5 Gut Health Friendly Dinner Recipes

One thing you can do to positively impact your gut health and digestion is limit the amount of sugar you’re eating. To do this, you want to cut back on carbohydrates and heavy-starch vegetables like potatoes, carrots, and corn. This can seem daunting, or limiting, but there are a ton of delicious foods you can eat. You just have to get a little creative.

Below you’ll find a few of my very easy, tasty, go-to dinner recipes. Use them as inspiration for your own meals, and tag me (@miataylordotcom) when you post a photo of it!

Spaghetti Squash Meal + Protein of choice

Place 1 Spaghetti squash (serves 2 people) into the oven at 400*F for 30-Minutes. Place directly on rack, with foil or a baking sheet on the rack below to keep your oven clean. Carefully remove after 30 minutes and cut in half, lengthwise. Drizzle with olive oil or avocado oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and return to oven until “noodles” can be pulled away from the side of the squash with a fork. Semi al dente is great for the maximum noodle effect.

While spaghetti squash continues to cook, prepare protein of choice. Season well (see suggestions below) and cook completely. Set aside.

Here are some ideas for gut-friendly seasonings:

Fish: Lemon pepper, salt, and fresh lemon. / Rosemary, salt and pepper. / I also like Everything But The Bagel seasoning on salmon!
Beef: Cumin, paprika, red chili flakes
Chicken: Onion powder, salta and pepper. / za’atar with salt. / Lemon + rosemary
Shrimp: Salt, pepper, lemon, paprika for color. Optional: red chili flakes for a zap of spice.

After spaghetti squash is done, scrape noodles out with a fork and transfer to a pan to sauté with butter, herbs of choice, and salt and pepper. Transfer spaghetti squash from pan to plate, top with parmesan cheese and prepared protein.

Shrimp and “Right Rice” with sautéed veggies

This is a super easy one. Thaw frozen shrimp (or bring fresh shrimp to room temp) and season with complimentary herbs/spices, depending on the flavor of right rice you purchased. Right rice is a vegetable rice that is both super easy ( Simmer for 12 minutes) and really yummy. It’s my go-to when I am craving a side dish that feels more carb-heavy. You can order variety packs on Amazon, or find it in most local grocery stores in the U.S.

Start cooking Right Rice as package recommends.

After about 5 minutes, start cooking vegetables. My go-to veggies for this dish are: onions, red pepper, and zucchini.

Start by adding red pepper and onions to a medium-high, preheated pan. Add olive oil, paprika, onion powder, and salt and pepper. Sautée until tender then add shrimp. Cook an additional 3 minutes until shrimp are slightly pink on one side, add zucchini. Turn stove to high for 2 minutes, flip shrimp so that it cooks on the alternate side, and add zucchini.

By this time, the right rice should be about done. Fluff with a fork and add to a plate. Top with veggie + shrimp combo, and enjoy!

Alternate: Combine shrimp with Zucchini noodles.

“Zoodle” 2 zucchini, or buy pre-spiraled zucchini at the store. Gently pat them dry to eliminate as much moisture as possible (this keeps them from getting soggy, and helps keep the noodle structure). Sautée with butter, ghee, or avocado oil on medium heat for about 7 minutes or until tender. Season with Salt, Pepper, Paprika, or a spice blend you enjoy. Top with Shrimp recipe from above.

Oven Roasted Salmon (wild caught or Alaskan preferred) with lemon and garlic butter + Paired with spinach and quinoa* salad or asparagus sautéed in butter, lemon, and cracked black pepper.

Set out pre-thawed salmon. Pat dry to eliminate moisture. Sprinkle with cracked black pepper, salt or a spice blend of your choosing. Place on a roasting pan, and into a pre-heated 400* F oven for 8-10 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 125*F.
As soon as the salmon goes into the oven, prepare your spinach and quinoa salad or add asparagus to a pre-heated pan on medium high. Add butter to the pan and sautée until bright green and tender.

*Best if Quinoa is prepared ahead of time

Salad + Homemade dressing:

Combine the juice of 1 lemon and half a cup of olive oil with a liberal amount of salt and pepper. Add 1tsp apple cider vinegar and herbs of choice. Let it sit over night and then stir/shake well before each use. For a thicker dressing, add 1/4th tsp mustard.

Quick Tips: Add protein to your salad to meet the daily 46g protein requirement for women and 56g for men.

Enjoy!