Happy Year of the Rooster! Celebrate with Asian-Inspired Paleo Dishes

Happy Chinese New Year!

If you didn’t know that today was the start of Chinese New Year, you obviously don’t have kids in grade school. All I’ve heard about for the past week is fortune cookies, chop sticks, and the Chinese Zodiak. I’m a Rabbit, by the way.

2017 is the Year of Rooster. It promises to be energetic, fast-paced, and intense. According to Astrology Club, we can all achieve success this year by following the example of the rooster. This means looking your best, working hard, and being loyal. Incidentally the Rabbit is hit the hardest in 2017. Apparently I’m in for a very difficult year, especially financially. On the plus side I’ll be going to lots of parties.

My kids have been begging to celebrate with Chinese food, which they never get to have because of our grain-free Paleo-ish diet. Obviously, I can’t pick up some take-out and have an easy dinner. But, I’ve found a few ways to make their Chinese Rooster dreams come true with delicious Asian-inspired Paleo recipes. Before we get to that, you’ll want to have the following necessities on hand:

Riced Cauliflower

Rice is a no-no for a lot of special diets (Paleo, GAPS, etc.). But cauliflower is the perfect substitute. You can rice it yourself (here is a great video from Big Red Kitchen of how to do it easily). Or, if you have a Trader Joe’s near year, you can pick up an inexpensive bag of already riced organic cauliflower in the frozen section.

Coconut Aminos

Soy sauce is essential to Chinese cooking, but it is another PALEO taboo. Coconut aminos are a healthy alternative made with only sea salt and coconut tree sap. They taste pretty much the same and are a great way to ditch the soy and sodium.

Chop Sticks

You can’t go to all the trouble of a home-cooked Paleo Chinese New Year celebration meal and forget the chop sticks. Plus it’s really fun for me to watch my kids (and my husband!) try so hard to use them!

Asian-Inspired Paleo Dishes

And now on to the recipes. Here are a few of my favorite Asian-inspired Paleo dishes. They are the perfect grain-free versions of your favorite Chinese restaurant foods. The holiday lasts until February 15th , so give one (or all) of them a try for a fantastic Chinese New Year celebration. And please share your own favorites. I haven’t found any good Paleo fortune cookie recipes, so I guess I’ll have to make my own. But I think I’ll wait until next year, which is the Year of the Dog.

Paleo General Tso’s Chicken from Katrina Runs for Food
If you like a little heat, this quintessential dish is the perfect choice.
Beef with Broccoli from Primal Palate
Simple, healthy, and delicious – you can’t go wrong with this recipe.
Paleo Mu Shu Pork from Paleo Flourish Magazine
These little pancakes are savory, yummy, and totally kid-friendly!
Paleo Shrimp with Lobster Sauce from Clean your Plates
If you love seafood, this is the meal for you. And by the way, there is no lobster in this recipe. Who knew?