Gluten-Free Tips

Gluten occurs in lots of the foods we like to eat and is an important functional ingredient. Following a gluten-free diet can therefore be difficult, so we’ve come up with some top tips for living gluten free.

1. If you’re travelling away from home or going on holiday, take the gluten-free foods you rely on with you, eg snacks, breakfast cereal and Genius bread.

2. When eating out, take gluten-free bread, pasta and pizza bases with you. Most restaurants will be happy to use these as part of your chosen dish.

3. Gluten is hidden in a number of ingredients that are widely used in our cooking. Use wine instead of beer in casseroles, Tamari sauce in place of soy sauce in oriental cooking, fresh stock in place of stock cubes and brown rice or quinoa instead of couscous and cracked wheat.

4. Always check the label for ingredients – gluten is present in wheat, rye, barley, oats and their derivatives. Malt is made from roasted barley and is also rich in gluten.

5. Look for the Crossed Grain symbol when shopping for gluten-free products. Coeliac UK has approved them as being gluten free.

6. Try using Genius bread in one of our tasty recipes and let us know what you think!

7. Check out Lucinda’s book – ‘How to Cook For Food Allergies’ – to learn how to adapt recipes for your gluten-free diet, and cook a delicious gluten-free meal for your family or friends.

8. Wholemeal bread and other gluten-rich foods are a rich source of carbohydrate, protein, dietary fibre, vitamins and minerals. To ensure your gluten-free diet is balanced, eat gluten-free breakfast cereals, bread and pasta, pulses, gluten-free whole grains such as brown rice, quinoa and millet and vegetables, fruit, meat, fish, eggs and dairy produce.

9. For gluten-free soups, sauces and gravies, substitute wheat flour with the same amount of rice flour or cornflour for thickening.