I have spoken to a lot of dog owners that only give their dogs soft food, or kibbles. But which one is better? After consulting with my vet it turns out It is not reccomendable to give your dog only one type of food because they also need variety. The best nutrition plan for your dog is a very individual affair, and something to discuss with your dog food specialist. So today I bring you a homemade dog food recipe to change your furry friend’s diet.
Cream Salads VS Kibble for Dogs
Cream foods for dogs like the “Cream Salad With Chicken for Dogs” that we will make today are easy to digest. Sometimes a vet might recommend homemade dog food recipe creamy food for dogs that have a belly problem.
The thing I personally like the most about cream salads for dogs? You can pack them with fresh or boiled veggies that are full of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc. Depending on the vegetable you choose. In other words you can be completely in control of your dog’s daily nutrition.
Hard foods for dogs like kibble are good for your dog’s teeth and they are also full of vitamins that are good for your dog. Sometimes if you’re out of time and homemade food for dogs they can be quite the life saver.
Occasionaly it is a very good idea to give your dog liquid food like soups or stews. Make sure you do this once every 10 days.
How to make your homemade dog food recipe: Cream salad with chicken for dogs
Every time I prepare homemad food for dogs I always ask myself the same question:
Should I bake or boil the ingredients?
And the answer is simple:
Both are OK depending on how much time you’ve got.
Here’s the long answer:
Baking food for dogs is better for them because all the important stuff (vitamins, minerals…) stays inside. The downside? It takes more time and costs more.
Boiling food for dogs is only a good idea if you’re making soup or stew because most of the nutritious stuff stays in the water. Sometimes you might not have enough time to wait for the food to bake so it might be easier to boil everything together and be done with it.
Shredding fresh veggies for dogs is my favorite, but this might present a challenge because not all dogs like vegetables. So the best way to ensure they will eat veggies (sme can be appplied to kids) is to mix them up inside a cream salad that also has meat.
What veggies & fruit to use when making cream salad for dogs
In this recipe I added boiled sweet potatoes, fresh carrots and apple.
Adding boiled (or baked) sweet potatoe gives a creamy texture to this salad and binds all the ingredients together. You can substitute the sweet potatoe for cauliflower or pumpkin. They will give your salad the same creamy effect.
The fresh carrots and apple are easy to shred and serve as the crunchy part of this cream salad for dogs. You can also use shredded cucumber, broccoly, and zucchini if you’d like.
If you want to juice this cream salad up becuse you’re unsure if your dog will eat all those veggies you can always add some bacon to this meal. Bacon is extremely tasty to dogs and adding it to homemade food will ensure they will eat it.
- 1 lb (450g.) chicken breast
- ½ lb bacon (225g) chopped
- 2 medium sweet potatoes (1 lb or 450 g.) chopped
- 1 tsp dry basil or 1 tbsp fresh basil
- 2 medium or large carrots shredded
- 2 medium or large apples deseeded, peeled and shredded
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or olive oil
Step 1.
Place the chicken, bacon, and sweet potatoes inside a saucepan and fill it with water just enough to cover the ingredients. Bring to a light boil and add the basil. Turn the heat down to medium and simmer for 30 minutes.
Step 2.
Prepare the veggies and fruit. Wash the carrots and apples, deseed and peel the apples (no need to peel the carrots) and shred them. Set aside.
Step 3.
When the chicken is cooked and no longer pink inside and the sweet potatoe has softened remove them from heat, drain the water and blend with a food processor. Add the coconut oil or olive oil inside the food processor.
If you have an immersive blender this will work too, but you might need to chop the cooked chicken first.
If you have no blenders at home chop the chicken, mash the sweet potatoes and return the chicken to the saucepan. Mix well.
Step 4.
Once the chicken and sweet potatoes are mashed, add the shredded carrots and apples to the saucepan. Mix everything by hand and voila, you have got a tasty cream salad with chicken (and possibly bacon) for your dog.
Step 5.
Give 1 cup of this cream salad to a 10 lb dog. You can add 1 cup of kibble to this salad.
By the time you are finished blending and mixing it will cool down and you can serve it right away.
This food is freezer-friendly and will keep fresh up to 3 months in the freezer. So feel free to make a bigger batch.
You’ll be able to find a lot of tasty gourmet food for dogs like this one on our website. The cream salad with chicken is only the beginning but expect to find cream salad with beef, liver, fish, and similar later on.
Bon appétit!
