Red meat is an excellent source of protein iron and zinc, important nutrients for all but particularly after weight loss surgery. However, after surgery, some people may have difficulty eating red meat. Learn how to make meat work for you.

Red meat is an excellent source of protein iron and zinc, important nutrients for all but particularly after weight loss surgery.

After surgery, people may report difficulty eating red meat. This may be due to a poor eating technique, or not knowing how to best prepare food. To eat meat comfortably it needs to be tender, cut into small pieces the size of a five-cent piece and chewed thoroughly – until it is a puree in the mouth.

Whilst a steak on the barbeque or grill can be difficult to tolerate, marinating, slow cooking, or cooking in a sauce can help tenderise meat making it easier to chew.

Lean red meat, trimmed of fat is the best choice as it contains less teaspoons of fat and saturated fat.

However, the fat in meat can help it to soften during cooking and adds flavour. Lean meat is therefore often assumed to lack tenderness and flavour.

Whilst lean cuts of meat can be expensive, cheaper cuts with the fat removed respond well to marinating and slow cooking so can be an economical choice. Try slow cooking in crushed tomatoes, soup bases or salt reduced stock with lots of vegetables and your favourite herbs. To reduce the amount of fat, skim from the top prior to serving.

Marinating meat is another way to enhance the flavour and tenderness of meat. Whilst adding oil to a marinade may seem like defeating the purpose of choosing lean meat, unsaturated oils are a better choice than the naturally occurring saturated fat in meat. Commercial marinades can be high in sugar.

Try the following ideas for tasty homemade marinades:

• red wine, a dash of olive oil, Worcestershire sauce and garlic complements red meat
  
• for an Asian flavour combine soy sauce, a dash of sesame oil, sherry oil, white pepper and honey
  
• lime juice, sweet chilli sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, coriander and a dash of peanut oil adds a Thai flavour to meat
  
• white wine, wholegrain mustard and crushed garlic cloves works well with beef
  
• lemon juice, oregano, garlic and a dash of olive oil complements lamb.
  

These tips and others like these can be found in our book, Spoons for Thought.

Awesome suggestions!!! Thanks.

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I normally shy away from meats outside of fish due to it not going down well. I have tried to eat it very slowly with very small pieces at a time. It still continue to be a very difficult items in my diet. I will try some of these suggestionis. I have been band over 2 years now so I have had a lot of experience with different ways to eat meat!!!!!!

I normally shy away from meats outside of fish due to it not going down well. I have tried to eat it very slowly with very small pieces at a time. It still continue to be a very difficult items in my diet. I will try some of these suggestionis. I have been band over 2 years now so I have had a lot of experience with different ways to eat meat!!!!!!

I have this same problem with beef. My husband brought home a flank steak that had been pre-marinated by the butcher and oh my word was it tender. I can eat it with no problem at all. I still have to take tiny bites and chew like mad, but it never is uncomfortable!

I also cannot eat chicken breast. No matter how it is cooked! So, I either eat skinless thighs, or I grind the white meat up with my kitchen aid grinder attachment.

i might try some of these suggestions because me and meat just dont seem to get along..especially chicken! ugh!

Thanks for sharing your experiences and ideas, I hope your experiences with eating meat improve with these suggestions. Sally

I buy a filet mignon and split into 4 pieces. I can only eat a 1/4 or 1/2 at a time. I can not longer eat any meat well done, it is too hard to chew and swallow. I marinate the the steak with salt, garlic and wrap it in bacon of ham for flavor. I pan fry / brown all sides - takes 3 mins. Then I put it in the stove for 5 mins with a little red wine.

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