Hey friends!
Summer cooking has been everything to me lately.
There’s something about this season - the produce is bright and fresh, and on the hard days a beautiful colorful plate has been one of the small joys that gets me through. So today I want to share the 10 anti-inflammatory meals I’ve been making on repeat all summer.
None of these are complicated! Most of them are just quality protein + a rainbow of vegetables + a good fat, thrown together in whatever way felt good that day. That’s kind of my whole philosophy - real, simple, colorful food that loves you back.
Before I get into these meals, I have to give credit where it’s due - a lot of these were inspired by @rabeya.khat (a lot of people online lovingly call her “Mother”). If you don’t know her, I highly recommend looking her up. She cooks in this beautifully simple, kind of ancestral way - quality protein + vegetables, often all in one pot .. I find it fascinating.
I know her style gets some pushback online, but for me, it’s exactly the kind of eating I’m drawn to. I’m interested in how humans used to eat - thousands of years ago, before everything got complicated and processed and packaged.
It’s grounding, simple, real, whole-food.
She’s been on her own big health journey, she clearly feels amazing, and she eats in a way that makes her feel her best. I’m all for it, and she’s been a huge inspiration for how I’ve been cooking the past year or so.
So - let’s get into the 10 anti-inflammatory meals I’ve been making on repeat..
1. The bone broth chicken (inspired by @rabeya.khat)
Chicken breast simmered in a quality bone broth with peppers, baby potatoes, cauliflower, onion, carrots, cilantro, green onion, and fresh thyme.
I just tossed everything in a large pan, after 3-4 minutes pour in the bone broth, bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
I have made this probably 30+ times. The bone broth is doing so much - it’s rich in collagen and glycine, which support your gut lining + calm inflammation from the inside. Add all those colorful vegetables (each one bringing its own antioxidants) and the fresh thyme and cilantro, and it’s basically a big healing bowl. It tastes like a hug. I know it’s summer but this one is worth it!
2. Grass-finished beef + apricot plate
Grass-finished beef cooked in grass-fed butter, with avocado, green onion, tomato, quality mustard, fresh apricot, cilantro, and jalapeños.
Grass-finished beef has a much better omega-3 to omega-6 ratio than conventional, which matters a lot for inflammation. The avocado and grass-fed butter bring anti-inflammatory fats, and that little pop of fresh apricot gives you polyphenols (and makes this plate taste like summer).
3. Steak + eggs + tangerine
Grass-finished steak, avocado, pasture-raised eggs, peppers, tangerine, and green onion.
This one is a powerhouse. Pasture-raised eggs are one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet (don’t fear the yolk - that’s where all the good stuff lives!), the steak brings iron and zinc, and the tangerine adds a bright hit of vitamin C, which helps your body use all that iron. Beautiful little combo.
4. Ground beef + sweet potato + blueberry bowl
Grass-finished ground beef, roasted sweet potato, thyme, peppers, blueberries, cilantro, and avocado.
Blueberries are one of the most antioxidant-rich foods there is - deep blue pigments (anthocyanins) are very anti-inflammatory. Pair that with sweet potato for steady, gut-friendly carbs and quality beef for protein, and you’ve got a plate that fuels you and fights inflammation.
5. Rainbow plate
Ground beef (with spinach cooked right in!), green onion, avocado, quality salsa, peppers, jalapeño, blueberries, and cilantro.
I love sneaking spinach into my ground beef - you don’t even taste it and you get folate + magnesium. Add avocado for healthy fat, peppers and salsa for vitamin C and antioxidants, and this becomes such an easy, colorful, anti-inflammatory weeknight plate. Love this for after the gym.
6. Parmesan-crisp + salmon
Two fillets of salmon with quality parmesan crisps, jalapeño, and green onion.
Salmon is basically the poster child for anti-inflammatory eating - tons of omega-3 fatty acids, which are some of the most studied inflammation-fighters out there. Two fillets double omega-3 hit, and I love adding in some quality parm crisps to eat with the salmon.
7. The turmeric bone broth chicken (Mother strikes again!)
Chicken breast, jalapeños, carrots, potatoes, and green onion, all simmered in quality bone broth with turmeric, salt, and pepper.
Turmeric - one of the most anti-inflammatory foods out there - contains curcumin, one of the most researched natural anti-inflammatory compounds we have. Little tip: always pair turmeric with black pepper (like I do here), because the pepper dramatically boosts how much curcumin your body can absorb. The broth makes this extra gut-loving.
8. The simple spinach + beef bowl
A bowl of quality grass-fed and grass-finished ground beef with spinach cooked in.
This when I don’t feel like cooking a ton but I want something nourishing, and it’s perfect. Grass-finished beef for those better fats and protein, spinach wilted right in for folate, iron, and magnesium. Two ingredients, five minutes, deeply satisfying. Not every meal has to be a production .. this is also a VERY filling meal - zero food cravings after this.
9. Beef and sweet potato
Grass-fed ground beef, avocado, arugula, sweet potato, basil, carrots, peppers, red onion, and green onion.
This one is anti-inflammatory from every angle - grass-fed beef for those better omega-3 fats and protein, avocado for healthy fat, and a whole rainbow of vegetables each bringing their own antioxidants. Sweet potato gives you steady, gut-friendly carbs, and the fresh basil isn’t just for flavor - herbs like basil are some of the most antioxidant-dense foods you can add to a plate.
10. Soft-boiled egg summer bowl
About 5 soft-boiled eggs with tomato, cilantro, cucumber, sweet onion, peppers, avocado, salt, and pepper - tossed in extra virgin olive oil and lemon.
This is my favorite light summer lunch/dinner - the extra virgin olive oil is doing so much here .. it contains a compound called oleocanthal that works a little like ibuprofen in the body - it's one of the most anti-inflammatory foods on earth. Add soft-boiled eggs for protein and choline (don't skip that jammy yolk - boil for about 6-7 minutes, then ice bath for 2), all the raw summer vegetables for fiber and antioxidants, and avocado for even more healthy fat. Fresh, cooling, and it comes together in about ten minutes.
The thread through all of these: quality protein, tons of color, good fats, and fresh herbs. That’s what makes a plate anti-inflammatory - it doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. Just real food that makes you feel good :)
Tap the heart if this was helpful and you’d like to see more posts like this. I have tons of meal ideas in my camera roll. Happy to share them here with you!
A few of you always ask where I get my staples for meals like these. The bone broth, the good olive oil, the turmeric - all the anti-inflammatory basics I actually keep on hand are in my Anti-Inflammatory Pantry Staples collection here →. Makes building these so much easier!
Paid members - keep scrolling! I turned all 10 of these into a 14-page printable recipe card with the full ingredient lists + directions AND a grocery list, so you can stick it on your fridge and shop straight from it this week.
Enjoy!
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