This post features 10 incredible Whole 30 recipes and contains affiliate links. All Whole 30 compliant recipes are 100 percent gluten-free.
I decided to take the Whole 30 challenge in August 2018. I’ve delayed taking the challenge for awhile now, mainly because, while I like meat, it’s not a centerpoint for my cooking, and Whole 30 is, no matter what people say, a meat-heavy diet.
With so many of my clients taking the Whole 30 challenge, I figured it was my time for me to do so, too.
The Whole 30 Rules
For 30 days, the Whole 30 challenge requires you to eat only clean, whole foods:
- No grains (all grains, not even gluten-free grains)
- No sugar (including no honey, maple syrup or artificial sweeteners)
- No alcohol
- No dairy
- No soy, beans or legumes
After 30 days, you’ll reintroduce these foods to your diet, one-by-one, to see if any of them bother you. The idea is to get these possibly irritant foods out of your diet, then bring them back in slowly to see how your body reacts to them.
The Whole 30 diet can be tricky for people to master. It takes a lot of willpower and control as cravings can be intense. You have to stick with it, stay the course, and be strong. Remember, we all have deep rooted desires for food, and when that food is restricted, those desires become intense.
While I would like to lose a few pounds, the Whole 30 challenge is not a weight loss diet – it’s an elimination diet. Some people do find weight loss as a pleasant side effect, though.
Whole 30 Compliant Foods
While there are a lot of rules to what you can’t eat, there are still so many wonderful foods you can eat during the Whole 30 challenge.
You can eat:
- Meats
- Eggs
- Fish
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Nuts and seeds
- Potatoes (both sweet and white potatoes)
- Fresh herbs, including dried seasonings
All foods must be fresh, whole, no fillers and minimally processed if at all. You must read ingredient labels to avoid all grains, sugars and artificial ingredients.
Keeping in mind what you can and can’t eat, I’ve developed 10 Whole 30 recipes you can make at home during your Whole 30 challenge. All these recipes worked well for dinner (but you can make them for lunch too).
Every recipe below is Whole 30 compliant, totally gluten-free, and pretty darn tasty too if I don’t say so myself!
10 Whole 30 Recipes
(1) Savory Sausage and Potato Stir Fry: Cut up some Trader Joe’s Italian Chicken Sausages (or other Whole 30 compliant sausages) and saute them alongside diced potatoes, portobello mushrooms, red onions and a handful of super greens (spinach, kale and Swiss chard mix). Add some salt and pepper and you, my friend, have a savory lunch or dinner ready in minutes! Get the full recipe here.
(2) Slow Cooker Picante Chicken Thighs: This recipe is the best and I found myself making it over and over again (and I still make it post-Whole30). All you do is throw in either bone-in or boneless thighs in your crockpot, add a no-sugar, Whole30 compliant picante sauce (I used this one), and then add a can of olives (drained) + 1/2 cup of raisins. Set your slow cooker for four hours and enjoy heartily!! Get my slow cooker picante thighs recipe here.
(3) Herbed Salmon with Roasted Potatoes and Vegetables of Choice: I enjoyed this meal at my mother-in-law’s house, so I don’t have an “official” recipe for you. But it’s so easy. All you have to do is top salmon with Kosher salt, pepper and fresh herbs (try parsley, scallions, dill or whatever you have on hand – you can also use my dill roasted salmon recipe – simply omit the white wine). Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes, then squeeze a lemon on top before serving. Serve alongside roasted potatoes and broccoli. I added some leftover zoodles and a few walnuts to my plate too!
And this is a picture of my dill roasted salmon recipe:
(4) Grilled Steak with chimichurri sauce, sweet potato and homemade gazpacho. I also don’t have an “official” recipe for this, mainly because it’s just so easy to do. Simply add a little salt and pepper to some ribeye steaks, and grill it to your liking. I topped it with this Whole 30 chimichurri sauce recipe. (Honestly, didn’t love the chimichurri sauce, too oily.) I also baked sweet potatoes and served this dish alongside a very refreshing homemade gazpacho soup, which I HIGHLY recommend you made and enjoy for awhile!
(5) Whole30 Turkey Taco Bowls (two ways). Sizzle up some delicious ground turkey with fresh onions, fresh garlic, chilli powder, cumin, S&P and some chicken broth (check out my official turkey taco meat recipe here). Put the turkey on a bed of lettuce and serve with your favorite Whole 30 compliant fixings.
This first turkey taco bowl includes fresh guacamole and ripe mango chunks.
And this turkey taco bowl includes baked plantain chips (I just sliced the plantains, brushed them with oil and cinnamon, and baked for 15 minutes. I’ve heard they taste better fried, though).
(6) Whole 30 Orange Salmon: You can make this delicious fish and orange sauce in a matter of minutes at home. It’s so easy – and maybe took me 20 minutes from start to finish to create.
Get my Whole30 Orange Salmon recipe here.
I served the fish alongside some riced broccoli and charred shishito peppers. Yummy (I LOVE shishito peppers – all you have to do is put them in a pan with a little oil and salt, and let them char for a few minutes).
(7) Whole30 Stir-Fry Chicken: I found it surprisingly easy to make stir-fry chicken Whole30 compliant. Get my delicious stir-fry chicken recipe here and enjoy this easy weeknight meal that is of course gluten-free and Whole30 delicious!
(8) Whole30 Spicy Turkey Burgers: I’m used to eating bunless turkey burgers so this recipe is no-big-deal to me! I smothered this spicy turkey burger recipe with my fresh guacamole recipe (my guac recipe is incredible – truly!). Everything just worked so well together – yummy!
You’ll want an indoor grill pan to grill up turkey burgers as they are a bit sticky and may make a mess of your grill!
(9) Whole30 Chicken Tenders: These chicken tenders were a hit with the family, and I must say, I loved this meal too.
Follow this recipe to make my Whole30 chicken tenders and serve it alongside some roasted baby potatoes (baked at 400 degrees with a little avocado oil and Kosher salt for about 35-45 minutes) and roasted asparagus (also baked at 400 degrees with a little avocado oil and Kosher salt for about 10 minutes).
(10) Shakshuka Chicken: Inspired by my breakfast shakshuka recipe, I decided to make shakshuka for dinner using chicken tenders instead of eggs. Get my Chicken Shakshuka recipe here. This Whole 30 recipe will definitely spice up dinner tonight!
There you have it, 10 amazing Whole 30 recipes you can make for dinner any night of the week.
As you can see, each Whole 30 recipe uses only simple, clean ingredients and everything can be quickly prepared at home.
Tip! Always make extra to enjoy as leftovers for lunch the next day! Planned leftovers makes keeping the Whole 30 much, much easier!
Get a week’s worth of Whole 30 breakfast recipes!
Read about my 10 favorite Whole 30 snacks – all you can buy, unwrap and eat!
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