
If you have just come across the Carnivore Diet then you might be wondering what foods you can actually eat whilst partaking in this glorious way of eating. It might seem obvious that meat is the answer and yes, you’d be right but you can also eat some dairy products.
BUT, this diet isn’t set in concrete and there are varying ways of tackling it. For example, some people will only eat meat and no dairy. This is often because of an intolerance to dairy or they may be trying to lose weight and they think the dairy may be stalling them in some way. Some people will only eat beef and nothing else. This may be again because of an intolerance of some kind, say to chicken for instance, or it could be that beef is just more satisfying to them.
Here is a list of what you can eat on the Carnivore Diet.
Carnivore Diet Food List
Meat
Choose fatty cuts wherever possible. Avoid processed meats unless you know exactly what is in it.
- beef
- chicken
- pork
- lamb
- animal fat
- bone marrow
- bone broth
- fatty ground/minced meat
- offal
Unfortunately most meat these days is lean so you do need to add fat into your diet.
Fish
You can eat any type of fish or crustacean but try to go with fatty fish wherever possible. Here’s some examples of fatty fish:
- salmon
- mackerel
- herring
- lake trout
- sardines
- tuna
- anchovies
- carp
- eel
- whitefish
- butterfish
- halibut
Dairy
Some avoid dairy completely due to an intolerance or if they are trying to lose weight. For most that do eat dairy, they tend to keep it to a minimum.
- cream
- cheese
- raw milk (some choose to avoid milk)
Eggs
- whole eggs
- some eat egg yolks only and will eat them raw
- some avoid eggs completely
Seasonings
Some people will use salt only whilst others avoid all seasonings.
- salt
- pepper
- herbs
- spices
Fats
A good amount of your fat should be coming from the animal products listed above so choose fatty cuts of meat wherever possible. When frying, grilling, broiling, barbecuing, roasting etc, use only animal fats. Here’s some examples:
- Beef tallow
- Lard (pig fat)
- Suet
- Duck fat
- Chicken fat (schmaltz)
- Butter (some avoid butter if they have an intolerance to dairy)
- Beef dripping
We get offcuts of fat from our butcher and fry up pieces of fat to have with at least one meal per day. I found that my weight loss stalled and realised I wasn’t getting enough fat. Once I started adding in more fat the weight started dropping off.
Drinks
- water
- bone broth
- coffee or tea – avoided by many – if you are having any issues or you are trying to lose weight and it’s not budging then give them up for a while to see if it helps
Carnivore Diet Meal Example
There is no requirement to eat 3 meals a day on the Carnivore Diet and in fact many people will only eat twice a day and some only once. So you may not need breakfast at all, or you may want to have breakfast at lunch instead and skip the lunchtime meal completely. The choice is yours. We personally only have two meals a day.
Breakfast
- Bacon
- Eggs
- Black Pudding
Lunch
- Cup of bone broth – we leave the fat in the bone broth rather than skimming off the fat
- Minute steak, steak or fatty meat patties (eat till you are full)
Dinner
- Steak – rib eye, porterhouse, scotch fillet
- If you can’t afford a good steak then you can go with fatty ground beef made into meat patties
I’m very curious about the carnivore style. How many days should a person commit to (at first) -three, five, seven? I did the egg fast for five days and liked it…thinking I want to try this. Thanks 🙂
I usually tell my sceptical friends to try it for 2 weeks although a month would be a better option.
But how do you know if you’ve gotten enough fat in? I have never been a fan of any fat on my pieces of meat or steak. It’s a texture thing. But I LOVE meat! My body often craves protein, so I like the idea of this diet. Is it absolutely NO fruit at all? I know fruit holds a lot of carbs. I have a killer sweet tooth, so I’ve been struggling with that while trying this keto diet and have been satisfying my cravings with some strawberries. Your podcast intrigued me, so I think I’ll look around and do some more research. But anything you could answer or add here would be amazing. Thanks so much!
I buy suet and cook up bits to have as a side with my steak or meat patties. I make it nice and crisp and I like the taste of fat so I find it easy to eat. With thicker pieces of steak I cook them in the oven on 145 degrees for 20 minutes and then fry them off to sear the surface. I find that the fat in the steak seems to break down better than just pan cooking the fatty steak.
hello.im going to a 3 days convention out of town n dont know what to bring with me for lunch where there is no way to heat a lunch any samples on carnivore take out???please!!thank you,
I would probably take some boiled eggs, ham, salami and some sliced up steak. I don’t mind eating cold steak when it’s thinly sliced. It’s not ideal to eat processed meats but sometimes you may need to compromise. I hope some of our other readers help with suggestions for you.
can i eat beef tripe on the carnivore diet
If you like it I can’t see why not. I would do it in moderation though.