When you have Mast Cell Activation Syndrome and Histamine Intolerance, finding Low Histamine Recipes is a must.

But eating low histamine can get tricky sometimes. Especially when you miss certain comfort foods like bacon.

I have always loved food.

Growing up in the country, we ate a lot of southern dishes. It seemed like everything was either fried or served with bacon. Or better yet, fried in bacon.

We lived on fried chicken, fried pork chops, fried okra, fried squash, fried green tomatoes, even fried corn. I’m starting to sound like Bubba Gump here.

Related Article: What to Know About Corn if You Have Mast Cell Activation Syndrome or Histamine Intolerance

When I moved out, I became quite the foodie and gourmet cook. I loved eating out so much, I had plans to start a new restaurant review column. But my health was crashing. This meant I had to start focusing on food as medicine instead of food for entertainment. This was crushing for me. I was known for hosting different types of dinner parties – like Japanese night or Medieval night.

In my search for health, I meandered through all kinds of ways of eating.

Until I finally figured out I have both Mast Cell Activation Syndrome and Histamine Intolerance. I also have to watch oxalates and lectins. Settling into eating only the foods that support my health was life changing. But I still miss some of those comfort foods.

And I’ll confess…I really have missed bacon. Just a little crumble of bacon on a dish can transform it. But bacon is usually smoked and cured, which makes it high histamine. Even uncured bacon has higher histamine seasonings.

Low Histamine Greens

I’ve gotten very creative in my cooking to work with my food sensitivities. So I thought – why not figure out how to make a low histamine bacon?

I’m also working on eating more greens. A lot more greens. This is because greens are high in magnesium, which is really critical for almost 400 different processes in the body. Beyond that, greens feed the beneficial bacteria in the GI tract.

Best of all, greens help the body produce Nitric Oxide. Nitric Oxide is one of the most important molecules in the body.

And it helps stabilize mast cells! So more greens it is!

Make sure you are including some of these low histamine, low oxalate nitric oxide boosting greens in your diet every day:

• Lettuces
• Basil (fresh)
• Cilantro (fresh)
• Kale, flat leaf
• Collard greens
• Arugula

Arugula is actually the best vegetable for boosting those nitric oxide levels. So, I always use arugula when I make greens. I also add arugula to a lot of other dishes – soups, salads, and stir-fries.

When you cook arugula, it develops a nice mellow flavor. And when used raw, it has a peppery kick. For this Southern Greens Recipe, I also like to toss in collards and flat leaf kale.

Now what about the bacon? How do we make low histamine bacon? The trick is to get pasture-raised, uncured pork belly. And of course, make sure it was frozen after slaughter.

I get my pork belly from a local farmer who always freezes the meat after slaughter. This keeps the histamine levels low. If you can’t source from a local farmer, you can look for uncured pork belly from an option like White Oak Pastures – Use coupon code MASTCELL360 for 10% off first purchase!   

Another favorite source of low histamine meats is: Northstar Bison – Use coupon code MASTCELL360 for 10% all low histamine meats!   

You can read more about ways to make sure your meat is low histamine in this post: Are you Raising your Histamine Levels with these Meat Handling Mistakes?

To make the pork belly taste like bacon, I season it with a dry rub. Then I bake or fry it just like bacon. It doesn’t have the smoked flavor. But it is still divine. Because it is pasture raised, this will have a healthier fat profile than conventionally raised pork.

We don’t want to over consume saturated fats and cholesterol. But a moderate amount is vital for brain health and hormone production.

If you were a bacon lover before you went low-histamine, you are going to love this recipe.

And make sure to add some greens in your diet here for the mast cell stabilizing nitric oxide!

Low Histamine Bacon Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 pound pork belly

Dry rub:

• pinch or more to taste of Pure Monk Fruit Powder (without additives or erythritol)
• 2 teaspoons Redmond Real Salt
• 1 teaspoon organic granulated garlic*
• ½ teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
• sprinkle of organic cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Mix together dry rub ingredients. Add more Monk Fruit Powder if you like a maple-flavored bacon. Or less for a more savory flavor.
2. Place pork belly in a single layer on a baking sheet or tray. Rub dry ingredients into both sides of pork belly.
3. To cook, either bake or fry:
   a. To bake: heat oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 30 minutes for chewy bacon or longer for crispy baconb. To fry: layer in a frying pan and cook on medium high heat on both sides until desired doneness.
4. Save the fat for the greens.

Low Histamine Country Greens Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 bunches organic collard greens
• 1 box organic baby arugula
• 2 bunches organic flat leaf kale
• Low Histamine Bacon from recipe above
• Fat saved from cooking the pork belly

Braising liquid:

• 2 cups water
• 2 tsp Redmond Real Salt
• 1 tsp organic granulated garlic*
• 2 tsp freshly cracked pepper
• Sprinkle of organic cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Wash all the greens.
2. Pull the collards and kale leaves off the stems.
3. Roughly chop all the greens into about 2”x2” pieces. The greens will shrink while cooking.
4. Mix ingredients for the braising liquid.
5. Add the greens to a large pot.
6. Pour the braising liquid over the greens.
7. Cover and cook on medium until the greens are done. Stir occasionally and add more water if they start to stick. They will shrink by half and become tender.
8. Meanwhile, roughly chop the Low Histamine Bacon into bite size pieces.
9. Drizzle fat from pork belly on the greens and mix.
10. Sprinkle chopped Low Histamine Bacon on top.
11. Serve with pork chops or baked chicken.

What did you think of this recipe? I would love to hear your thoughts below!

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More Low Histamine Meat Recipes

• Instant Pot Chicken – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin
• Pork Roast – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin, Low FODMAP, Low Salicylate Options
• Warming Chicken Ginger Soup – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin, Low FODMAP
• Sesame Chicken Salad – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin, Low FODMAP
• Rosemary Chicken Salad – Low Histamine, Low Lectin, and Low to Medium Oxalate Options
• Easy Chicken Tacos – Low FODMAP, Low Lectin, Low Oxalate, Low Salicylate
• Spring Roll Stir Fry – Low Salicylate, Low FODMAP, Low Lectin, Low Oxalate
• Rosemary Roasted Garlic Pork Chops – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin

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