If you discover you're gluten intolerant, your first reaction is often mild panic. Cookies, cakes, pasta, cereals - it seems like you'll have to give up all your favorite foods, now what's left to eat? We tell you how to organize comfortable meals on a gluten-free diet.
Step 1. Identify enemies by sight
The first step is to find and eliminate foods and dishes containing gluten from the menu. There are a lot of them.
The obvious things that everyone knows include:
- cereals (wheat, rye, barley, semolina, bulgur, spelt, couscous and spelt);
- products made from wheat: flour, bread, cookies and cakes, pasta, breakfast cereals, children's cereals.
And if everything is clear about flour and cereals, many people are still unaware of some products containing gluten.
For example:
- store-bought dairy products containing additives and thickeners (curds, yogurt, cheese curds, powdered milk, processed cheese),
- semi-finished meat and fish products (especially breaded),
- dumplings, pancakes, dumplings,
- ice cream (not just because of the waffles, the ice cream itself often contains gluten),
- hot dogs, canned foods, imitation seafood ("crab meat" and "crab sticks"),
- chips, bread and crackers.
Gluten and wheat proteins can form colorants and food additives. Therefore, even seasonings and broths, sauces (soy, ketchup, teriyaki, tomato paste, many other sauces where flour is used to thicken), chocolate, coffee andalcoholic beverages (beer, vodka, whiskey, drinks with dyes or flavors and aromatic additives).
Recommendations
- Read labels carefully. Pay attention to traces of gluten in the preparation. Whenever possible, choose products labeled "Gluten-free" or "Gluten-free, " which can be found in the kosher section of the supermarket.
- Use whole foods to cook: fresh meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and oils.
Step 2: Replace gluten with healthy alternatives
Flour from grains and legumes - instead of wheat.
- Flour for bread, pasta, cakes, pancakes and desserts can be made from grains, nuts and legumes.
- Flour made from buckwheat, rice, chickpeas, soybeans, flaxseed, corn, almonds is perfect for these dishes. It's easy to make it yourself, just grind the ingredients in a special blender.
Important things to know about preparing the dough
- To get the most out of your homemade flour, we recommend soaking the seeds and nuts first and then drying them in a dehydrator. This will reduce the phytic acid concentration in the grain, hindering the normal absorption of minerals from the plant.
- It is better to grind the flour into small portions immediately before cooking. This will help avoid oxidation of the grain and preserve all the beneficial substances.
Breakfast isn't just oatmeal and bread
- There are many equally delicious alternatives: homemade yogurt from a fermenter, potato pancakes, colorful smoothies and bowls, pancakes and pancakes made from buckwheat or rice flour.
- You can make healthy green buckwheat granola in a dehydrator or cereal in a blender for breakfast.
- If you can hardly imagine your morning without porridge, then buckwheat, rice, millet, gluten-free oatmeal, amaranth and flaxseed will come to the rescue.
Legumes and grains - instead of pasta
- For lunch, as a side dish, you can eat gluten-free legumes or grains (rice, quinoa, polenta, millet, amaranth, buckwheat, cornmeal).
- You can replace your regular pasta with rice, buckwheat, and bean noodles or make pasta from gluten-free flour.
- Meat and fish can be breaded with ground cornmeal and the dough can be made from mung beans or rice flour.
- It's easy to thicken gravies and sauces using potato or corn starch.
- Instead of store-bought bouillon cubes and mixes, try homemade seasonings: dry vegetables and herbs in a dehydrator or blend them in a food processor or blender. You will get a natural aromatic spice. Powder made from dried mushrooms or jerky adds rich flavor to broths and sauces.
Gluten-free snacks
- For snacks, try homemade chips or gluten-free bread in the dehydrator.
- Chunks of meat and fish can be dried to create natural and satisfying snacks.
Dessert has not been canceled
- Use grains or rice flour to make them.
- Instead of store-bought cream, use coconut cream or homemade coconut yogurt from a fermenter.
A good alternative to store-bought sweets are dehydrated chips and cakes, as well as healthy candy made with nuts and dried fruit (no oatmeal).
Step 3. Organize gluten-free food for baby
- Prepare the same dishes, only from flour and gluten-free cereals (we discussed options for pasta and cereals above).
- Try making pancakes, pancakes or cheesecake using coconut, buckwheat or rice flour.
- Dumplings and dumplings can also be made from rice flour.
- Sweet bars, cookies and candies can be made from nuts, dried fruit and cocoa crushed in a blender (and even turn it into a joint game, such as making shaped cookiesdifferent from coconut and banana).
- Don't forget fried vegetables and fruits (instead of store-bought crackers), marshmallows, and natural ice cream.
Gluten-free recipe ideas
| Menu number 1 | Menu number 2 |
Breakfast Fresh fruit flax porridge |
Breakfast Green buckwheat granola + boiled eggs |
Dinner Pumpkin soup with flax bread and avocado salad |
Dinner Homemade borscht with cashew sour cream Cabbage rolls with soybeans and bean sprouts |
Afternoon snack Fresh vegetables with homemade hummus |
Afternoon snack Avocado bread is gluten-free |
Dinner Zucchini pasta in tomato sauce with herbs |
Dinner Risotto with curry chicken feet and cashews |