Do you have signs of gluten intolerance or want to limit your consumption? Since gluten is present in a large number of foods and preparations, to avoid making a mistake, here is the list of ingredients to avoid in order to successfully achieve your gluten-free diet.
These foods naturally contain gluten
The basis of any ingredient that naturally contains gluten are cereals: wheat, barley and rye. Once harvested, these are processed, giving rise to breakfast cereal mixes, bread, pastries, pasta, semolina or bulgur. In short, everyday products, present in many recipes, many of which cannot be done without, and this is why it is often said that it is difficult to start a gluten-free diet.
Cereals: the source of gluten
Wheat, the most common, is used to make flour, and therefore bread, pasta, semolina, couscous or even bulgur. Barley, this cereal is found more in beer, maltings, yeasts, and even soups, such as miso soup. Also, be careful because barley is present in soy sauce. Soy is certainly guaranteed gluten-free, but in sauce, barley is enough to transform the preparation into a source of gluten. If you eat sushi (the great authorized pleasure of gluten-free diets since rice and fish do not contain it), avoid this seasoning. Finally, rye, a cereal quite common in bakeries (where rye bread is prepared in particular) and spelt, are sources of gluten.
What are gluten-free grains?
Rice, millet and oats are gluten-free grains. Be careful to read the information on the package (certifying a gluten-free product), since oats are sometimes processed in the same environment as wheat.
Surprising products that contain gluten
In the food industry, it happens that products that are initially gluten-free (such as vegetables) contain it. The reason? Wheat proteins are often used as an additive or to increase the weight of products, and thus increase the price. You wouldn’t expect it, and yet some spice mixes in the supermarket are often made up of wheat starch or flour to increase the weight of the bag. So read the labels on the packaging carefully, since there could also be traces of gluten in packets of crisps, chips or canned sauces.
In industrial soups, even if they only contain vegetables (gluten-free foods), flour is commonly used to thicken their texture. The vinegar in which the pickles are soaked also contains gluten, at least if it is malt vinegar, from barley, a source of gluten. Again, read the labels carefully. With additives, chocolate can also contain gluten, in this case choose a chocolate with at least 70% cocoa. Finally, although meat does not naturally contain gluten, during the processing of cold cuts, starch can be added to it. A method to make its consistency more elastic. As part of a gluten-free diet, cold cuts should be avoided.
In short, anything that is prepared industrially is likely to contain gluten. To find out if other supermarket products contain it, read the labels on the packaging carefully. This will allow you to check if the product you are looking at contains traces of the cereals mentioned above.
What alternative to gluten?
Products that naturally contain gluten, such as pasta and bread, now come in gluten-free versions. Look for them in the dedicated sections, otherwise, the package will say “gluten-free”. These products are actually made from rice flour, buckwheat flour, or both, because these flours are gluten-free and are a great replacement for traditional wheat flour. The taste will be slightly different, but we assure you, pleasure and frustration are guaranteed!
Otherwise, a multitude of foods do not contain gluten, such as rice, quinoa, potatoes, corn, coral lentils, buckwheat, soy, fruits, vegetables, meat, cheese and fish! So don’t close yourself off to the little pleasures of a sushi evening (replacing the soy sauce with tamari sauce), pizzas made with rice and buckwheat flour bread, or a delicious gluten-free pasta dish with tomatoes and basil.
