gluten-free Meat For Holidays Is Easy

[lovegrov]

Given that we're closing in on the holidays, I think it's time for a reminder that might help make things a little less stressful.

Picking a meat -- turkey, ham, pork, seafood, chicken, etc. -- is easy. The USDA has for years required that ANY grain added to a meat be listed. This means that wheat, rye, barley, or oats would be clearly a part of the ingredients. If a meat says it has flavoring, broth, and so on, but does not list a grain with gluten, it's gluten-free. You might not want those additives for taste or health reasons, but they're still gluten-free.

Always read ingredients, but in more than 7 years I have yet to find an unstuffed turkey that wasn't gluten-free. Same with chicken and seafood. Almost all UNGLAZED hams have been gluten-free, but commercial glazes frequently contain wheat. In that case, the wheat will be listed.

There are, of course, many things to be careful about during the holidays, but picking a meat or determining whether you can have one should be easy.

richard

[Juliebove]

But... Beware of sauces! One of the popular spiral sliced hams has a glaze that contains gluten. The ham is fine. The glaze is not.

[lovegrov]

"But... Beware of sauces! One of the popular spiral sliced hams has a glaze that contains gluten. The ham is fine. The glaze is not."

Indeed. As I noted in my original post, you must check glazed hams.

richard