Low Histamine Bacon with Southern Greens Recipe (Also Low Lectin and Low Oxalate)
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 get uncured pork belly from US Wellness Meats. You can also use their Sliced Fresh Side Pork Bacon.
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:
- Mix together dry rub ingredients. Add more Monk Fruit Powder if you like a maple-flavored bacon. Or less for a more savory flavor.
- Place pork belly in a single layer on a baking sheet or tray. Rub dry ingredients into both sides of pork belly.
- 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. - 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
- Wash all the greens.
- Pull the collards and kale leaves off the stems.
- Roughly chop all the greens into about 2”x2” pieces. The greens will shrink while cooking.
- Mix ingredients for the braising liquid.
- Add the greens to a large pot.
- Pour the braising liquid over the greens.
- 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.
- Meanwhile, roughly chop the Low Histamine Bacon into bite size pieces.
- Drizzle fat from pork belly on the greens and mix.
- Sprinkle chopped Low Histamine Bacon on top.
- Serve with pork chops or baked chicken.
What did you think of this recipe? I would love to hear your thoughts below!
Low Histamine Meat Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken & Pork Roast – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin
- Warming Chicken Ginger Soup – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin, Low FODMAP
- Sesame Chicken Salad – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin, Low FODMAP
- Roast Chicken Salad with Rosemary Dressing – Low Oxalate, Low Lectin
- 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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Hi Beth,
Do you buy your pork belly already sliced? If not, do you slice it before or after you’ve rubbed &/or cooked it?
Also, if you’re slicing it yourself, how thick do you make your slices, and do you have any tips for slicing it?
We can get pork belly locally from Mennonite farmers, but only in whole pieces. I’ve tried to make ‘bacon’ from pork belly before, but it isn’t the easiest thing to cut and our slices were pretty thick. It certainly is tasty though!
Hi Jan,
I do get it already sliced from a local farmers, and it is frozen right after processing.
a partially frozen pork belly is easier to slice in thin slices. you want it just at the point it’s firmed up but soft enough still to get a knife through it. Also, sharpen your knife really well.
Thank you! I have seen many other sites excluding pork on histamine lists altogether. I get my organic pork from a local farmer too and it’s also soy free which is a plus for me since soy is a high allergen of mine. The bacon I get from my farmer is uncured, already sliced, frozen with no seasoning. I like to simply salt (I love the Redmond Real Salt too :)) and grind peppercorn, place on a rack and bake in oven. I too was raised on southern dishes and I feel lucky to have good local sources for pork! I will definitely be trying this recipe soon! Thanks again for sharing! 🙂
You are so welcome!
Garlic makes me cry for some reason, for all my life. Finally pulled out my nutrigenomics test from 2007 and compared with your genetics masterclass. Interesting to see that was from methylation focus as you say in your gene masterclass. Totally different genes tested. I was taught RNA/DNA back then but only now getting fuller picture of my situation. Until I get a chance to work with you to figure out supplements neeed based on genes, I am using the new DAO and I’m staying aware of the transulfuration path since I have a thing with garlic for sure. I looked at what foods were triggering me back then. And realized I will try to add more cruciferous foods as i thought they were a main problem with sulfur but now I’m wondering….will watch symptoms. So, for this recipe, I just used salt, pepper, the homemade bacon drippings (which I used pureed scallions instead of garlic instead of dry rub). And tried leeks in the greens. I cooked the collards first since the arugula just wilts easily on top and then can be mixed in. Didn’t do kale so I can test collards as I know leeks, arugula don’t trigger symptoms for me. I am shocked how many people on the FB groups don’t seem to know about your work. Thanks for not stopping your research for yourself and now sharing!
I can’t wait to try this as soon as I can source the meat. Have you ever tried applewood smoked sea salt? I’m unsure if smoked salt can accumulate histamine like smoked meat can. If not it would be a nice way to bring a little smokey flavor!
This is a staple in my home, I love it, and all the knowledge you’ve shared here and elsewhere has proven invaluable. I so appreciate you. I’m newly diagnosed with CIRS and I am not yet being treated.
Are large chucks of meat an issue in terms of containing higher histamine if they take longer to par-thaw? I want to make shredded pork butt in the instant pot for about 60-90 minutes and wondering if this is safe? Thank you
Hi Christina,
Beth will usually recommend a flash thaw in general. In her pork roast recipe she actually says to not thaw and to cook in the instant pot 5 lbs at 55 minutes. I think that if you are cooking a larger portion, the 60-90 minute cook should be fine. You may want to look at her recipe for that here for some good tips:
https://mastcell360.com/instant-pot-lowest-histamine-ever-chicken-pork-roast-recipe/
But yes, the more surface area, the higher the histamine risk.
Hi there! What size box of arugula in this recipe? 5oz or 11oz?
Hi Nicole,
They will cook down, so I’d go with the larger portion. However, this recipe isn’t like baking where everything needs to be precise. So you could make it to your personal liking.
Hope you enjoy!
Suz