Potatoes Are Not On My Paleo Diet
After losing over 40 pounds in the first year of being on the Paleo diet, my progress stalled…. and I started gaining weight again. What had changed? Reluctantly, I have to admit that Potatoes were a large part of it. I went along with the folks who said potatoes could be included in the Paleo diet. I had reintroduced them into my diet a few times per week without counting them as a “skip meal” as well as other foods that while strictly Paleo, were not as conducive to losing weight.
Potato chips cooked in olive oil or coconut oil? Paleo snack! Oven roasted french fries tossed with olive oil? Great side dish with a bunless grass-fed burger! Mashed potatoes seasoned with ghee, almond milk, and a little salt and pepper? Go for it! On top of a cottage pie? Even better! Roasted potatoes tossed with olive oil, garlic, rosemary, paprika, salt, pepper? Why not? In a beef stew? Absolutely.
Nope. Bad idea. Potatoes are delicious. I love them. But they don’t work for me.
Are Potatoes Paleo?
There is a lot of discussion on potatoes within the Paleo community, but there really is no question: the short and simple answer is no. “White Potatoes”, which includes red, yellow, gold and purple potatoes, are generally not approved on the Paleo diet (although they now are approved on the Whole30 diet). Sweet potatoes (whatever the color), ironically are Paleo despite their name and sweetness.
Loren Cordain documents the health reasons to avoid white potatoes in “Are Potatoes Paleo“. The table comparing the glycemic indexes of potatoes versus refined sugars is particularly worth a look. Personally, I do not worry too much about consuming nightshades or saponins or lectins, but you may. The most important issue is the consumption of a starchy carbohydrate with a high glycemic index. This should concern anyone.
But there remain others who argue that you can include potatoes in your Paleo diet plan, but only if you can handle it.
Can you handle Potatoes in your Paleo Diet?
RobbWolf.com’s post “Meat & Potatoes: Back on the Menu” says not everybody can or should be eating white potatoes – it depends on both ones “activity level and metabolic status.” Athletes, for example, not only can eat more carbohydrates in the form of potatoes, but they need to. Others who “cannot process dense carb sources in a healthy way” (such as myself) should avoid them.
My high school age daughter plays two varsity sports and is also on a competitive travelling club soccer team year-round. She is training or playing in games at least 5 days per week, sometimes more. We have to make sure she gets enough carbohydrates to perform at her best. I make potatoes for her all the time.
However, I am highly sensitive to high carbohydrate/high glycemic index foods. I’ve always known that and it is one of the main reasons why I originally went on a Paleo diet – and why years ago I had some success with the Atkins diet that cuts out even more carbohydrates from one’s diet. As I have also returned to a state where I wish to lose more weight, I can not in good conscience continue to include any potatoes in my own diet without counting it as a “skip meal”.
I recommend everyone go through a similar honest self-assessment. If you need to lose weight and/or are not physically active and/or are sensitive to high carbohydrate/high glycemic index foods, you are better off leaving potatoes out of your diet – or include them only when you are having a skip meal.
[Primal Palate also explains the conditions under which people can eat potatoes as part of a Paleo diet in their article “Are Potatoes Paleo?”]
Substitutions
I’ve become really good at substituting non-Paleo foods and ingredients with healthier, Paleo-approved replacements and having the results come out as good – and usually better – than the original. There is no simple replacement for the white potato, but the Japanese sweet potato comes pretty close. It is mild in flavor and will roast up crisp rather than turn to mush as prototypical orange yams (or purple sweet potatoes) will do. I’ve started using them more where the recipe clearly calls for a roasting potato (such as in a stew or as part of the vegetables roasted with a chicken).
The topping for my cottage pie is now made with a Cauliflower mash. I leave out the potatoes altogether in my Paleo Moussaka and just use roasted eggplant for layering. This works for me much better. It’ll work out great for you too. All these recipes will be found here sooner or later.