Welcome to GMA’s New Year, Best You. As we ring in 2019, we are sharing everything you need to start the new year strong. From keeping your New Year’s resolutions going to Instagram-worthy meal prep to workout programs to eating plans to taking time for yourself, we have it all covered.
Kevin Curry turned his own transformation to a healthy lifestyle into a career.
After learning to cook healthy dishes for himself, Curry launched Fit Men Cook, a website that offers recipes and meal plans. The Dallas, Texas-based chef is also the author of his first cookbook, “Fit Men Cook,” has his own app and has more than 1.5 million followers on Instagram.
(MORE: Top 10 tips to navigate Whole30 without crashing and burning)
“Our bodies are built in the kitchen, sculpted in the gym,” is Curry’s mantra.
Curry creates recipes anyone can follow, including people who are attempting Whole30, the monthlong nutrition reboot that eliminates foods like sugar and dairy.
(MORE: These 5 recipes will give you Whole30 #mealgoals)
Here are three must-try, Whole30-compliant recipes from Curry.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup diced carrots
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon fresh sage
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
10 ounce cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, chopped
4 cups no-salt-added chicken broth
1 bay leaf
2 medium zucchini
Sea salt and black pepper
Directions:
To a large nonstick pot over medium heat, add the olive oil, garlic, onion, celery, and carrots.
Sauté for 3 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Add the cinnamon, sage, and rosemary and cook for another two minutes.
Add the chicken, the broth, two cups water, and the bay leaf and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot and cook for about 15 minutes.
While the broth is cooking, cut the zucchini using a julienne slicer or spiralizer to create zucchini noodles (zoodles).
Slice longer zoodles in half. Set aside.
Taste the broth and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the zoodles (unless this is for meal prep, in which case see repeat note below)and allow them to cook for no more than two minutes so that the zoodles do not become mushy.
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Enjoy immediately!
Repeat: This is my go-to soup on cold, rainy days in Texas. Here’s how to make the best of it. Keep the zoodles separate until you are ready to eat the soup. When reheating the soup, first stir in the zoodles, then reheat the soup. If you plan to reheat the soup for longer than five minutes, add the zoodles for the final two minutes.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb chicken breast, raw
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne (or more/less to taste)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
Pinch of sea salt and pepper
Olive oil spray
Chives (fresh or dried -- for garnish)
Directions:
Set oven to 420 degrees F.
Mix together the ingredients for the seasoning rub.
Rub the seasoning over the chicken breasts.
Set a nonstick skillet on high heat. Once the skillet is hot, spray with a little olive oil then immediately add the chicken breast.
Sear on each side for 3 to 4 minutes until the edges are dark and crispy.
If needed, spray the chicken breast while it sears in order to prevent any sticking and to enhance the sear. Place the entire skillet in the oven and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the inside of the chicken is white and the juices run clear.
Remove the chicken from the heat of the skillet and allow it to slightly cool before slicing. Garnish with dried or fresh chives.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 lb raw jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
Broth (Combine 2/3 cup -- about 6 limes -- fresh lime juice, or more/less to taste with juice from 2 navel oranges, 2 tablespoons hot sauce -- or substitute ketchup or tomato sauce, 2 tablespoons olive oil and a pinch of sea salt)
1 medium cucumber, peeled and diced
1 green (or colorful) bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 medium red onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, finely diced
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped leaves
Directions:
Bring a large pot of salt water to a boil. Toss in the raw shrimp and cook for no more than 2 minutes or until the shrimp is white, pink and plump.
Immediately remove the shrimp from the boiling water using a spider or a slotted spoon and plunge the shrimp into a large bowl of ice water to stop it from cooking.
Mix together fresh ingredients for the broth and set aside to let the flavors meld. Feel free to customize it to your liking but I recommend just trying it as is if this is your first time making it.
Add all of the ceviche ingredients to a large bowl. I like using stainless steel because it keeps it extra cold in the fridge.
Chop up the shrimp into smaller pieces, about 1/2-inch (or cut each shrimp into 3 equal parts), then add it to the large bowl.
Fold everything together gently using a wooden spoon, then pour in the sauce and gently fold everything together again.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, then store in the fridge for at least 2 hours; but, you can enjoy it sooner, after about 30 minutes so the flavors can meld together and so the citrus juice can remove the “bite” from the onion.
Season to taste with sea salt and pepper and enjoy!
Recipes reprinted with permission from Kevin Curry and Fit Men Cook: 100+ Meal Prep Recipes for Men and Women –Always #HealthyAF, Never Boring. Copyright © 2018 by Fit Men Cook, LLC. Photographs copyright © 2018 by Kevin Marple. Published by TOUCHSTONE, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.