True Paleo Peking Duck

This is Paleo on superfoods!

You may have noticed that I am not a fan of the Paleo trend, simply because it has been distorted in so many ways, it is nothing remotely close to what our hunter-gatherer ancestors diet was like. 
If you have read my newsletter or have signed up for The 30-Day Reset, you may have read the full story. If you have not, I will make it short and to the point. 
Paleo experts that are cashing on the diet while it is still hot (hurry up then, the Keto diet is all the trend at the moment, no matter, that too, is not suitable for everyone and may in fact bring more problems than solving any) and making you believe it is ok to eat processed foods such as sausages and bacon, and other foods that our hunter-gatherer ancestors would have never been exposed to.
Sausages, for example, unless you are making them yourself all contain gluten, starches, or grains in some form or another, sulphites and other preservatives, and additives in the like of taste enhancers such as MSG (check the label, MSG can have more than two-dozen names). It is also rarely made with prime cut of meat, but rather the leftovers that would not be used otherwise, the tails, ears, skin, fat, and intestines.  

True Paleo is my own definition of the foods our ancestors would have enjoyed: pure, unadulterated, and wholesome foods that they could eat fresh from the ground, a tree branch, or kill it for meat.
Hunter-gatherers would KILL to eat. Today, we over-produce, over-kill and waste in abundance, and nasty companies such as Monsanto are claiming that we cannot feed the growing world. Perhaps, by revolting against the status quo is a better weapon than GMOs and toxic, poisonous foods. A single farm in the UK has to discard 15,000 tones of food because it does not fit the supermarket criteria and demand: size, weight and (shinny) appearance.
Thousands of families could be fed for a year and never starve!

My point is very simple:
- Buy local if you can, from a farm you know and trust. Smaller producers take more pride in their work and often prioritise quality over quantity.
- Buy Demeter certified (Biodynamic) or, at the very least, Organic.
- Eat nutrient-dense foods daily (all the colours of the rainbow. Ask yourself what colour have you not eaten this week), but also foods known for their therapeutic values (e.g. pineapple, papaya, turmeric, ginger, açaì berries, wild blueberries, chia seeds and flax/linseeds, nuts, avocados, etc), which cannot be grown in the country you live in.
- Never, ever, buy highly-processed or refined foods. 
- Never, ever, buy Organic foods packaged in toxic plastic.

In our modern world, we are at an advantage.
We have the resources at hand to eat superfoods that we could ever if we were still in the stone age. 
We have, therefore, no excuse to eat the food that is right for us, but also the food that promote health, healing and repair, and a symbiotic microflora, despite the fact that, unlike our ancestors, we are living in a world full of toxicants.

Depending if you are following a 100% or a 80-20 Paleo-style diet, you may have to choose from the two recipes below.

Serves: 2

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 35-45 minutes

Equipment needed: skillet with lid

Recipe:

2 Duck breasts 
500 g Jerusalem Artichokes
150 g Shiitake mushrooms
80 g Kalettes (baby Kale)
45 g Cashews (activated)
1 handful Peas
2 Red Onions (brunoised)
6 Garlic cloves (crushed)
2 tbsp Peking Duck sauce (not True Paleo)
or
2 tbsp Pomegranate Molasses 
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 tbsp Coconut Aminos
2 Star Anise
pinch of Nutmeg
pinch of All Spice
​pinch of Cinnamon
Black Pepper
1/2 bunch Coriander

1. Peel the Jerusalem artichokes and, if necessary, cut them into chunks of about 3-5 cm. 

2. Warm up the skillet. Once hot, place the duck breasts, skin-down. Add the the Jerusalem artichokes. Colour each side in the melting oil from the duck. Cook the breasts about 5-7 minutes each side.
Half way through, add the shiitake mushrooms, cashews, onions and garlic. 

3. Remove the breasts from the skillet and set aside to rest on a plate. Add water to cover the Jerusalem artichokes and cook for another 20-25 minutes, with lid on, until fork tender. 

4. Once cooked, remove the lid, and let the liquid evaporate. Replace the breasts in the skillet and add the sauce.
Add the kalettes and peas and cook for 3-5 minutes with lid on. 
Serve immediately. 

Tip of the chef: If you are making your own, mix all the liquids together in a bowl and dip each breast in before placing them in the skillet. Pour the leftover sauce into the skillet.
If you are using ready-made peking sauce, drizzle the sauce over the duck breasts, and caramelise gently. 

Adjust the cooking time if you prefer the duck to be pink or well-done.