So you now want to live gluten-free?
As we are well aware that it is not so simple to suddenly eliminate gluten from your diet, we would like to give you some useful hints about substitutes which you can use. A gluten-free diet requires a complete change of diet and new shopping habits. However, it is not as difficult as it first appears. Some members of the International ImuPro team can confirm this, because they have also decided to eliminate gluten from their diet and to find tasty alternatives. We will show you what to look out for when shopping and which gluten-free cereals you can use for your gluten-free diet.
Unfortunately, gluten is also present where you would not even suspect it. Many semi-cooked and ready-made meals contain gluten, as gluten is a good carrier material for aromas and is used as an emulsifier. If you want to be certain that you are buying gluten-free food, it is essential to look at the list of ingredients. As of 25 December 2005, in the EU the 14 main allergens must be highlighted in the list of ingredients. This also includes gluten. Because of this, it is helpful to take a look at the list of ingredients to see whether or not the products contain gluten.
In case of loose goods (e.g. from the butcher) we recommend that you specifically ask whether they contain gluten. Hint: Briefly explain that gluten is a protein from the following types of grain: wheat, spelt, rye, oats, barley and green spelt. In this way you can make sure that the butcher does not confuse these with other ingredients which sound similar, but which have nothing to do with gluten, e.g. glutamate.
Gluten mainly occurs in various types of grain:
- Wheat
- Spelt
- Rye
- Oats
- Barley
- Green spelt
Gluten-free grain types:
- Rice, wild rice
- Maize
- Millet
- Buckwheat
- Amaranth
- Quinoa
- Teff
In their unprocessed form, the following foods are free of gluten:
- Fruit and vegetables
- Potatoes, salads
- Milk, plain yoghurt
- Buttermilk, quark
- Butter, plain cream cheese
- Natural cheese
- Vegetable oils
- Meat
- Fish and shellfish
- Sugar
- Honey, jam, marmalade, maple syrup
- Nuts
- Legumes
- Pure spices and herbs
- Eggs
Gluten-free recipes
Rice flour rolls
4 portions
Ingredients
120g rice flour
80g soya flour
7g salt
7g coriander
10g thyme, finely chopped
7g baking powder
200ml sparkling water
7ml oil according to tolerance
Preparation
Thoroughly mix the ingredients. Put the dough in a greased muffin tray and bake for about 15 min. at 180°C.
Amaranth-millet waffles
6 portions
Ingredients
200g amaranth
400g millet
Salt
7ml oil according to tolerance
Sparkling water
Preparation
Cook the amaranth in double the quantity of water and mix with ground millet and water to form a thin waffle batter. Add a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of oil. Bake in a waffle iron at high temperature.
Quick and easy casserole 2 portions
Ingredients
200g minced beef
Salt
Curry
Pepper
200g spring onions
200g red bell pepper
500ml vegetable stock
180g spiral noodles (gluten-free)
50 g tomato purée
Preparation
Sear the mince and season with salt and pepper. Cut the spring onions (1 bunch) into rings, cut the bell pepper into strips or cubes and add both to the mince and fry. Add the stock and put in the (uncooked) noodles. Boil the noodles until they are cooked and then add the tomato purée. This recipe is quick to make, tasty and can be made in many different versions. You can use your imagination and experiment with the ingredients and spices according to taste (cayenne pepper, curry, maize, pineapple, etc.).
