Paleo Diet Food List

Please share:

Last Updated on July 7, 2020

A whole foods approach to eating (with the removal of foods that tend to cause inflammation and chronic disease). Obviously we’re living in today’s world with modern conveniences – this means a greater emphasis needs to be put on how our food is sourced and what it’s composed of (looking at the ingredients in prepared foods). Yes, in true Paleo form, we wouldn’t have cake with almond flour and coconut sugar. But the reality is, we live in the modern age and have advanced in relation to how we prepare food. With this in mind: think of Paleo as a list of foods that help keep your body working optimally. We provide in this post a full list of what’s acceptable and what you should remove from your diet.

From the Animal (All Varieties)

• Grass-fed and Finished
• Forage Fed
• Wild Harvested
• Wild Caught
• Trapped
• Eggs
• Grass-fed Gelatin
• Grass-fed Collagen
• Grass-fed Broth
• Grass-fed Ghee

Healthy Fats

• Avocado Oil
• Avocados
• Butter
• Clarified Butter (ghee)
• Coconut flesh
• Coconut Milk
• Coconut Oil
• Duck Fat
• Lamb Fat
• Lard
• Macadamia oil
• Mackerel
• Nut Butters
• Olive Oil
• Palm Shortening
• Red Palm Oil
• Salmon
• Sardines
• Tallow
• Veal Fat
• Walnut Oil

Vegetables

• Acorn Squash
• Artichokes
• Arugula
• Asparagus
• Avocados (we know, it’s a fruit)
• Beet Top
• Beets
• Bell Peppers
• Bok Choy
• Broccoli
• Brussels Sprouts
• Buttercup Squash
• Butternut Squash
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Cassava
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Chicory
• Collard Greens
• Cucumber
• Dandelion
• Eggplant
• Endive
• Garlic
• Green Onion
• Jerusalem Artichokes
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Leeks
• Lettuce
• Mustard Greens
• Okra
• Onions
• Parsnips
• Pumpkin
• Radicchio
• Radish
• Rapini
• Rutabaga
• Seaweeds
• Spaghetti Squash
• Spinach
• Sweet Potatoes
• Swiss Chard
• Tomatoes
• Turnip Greens
• Turnips
• Watercress
• Yams
• Yellow Crookneck Squash
• Yellow Summer Squash
• Zucchini

Nuts & Seeds

• Almonds
• Brazil Nuts
• Cashews
• Chestnuts
• Chia seeds
• Flax Seeds
• Hazelnuts
• Macadamia Nuts
• Pecans
• Pine Nuts
• Pistachios
• Pumpkin Seeds (pepitas)
• Sesame Seeds
• Sunflower Seeds
• Walnuts

Fruits

• Apples
• Apricot
• Avocado
• Bananas
• Blackberry
• Blueberry
• Cantaloupe
• Cherries
• Coconut
• Cranberry
• Dates
• Figs
• Grapefruit
• Grapes
• Honeydew melon
• Kiwi
• Lemon
• Lime
• Lychee
• Mango
• Nectarines
• Olives
• Oranges
• Papaya
• Passion Fruit
• Peaches
• Pears
• Persimmon
• Pineapple
• Plantains
• Plums
• Pomegranates
• Raspberry
• Strawberry
• Tangerine
• Watermelon

Mushrooms

• Button Mushroom
• Chanterelle
• Crimini
• Morel
• Oyster Mushroom
• Porcini
• Portabello
• Shiitake

Spices and Herbs

• Basil
• Bay Leaves
• Black Pepper
• Cayenne Pepper
• Chilies
• Chives
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Coriander
• Cumin
• Dill
• Fennel Seeds
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Horseradish
• Hot Peppers
• Lavender
• Mint
• Mustard Seeds
• Nutmeg
• Onions
• Oregano
• Paprika
• Parsley
• Rosemary
• Sage
• Star Anise
• Tarragon
• Thyme
• Turmeric
• Vanilla

Sweeteners

• Honey
• Stevia
• Maple Syrup
• Coconut Sugar
• Coconut Sap
• Coconut Nectar
• Date Sugar
• Fruit Juice
• Birch Xylitol
• Monk Fruit
• Erythritol

Flours

• All Nut Flours
• Sweet Potato Flour
• Coconut Flour
• Tapioca Flour
• Arrowroot Flour
• Cassava Flour
• Tigernut Flour

Fermented Foods

• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Distilled Vinegar
• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Kombucha
• Coconut Kefirs
• Coconut Yogurt
• Nut Based Yogurts
• Drinking Vinegars

Miscellaneous (most likely in products)

• Sunflower Lecithin
• Baking Soda
• Egg-Derived Lecithin
• Gum Arabic
• Xanthan Gum (depends on source)
• Mastic Gum Lactic Acid
• Citric Acid (depends on source)
• Ascorbic Acid (depends on source)
• Coffee
• Tea
• Psyllium Husk

What’s NOT included in a Paleo Diet?

Sometimes the bigger question is “What foods are NOT okay on the Paleo diet?” 

No Grains on Paleo

• Amaranth
• Barley
• Buckwheat
• Bulgur
• Corn
• Hominy
• Kamut
• Oats
• Quinoa
• Rice
• Rye
• Sorghum
• Spelt
• Teff
• Triticale
• Wheat
• Wheat Berries

Legume-Free on Paleo

• Beans
• Lentils
• Peanuts
• Peas
• Soy and Soy derivatives
• Tempeh

Dairy-Free on Paleo

• Caseinates
• Cheeses
• Cream
• Evaporated Milk
• Milk
• Milk Derivatives
• Yogurts

Miscallanious Ingredients to Avoid

• Acesulfame Potassium
• Alcohol Sugars with the exception of naturally-derived alcohol sugars
• Artificial and natural esters
• Aspartame
• BHA and BHT
• Caramel
• Citric Acid e330
• Coloring Derived from coal
• Corn Syrups
• Cyclamates
• Essences
• FD&C Blue No. 1
• FD&C Blue No. 2
• FD&C Green No. 3
• FD&C Red No. 40
• FD&C Yellow No. 5
• FD&C Yellow No. 6
• Glutamates
• Guanylates
• Hexamine
• Inosinates
• Neotame
• Flavors created in a laboratory by blending either “natural” chemicals or “synthetic” chemicals to create flavorings
• Petroleum
• Potassium Acesulphame
• Potassium Ferrocyanide
• Propionic Acid and Propionates
• Refined Sugars
• Sodium Ethyl Para Hydroxybenzoate
• Tar
• Tartrazine
• TBHQ
• Tetramine

Please share: