It’s time for a back to basics: gluten-free review. The words gluten-free may have become more common over the past 15 years, but their meaning is often lost. Last week, a vegan restaurant informed me that their spaghetti was gluten-free because it didn’t have flour. In fact, the pasta was made with wheat flour. This is an easy mistake given that few of us make fresh pasta. If your household primarily buys packaged food, you simply may not know the ingredients in noodles.
Given this, perhaps it’s best to begin with a review of common foods that are suspect or must be avoided on a gluten-free diet: Bread, buns, & biscuits (including most cornbread), rolls, pancakes, waffles, naan, pita, croutons, crackers, matzah, graham crackers, cereal, bran, pretzels, some chips, couscous, tabbouleh, pasta, pizza, sandwiches, wraps, burritos, enchiladas, breaded chicken tenders or nuggets, breaded fish, meatballs, meatloaf, thickened soups, stew, gumbo, gravy, onion rings, donuts, pastries, pie, cake, cookies, creme pies, baklava, filo dough, granola bars, fruit bars, malts, malted milk balls, some other candies, beer. Even pot roast is sometimes dredged in flour prior to cooking.
The above is not a comprehensive list. Wheat, rye, barley, and malt show up in many forms. Sauces and condiments are often suspect: alfredo, creole sauce, crème sauce, demi-glace, mayonnaise, miso, soy sauce, wine sauces, tomato paste and sauce. And sometimes things that sound wrong are okay, like buckwheat.
Here’s a more comprehensive list of possible problematic items for anyone living a zero gluten lifestyle:
- Barley
- Barley Grass
- Barley Malt
- Beer (there are GF varieties)
- Bleached Flour
- Bran
- Bread Flour
- Brewer’s Yeast
- Brown Flour
- Bulgur Wheat
- Cookie Crumbs
- Cookie Dough
- Couscous
- Durum wheat
- Edible Coatings
- Edible Films
- Edible Starch
- Enriched Bleached Flour
- Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour
- Enriched Flour
- Farina
- Farina Graham
- Farro
- Filler
- Flour
- Fu
- Germ
- Graham Flour
- Groats
- Hard Wheat
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch
- Kamut
- Maida
- Malt
- Malted Barley Flour
- Malted Milk
- Malt Extract
- Malt Flavoring
- Malt Vinegar
- Matza
- Matzo
- Matzo Semolina
- Orzo Pasta
- Pasta
- Pearl Barley
- Triticum
- Roux
- Rusk
- Rye
- Semolina
- Semolina Triticum
- Spelt
- Sprouted Wheat or Barley
- Tabbouleh
- Unbleached Flour
- Vital Wheat Gluten
- Wheat
- Wheat Bran Extract
- Wheat Germ Extract
- Wheat Nuts
- Wheat Protein
- Whole-Meal Flour
- The following items sometimes contain gluten:
- Artificial Color
- Baking Powder
- Boxed Cereals
- Broth
- Caramel Color
- Caramel Flavoring
- Clarifying Agents
- Coloring
- Dextrin’s
- Dextrimaltose
- Dry Roasted Nuts
- Emulsifiers
- Enzymes
- Fat Replacer
- Flavoring
- Food Starch
- Food Starch Modified
- Glucose Syrup
- HPP
- HVP
- Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
- Hydrolyzed Protein
- Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate
- Hydroxypropylated Starch
- Maltose
- Miso
- Modified Food Starch (may be corn based)
- Modified Starch
- Natural Flavoring
- Salad Dressing
- Natural Flavors
- Non-dairy Creamer
- Oats
- Seasonings
- Soba noodles
- Soy Sauce
- Soup
- Stabilizers
- Starch
- Tomato Paste
- Vegetable Gum
- Vegetable Starch
- Vitamins
- Wheat Starch
Listed in detail, these lists can seem overwhelming. More simply, avoid wheat, rye, barley, malt and any products made from them plus oats in the US unless they’re certified gluten-free.
While there are many products that contain gluten, it is possible to have nutritious, delicious, and satisfying food while living gluten-free. And at Cooking2Thrive we’re here to answer questions, and to provide education and lifestyle support products.