground beef, ever" so...I've been good about that (although I did make a pot of chili on our vacation with some beautiful lean ground bison). He does include turkey, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. I've stuck, for the most part, to chicken. I occasionally have a shrimp meal, but I had a bad seafood experience when I was pregnant with my first kid and have never really been able to stomach fish since. In fact, I may have to go hurl after typing the word I also have a lovely butcher who will cut me perfect little 100 gr filets, which when I've felt like I needed something different, special, and *comforting*...I've had. Four or five times during my now 54 day round.

The one thing my Dr's plan says that makes so much sense to me, and which I've been following and plan to continue to follow from now on, is to go ahead and pay the extra money for natural chicken and beef with no hormones. It tastes better, cooks better (more margin for error...you can overcook chicken because you're distracted, and it will still be moist). He told me he couldn't think of any good reason for a person who is trying to get smaller to ingest the meat from animals who have been given hormones for the purpose of making them bigger. So...yeah...I think that's sound.

[garnet10]

This thread is very interesting. I have often wished Dr. Simeons was still around today to discuss his particular food choices.

I lost 20 to 22 lbs on each of my rounds of hCG, despite the fact that I ate very lean ground sirloin (97% lean) (Sterling) or filet mignon with fat trimmed off, once a day. I guess everyone is different.

I am very curious about turkey (and never thought to try ground chicken). This is my fourth round, and although I have been very successful losing weight following Simeons' protocol rigidly, I have not been very successful stabilizing. And I'm so sick of chicken (and this is after one week!), that I wouldn't mind going a bit rogue and trying some other proteins, and other vegetables.

It's nice to hear some people still have success, even with mixing vegetables.

[Nicole T]

Garnet--I also lose fine eating 2% cottage cheese with my strawberries as a meal from time to time. Like you, sometimes I just get tired of meat!

[ljspears]

I use the ground chicken and make it taco-style, stir fried with spinach or cabbage or for chicken burgers.

For those who live in Texas....
I purchase freshly ground chicken breast at HEB grocery stores. I think it was $2.97 a lb and I was able to make about 5 servings per pound.

I have also seen it at Whole Foods.

[privatediva]

my crummy regular grocery store carries hormone free/antibiotic free ground chicken breast. I guess maybe it's not as crummy a store as I thought!

[C'Marie]

I have never seen ground chicken breast - I've made it myself in my vitamix with some water so it would turn, and spiced it like meatballs and cooked it rolled up with cabbage leaves in a pan with water.

Diva, I'm like that too - I always get told I ask too many questions when I'm in classes LOL.... but in this case, since it's only such a relatively short time, and it's entirely possible that there IS a real reason for it, composition-wise, that we can't ask about now that he's gone, I just follow it. To each their own. I have had tuna once. Does that make me rogue!?