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Trouble With Lebanese Food?

ekdumas19

By ekdumas19
in Gluten-Free Restaurants

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ekdumas19 Apprentice
ekdumas19
Posted

Hi everyone

Today is just a miserable day because I think I was glutined yesterday. I haven't been in a long time I think because this is the worst I have felt in months. Brain fog, nauseous, etc. So I am trying to track down the source of this and suspect it may be the bit of Lebanese food I had last night. I had just half of a stuffed grape leaf and some rice with that syrian pepper(which i think is basically just cinnamon and nutmeg and stuff) and some lamb. Does anyone know how gluten friendly Lebanese food is? They use a lot of rice and the only bread things they have are cracked wheat in tabouli and syrian bread which is similar to a pita-and I obviously didn't eat any of those! I just feel so awful! Ick!

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marciab Enthusiast
marciab
Posted

"stuffed grape leaf and some rice with that syrian pepper(which i think is basically just cinnamon and nutmeg and stuff) and some lamb."

My ex is Lebanese and I love the food. The things you listed are gluten free, but "Real" pita bread is a hearty kind of bread that comes in 12" round pieces that is broken up to share with others. You normally see people just breaking off some for themselves and passing it on to the next person.

So getting cross contaminated would be so easy.

I have to add though that I am not familiar with the spice you listed, but I have noticed in the US they added wheat to one of the spices to make it go further. They do not do this in Lebanon. Zartar is the one I am referring to.

Glad you brought this up, but so sorry it happened to you. I will be very careful the next time I visit my ex's family. :o

queenofhearts Explorer
queenofhearts
Posted

One of my favorite restaurants pre-dx was a Lebanese deli... but I'm afraid to eat there now because of the possibility of cross contamination. They bake their own pitas (so there may be flour in the air or on the cooks' hands) & serve most things with them (so their hands or utensils might transfer crumbs). Also the serving containers of baba ganouj (my favorite) are in a refrigerated case right next to tabouli, so I'm afraid bits might migrate. I don't know about the lamb, since I never eat it, but the grape leaves & rice SHOULD be gluten-free-- if not cc.

Made at home these foods could be perfectly safe, but there's always a risk in a restaurant or another home. If you are very sensitive, traces of wheat on cutting boards or wooden spoons could be the culprit.

I do hope you feel better soon!

Leah

hineini Enthusiast
hineini
Posted

For what it's worth, I got really sick after eating some canned stuffed grape leaves last week - Have no idea what the cause was, I don't think I'm sensitive to grain-based vinegar so i doubt it was that. Maybe there's a common ingredient or spice in them that has gluten in it or it could easily have been CC in both our cases.

  • 1 year later...
colleenr Newbie
colleenr
Posted

You have to BE CAREFUL WITH LEBANESE PREPARED RICE. Some regions of Lebanon prepare their rice with flour noodles. You can plainly see the noodles in the rice but you might suspect they are just different grains/shapes of rice mixed in...but they are basically pasta!

And of course no Falafel or Tabouli for us either :(

  • 1 month later...
madbuy Newbie
madbuy
Posted
You have to BE CAREFUL WITH LEBANESE PREPARED RICE. Some regions of Lebanon prepare their rice with flour noodles. You can plainly see the noodles in the rice but you might suspect they are just different grains/shapes of rice mixed in...but they are basically pasta!

And of course no Falafel or Tabouli for us either :(

Hi,

I found this post and just had to prevent the rumor of Falafels not being Gluten-free.

Yo are right with Tabouli but why not Falafel??

Here in Israel (The Mother Nation of Falafels and NOT Lebanon) all Falafels are Gluten-free B)

They are made with pure corn flour and not as many think or even try (which can be very dangerous since they can explode in the oil and burn your hands or worse).

Feel free to check out the world best Falafel Recipe on another Forum I have posted it on:

Open Original Shared Link

and let me know if you have any questions. You can find all contact details in my Profile. ;)

Best Regards!

Ron

hathor Contributor
hathor
Posted

Falafel might not be gluten-free due to cross-contamination of the oil used for frying. Also some recipes call for wheat flour. I know the mixes I've seen at the store contain wheat :angry:

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hathor Contributor
hathor
Posted

Do you know how the lamb was prepared? Could it have been prepared with flour (used to coat the meat or to thicken a sauce) or a broth that contains gluten?

I've seen stuffed grape leave recipes using bulgur, rather than rice, but I think you would have noticed that.

madbuy Newbie
madbuy
Posted
Falafel might not be gluten-free due to cross-contamination of the oil used for frying. Also some recipes call for wheat flour. I know the mixes I've seen at the store contain wheat :angry:

I just can't understand how a gluten allergic person dares to eat anything he/she didn't prepare themselves.

It's pretty obvious that a Lebanese restaurant will have flour "in the air" as well as Italian, Romanian and even Chinese Restaurants are in such a sensitiv and extreme reaktion to Gluten a BIG risk.

We all work every day and hardly have time to cook, but good Time Management is the basis of a happy and healthy life :D

  • 1 year later...
Lov2BeMe Rookie
Lov2BeMe
Posted

Ok I am very new to all of this , not the gluten part but all of the hidden items in foods and trying to sort out what is poison to my body and what isn't. I read that someone got sick from Grape leaves and I'm not sure what is gluten containing in them. I am part lebanese, and I put cumin, all spice, salt, pepper, melted butter, beef, and uncle bens rice.. What contains gluten in that list?

NJKen Rookie
NJKen
Posted
Ok I am very new to all of this , not the gluten part but all of the hidden items in foods and trying to sort out what is poison to my body and what isn't. I read that someone got sick from Grape leaves and I'm not sure what is gluten containing in them. I am part lebanese, and I put cumin, all spice, salt, pepper, melted butter, beef, and uncle bens rice.. What contains gluten in that list?

All of those ingredients should be gluten-free. Some spices have flour as an ingredient, so you may want to check with your spice producer about that.

Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted
I just can't understand how a gluten allergic person dares to eat anything he/she didn't prepare themselves.

It's pretty obvious that a Lebanese restaurant will have flour "in the air" as well as Italian, Romanian and even Chinese Restaurants are in such a sensitiv and extreme reaktion to Gluten a BIG risk.

We all work every day and hardly have time to cook, but good Time Management is the basis of a happy and healthy life :D

It all depends on where you live. There are many restaurants around me which have excellent gluten-free menu's and have trained their staff on cross-contamination. I do not eat out often but when I do, I never have been glutened. No symptoms and the results of repeat blood work has always been fantastic. It can be done very successfully but it highly depends on where you live and going to certain, gluten-free friendly restaurants.

As much as I love Middle Eastern and Greek food, which have many gluten-free options, it's the CC that will make most people sick. Many of the places around me that serve these foods also have staff whose English is not that good so that is the second big problem with getting a safe meal. For certain, ethnic foods, I make them at home.

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