Ethnic Dining

[mmmSmores]

I've been doing some reading on dining out and which cultures are risky and which ones are safe for the most part. I have read that cajun style restaurants are not the safest place for gluten-free lifestyles, neither are chinese restaurants. Does anyone know about Vietnamese or Indian foods? I've read that thai, vietnamese and indian cuisine has a lot of naturally gluten free options. I'm most interested in the Indian food. Does anyone know a lot about the Indian menu and what meals may be safe (i'm new to indian food, not real sharp on the names of the dishes). Also, the bread, i think its called na'an (?) Does that use wheat and flour, etc?

[Jestgar]

I eat Thai, Indian, and Vietnamese a lot and rarely ask about ingredients. I skip the things that look likely to have gluten and haven't had a problem. Recently discovered that one type of Indian bread is made from chick pea flour (but, alas, have already forgotten the name).

[Janessa]

I love Indian food, I think it is one of the most gluten free friendly cuisines. I am vegetarian also and usually all of the vege dishes are gluten free (just always ask everyone has different recipes). The naan bread is made from wheat flour and not safe.

Thai is good too, just beware of soy sauce

Ethiopian is great, there is a place near me that makes their bread (injera) from 100% teff flour so it is gluten free and soooo good, but ask first because a lot of places use teff mixed with wheat flour.

Lebanese is another good one, some put wheat flour in their falafel so watch out and the tabouli isn't safe

[Mother of Jibril]

Saturday I had Peruvian food It's based around seafood and potatoes... great for a Gluten-free Casein-free person! I had lots of items to choose from.

If you like seafood, sushi is another great option. Just skip the soy sauce or bring your own.

[missy'smom]

I recommend buying the Triumph Dining International Dining Card pack(20 cards) Each has recommendations on safe and unsafe ingredients, cooking methods that are specific to that cuisine and are English on one side and the language of the country that the cuisine comes from on the other.

[Lisa]

I recommend buying the Triumph Dining International Dining Card pack(20 cards) Each has recommendations on safe and unsafe ingredients, cooking methods that are specific to that cuisine and are English on one side and the language of the country that the cuisine comes from on the other.

ditto on the Triumph Dining Cards. You can find them at www.triumphdining.com or The Gluten Free Mall. They are wonderful.

[lizard00]

I eat those three and mexican a lot! I'm in an Indian kick right now, seems like everything I make these days has some Indian flare to it. It is often naturally gluten free, with the exception of the na'an bread. (Man, that stuff is good, too! ) The Indo-Chinese diet typically is gluten low because of rice being such a staple. And then in India they use a lot of lentils. YUM!

Chinese in troublesome because of the soy sauce. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so bad. So if you like to cook, you could make a lot of that stuff at home with WF Tamari. And it's super quick. If you're eating Thai or Vietnamese out, beware fo the sauces.

[GFqueen17]

Indian is my favorite!!! We have the best Indian resturant where I live, I go there at least once a month. Popadon (not sure if thats spelled right) is the bread (more like a cracker) that is usually safe for us. Apparently Indian food rarely calls for wheat flour and mostly uses chick pea flour. However, I woud still ask wherever you eat out if they could double check since every restaurant is different. But Indian is definately very gluten-free friendly.

I also eat Thai alllllll the time. We have this great restaurant near us and most of the food is gluten-free except for dishes with noodles. If they are rice noodles theyre ok but some of the noodles are made from wheat flour. At home I make my own thai. I buy Thai Kitchen rice noodles and Thai Kitchen peanut satay sauce...cook the noodles, add lots of veggies, mix together the peanut sauce and some soy or coconut milk, and pour on top. Very delicious. And if you dont already know, Thai Kitchen makes pretty good microwave soups that are gluten free...I think they taste kinda like ramen.