Ingredients----What Am I Looking For?

[no7ang]

Hi i am very new to what i can or can't eat and only started gluten free today----i have spent most of the day worrying and starving!!!! kept safe with eggs and fruit!!!

 

im not a natural cook and due to heavy work load tend to grab a take away on the way home, obviously too scared to do that now. anyway its just gone 2am (and due to being wide awake through hunger) i have just got back from attempting to do a gluten free shop, i have spent 2 hours in the store and came away with practically nothing as i don't feel confident understanding the labels, i ended up in the 'free from' aisle which i have to say was disappointing as very limited and expensive. i did buy some gluten free pitta bread but then didn't know what i could have with it----i know to look for wheat---but what else do i need to look for on ingredient lists?

thanks in advance.

[mamaw]

Look  for things  with no gluten. Wheat  free  does  not  mean gluten free  so look  for  gluten free.......there  are  many  gluten-free   frozen meals to  choose  from...Not  sure  which  pitas  you purchased but  if  they  are  gluten-free  you  should be okay.... gluten sensitivities  vary  greatly  among  us  some  not  so  sensitive  others  very sensitive..you  will  figure that  out  as you go  along....I  would  suggest  starting out  eating  "naked " foods  meaning  no  marinades,  coatings, rubs   or  already  spiced  foods...Your  intestinal tract needs to be  pampered  in the beginning  so  think  plain meats,  fish,  fruits & veggies  in their  natural  state.Many have  trouble  eating  gluten free  processed  foods  in the  beginning.

Wheat   has many  names ie:  wheat, fara, eikhorn, spelt &  so on  , all  members  of the  wheat  family  ...also no  rye  or  barley.

No  malt products, soy  sauce contains  wheat, beer are  a few things to  watch out  for. the good  news  is  there  are alternatives  to  almost  any  wheat  food  these days....

The  bad  news  is  a lot of us  must  order  mailorder  to find  the  best of the best.....

Start out  slowly  with the basics   & take  it  step  by step  as  there is  a  learning  curve  .When you mastered  that  move  on and  add  another  step and so on...

Since  you  said  you are  not  a  suzie  homemaker  here are  some  things  to  purchase  that  are  excellent....

BiAglut  pasta the  best

tinkyada   pasta an  easy find

many more  brands....

 

amy's  gluten free  meals

 

conte's  ready  made  gluten-free  pasta  dishes.

 

joan's  gluten-free  great  bakes   bagels, pizzas   English muffins  &  more

 

against the  grain has  pizzas  &  baguettes

 

celiac  specialites  has the best donuts  & more

 

Udi's  ,  Rudi's  and  canyon bakehouse  has  breads. pizza & more

 

 

Progresso  has  many gluten-free  soups all clearly  labeled.

 

Bell &  Evans  has  chicken  nuggets,  strips

several  other  also  have  nuggets

 

Kind  bars, comfort  bars, Athena  bars, Uber  bars  are  gluten-free  plus  a  ton more 

It  is  a  good  idea  that  you  carry  a  gluten-free  goodie  bag  in your  car, purse,  at  work  so  you  are never  left  without  anything to  eat.....protein  bars, nuts, pretzels  all gluten-free  of  course...

fruit  & veggies  with  a  dip  make  a good  snack, popcorn, tortilla  chips &  salsa (gluten-free)...hummus  &  chips.. peanut  butter, applesauce yogurt , gluten-free  crackers....cheese.....

lots  of  gluten-free  restaurants:

Smokey Bones

Carrabas

red  robin

outback

chili's

Wendy's

burger  king

texas  roadhouse

longhorn  steakhouse

five  guys

chipotle

PF Chang's  Pei Wei

to help  you heal   take  digestive  enzymes   and  probiotics......

 

hth 

anything  you  crave let us know &  we  can  tell you  where  to  find  it.........

Buy  yourself  a  few  sweets or  candy  so  you  don't  feel  food  deprived...snickers,  hersey kisses,

[tarnalberry]

Shop the outskirts of the store.  Buy meats and cheese and eggs and beans and veggies and fruits.  Skip all the packaged stuff and learn to make REALLY EASY stuff.  Sautee chicken and have it with rice.  Have a peach for dessert.  Eat a carrot and dip it in hummus if you want.

 

What sorts of foods do you already eat and what do you consider to be cooking or not cooking?  (Is making a sandwhich cooking to you?)  Do you have time on the weekends to make large batches of things that you can eat during the week?

[no7ang]

Look  for things  with no gluten. Wheat  free  does  not  mean gluten free  so look  for  gluten free.......there  are  many  gluten-free   frozen meals to  choose  from...Not  sure  which  pitas  you purchased but  if  they  are  gluten-free  you  should be okay.... gluten sensitivities  vary  greatly  among  us  some  not  so  sensitive  others  very sensitive..you  will  figure that  out  as you go  along....I  would  suggest  starting out  eating  "naked " foods  meaning  no  marinades,  coatings, rubs   or  already  spiced  foods...Your  intestinal tract needs to be  pampered  in the beginning  so  think  plain meats,  fish,  fruits & veggies  in their  natural  state.Many have  trouble  eating  gluten free  processed  foods  in the  beginning.

Wheat   has many  names ie:  wheat, fara, eikhorn, spelt &  so on  , all  members  of the  wheat  family  ...also no  rye  or  barley.

No  malt products, soy  sauce contains  wheat, beer are  a few things to  watch out  for. the good  news  is  there  are alternatives  to  almost  any  wheat  food  these days....

The  bad  news  is  a lot of us  must  order  mailorder  to find  the  best of the best.....

Start out  slowly  with the basics   & take  it  step  by step  as  there is  a  learning  curve  .When you mastered  that  move  on and  add  another  step and so on...

Since  you  said  you are  not  a  suzie  homemaker  here are  some  things  to  purchase  that  are  excellent....

BiAglut  pasta the  best

tinkyada   pasta an  easy find

many more  brands....

 

amy's  gluten free  meals

 

conte's  ready  made  gluten-free  pasta  dishes.

 

joan's  gluten-free  great  bakes   bagels, pizzas   English muffins  &  more

 

against the  grain has  pizzas  &  baguettes

 

celiac  specialites  has the best donuts  & more

 

Udi's  ,  Rudi's  and  canyon bakehouse  has  breads. pizza & more

 

 

Progresso  has  many gluten-free  soups all clearly  labeled.

 

Bell &  Evans  has  chicken  nuggets,  strips

several  other  also  have  nuggets

 

Kind  bars, comfort  bars, Athena  bars, Uber  bars  are  gluten-free  plus  a  ton more 

It  is  a  good  idea  that  you  carry  a  gluten-free  goodie  bag  in your  car, purse,  at  work  so  you  are never  left  without  anything to  eat.....protein  bars, nuts, pretzels  all gluten-free  of  course...

fruit  & veggies  with  a  dip  make  a good  snack, popcorn, tortilla  chips &  salsa (gluten-free)...hummus  &  chips.. peanut  butter, applesauce yogurt , gluten-free  crackers....cheese.....

lots  of  gluten-free  restaurants:

Smokey Bones

Carrabas

red  robin

outback

chili's

Wendy's

burger  king

texas  roadhouse

longhorn  steakhouse

five  guys

chipotle

PF Chang's  Pei Wei

to help  you heal   take  digestive  enzymes   and  probiotics......

 

hth 

anything  you  crave let us know &  we  can  tell you  where  to  find  it.........

Buy  yourself  a  few  sweets or  candy  so  you  don't  feel  food  deprived...snickers,  hersey kisses,

 

 

Look  for things  with no gluten. Wheat  free  does  not  mean gluten free  so look  for  gluten free.......there  are  many  gluten-free   frozen meals to  choose  from...Not  sure  which  pitas  you purchased but  if  they  are  gluten-free  you  should be okay.... gluten sensitivities  vary  greatly  among  us  some  not  so  sensitive  others  very sensitive..you  will  figure that  out  as you go  along....I  would  suggest  starting out  eating  "naked " foods  meaning  no  marinades,  coatings, rubs   or  already  spiced  foods...Your  intestinal tract needs to be  pampered  in the beginning  so  think  plain meats,  fish,  fruits & veggies  in their  natural  state.Many have  trouble  eating  gluten free  processed  foods  in the  beginning.

Wheat   has many  names ie:  wheat, fara, eikhorn, spelt &  so on  , all  members  of the  wheat  family  ...also no  rye  or  barley.

No  malt products, soy  sauce contains  wheat, beer are  a few things to  watch out  for. the good  news  is  there  are alternatives  to  almost  any  wheat  food  these days....

The  bad  news  is  a lot of us  must  order  mailorder  to find  the  best of the best.....

Start out  slowly  with the basics   & take  it  step  by step  as  there is  a  learning  curve  .When you mastered  that  move  on and  add  another  step and so on...

Since  you  said  you are  not  a  suzie  homemaker  here are  some  things  to  purchase  that  are  excellent....

BiAglut  pasta the  best

tinkyada   pasta an  easy find

many more  brands....

 

amy's  gluten free  meals

 

conte's  ready  made  gluten-free  pasta  dishes.

 

joan's  gluten-free  great  bakes   bagels, pizzas   English muffins  &  more

 

against the  grain has  pizzas  &  baguettes

 

celiac  specialites  has the best donuts  & more

 

Udi's  ,  Rudi's  and  canyon bakehouse  has  breads. pizza & more

 

 

Progresso  has  many gluten-free  soups all clearly  labeled.

 

Bell &  Evans  has  chicken  nuggets,  strips

several  other  also  have  nuggets

 

Kind  bars, comfort  bars, Athena  bars, Uber  bars  are  gluten-free  plus  a  ton more 

It  is  a  good  idea  that  you  carry  a  gluten-free  goodie  bag  in your  car, purse,  at  work  so  you  are never  left  without  anything to  eat.....protein  bars, nuts, pretzels  all gluten-free  of  course...

fruit  & veggies  with  a  dip  make  a good  snack, popcorn, tortilla  chips &  salsa (gluten-free)...hummus  &  chips.. peanut  butter, applesauce yogurt , gluten-free  crackers....cheese.....

lots  of  gluten-free  restaurants:

Smokey Bones

Carrabas

red  robin

outback

chili's

Wendy's

burger  king

texas  roadhouse

longhorn  steakhouse

five  guys

chipotle

PF Chang's  Pei Wei

to help  you heal   take  digestive  enzymes   and  probiotics......

 

hth 

anything  you  crave let us know &  we  can  tell you  where  to  find  it.........

Buy  yourself  a  few  sweets or  candy  so  you  don't  feel  food  deprived...snickers,  hersey kisses,

wow--thank you so much, your right about starting with the basic's and although i had cleared the cupboards yesterday--failed to re stock with anything substantial!!! your right this is a learning curve and as daunting as some of this is i am so looking forward to feeling myself again--although realise this could take some time with trips and falls along the way--with great people like you and others on this site i don't feel so alone.

 

Shop the outskirts of the store.  Buy meats and cheese and eggs and beans and veggies and fruits.  Skip all the packaged stuff and learn to make REALLY EASY stuff.  Sautee chicken and have it with rice.  Have a peach for dessert.  Eat a carrot and dip it in hummus if you want.

 

What sorts of foods do you already eat and what do you consider to be cooking or not cooking?  (Is making a sandwhich cooking to you?)  Do you have time on the weekends to make large batches of things that you can eat during the week?

yes, could make more effort re the cooking---think i have just got a bit lazy since the kids have left home, but will definitely make more effort now as seems the best (only) way forward for now 

PS am delighted that i can have hummus!!!! i could just be over reacting by being scared of EVERYTHING!!!! 

thank you

[w8in4dave]

It is over whelming and scary! At least for me!! I don't know what I would do w/o this place! Did some one tell you about the Newbie thread? It is very informative! Very!! Good Luck!  

[mommy2krj]

wow--thank you so much, your right about starting with the basic's and although i had cleared the cupboards yesterday--failed to re stock with anything substantial!!! your right this is a learning curve and as daunting as some of this is i am so looking forward to feeling myself again--although realise this could take some time with trips and falls along the way--with great people like you and others on this site i don't feel so alone.

 

yes, could make more effort re the cooking---think i have just got a bit lazy since the kids have left home, but will definitely make more effort now as seems the best (only) way forward for now 

PS am delighted that i can have hummus!!!! i could just be over reacting by being scared of EVERYTHING!!!! 

thank you

I over reacted too. But you know what? If the people that make the food would put the ingredients in plain English...we wouldn't have to over react! Gluten should be gluten should be gluten....not some word that is 20 letters long that no one can pronounce! It makes it that much harder to teach my 6 year old what he needs to watch out for. He knows he needs to read ingredients but right now he can only look for wheat and gluten. Oy.

Good luck! We're on our 2nd week of being gluten free and so far we're doing ok. We had lots of graduation/birthday parties in there and so far we have survived them without too many meltdowns. Looking forward to the one this weekend as the wonderful young man that invited us to his grad party made sure to point out for my little guy that there will be lots of gluten free options as he has a younger sibling with the same issues. So many inspiring teenagers graduated this year!

[1desperateladysaved]

A quick Easy protein for breakfast:  Poached eggs

 

Fill fry pan with water put on stovetop with high heat.

Meanwhile crack eggs.  (Keep them whole if possible)

When water boils, turn the heat to medium.

Cook about 5 minutes or until slightly soft.

Enjoy

 

I hope you can eat eggs.

[Nikki2777]

What might make it a little easier when you're looking for foods that don't explicitly say "Gluten Free" is that you're looking for things WITHOUT wheat, barley, rye and (for now) oats, in them.  Many things won't say "gluten" as an ingredient, but they might say one of the above.  (There are also a few more complicated ingredients to look for -- you can find them in the resources on this site, but they're not as common)

 

I promise you it gets easier!  I'm only 5 months into this, and I feel like it's not a big deal anymore (except for breakfast, which I still struggle with getting enough variety).  You will find your favorite brands and if you don't want to cook, there are starting to be a lot of gluten-free convenience meals out there.  But, I do encourage starting to cook more, the feeling of control is awesome.

 

Good luck.

[GFreeSweetie]

I know, it's so intimidating at first!! I found tons of support online and even just by asking fellow shoppers in the gluten-free aisles at the grocery store! I’ve come to realize that living gluten-free is just that –it’s a lifestyle. I’m learning to fall in love with the gluten-free lifestyle, and treat it like an adventure, and everything is a new and exciting experiment. The way gluten-free ingredients work together sometimes has unique characteristics, and I never would have discovered these things if it wasn’t for this lifestyle change. I’ve even found that I prefer my gluten-free ingredients in many of my old recipes (my husband even prefers cookies using gluten-free flour now—and he’s not allergic to gluten)!

 

Once you get over the “fear of the unknown” let yourself have fun with this new territory. You may be surprised by how much you like it!!!

[IrishHeart]

maybe this will help? hang in there!

 

https://www.celiac.com/forums/topic/91878-newbie-info-101/

[BeccaMeadows]

Some ingredients I have been told to watch out for include tomatoe puree (often found in refried beans) and modified corn starch (found in almost everything).  Apparently wheat is often used to thicken it, so if you want to know for sure if it is gluten-free you have to call the manufacturer.

[kareng]

Some ingredients I have been told to watch out for include tomatoe puree (often found in refried beans) and modified corn starch (found in almost everything).  Apparently wheat is often used to thicken it, so if you want to know for sure if it is gluten-free you have to call the manufacturer.

In the US & Canada, labeling laws would require the wheat to be listed on tomato purée. Corn starch is safe for Celiacs unless you have an additional issue with corn. If wheat is used to thicken a food, it must be listed.