Safest Canned And Dried Beans And Lentils

[Asharia]

I eat a lot of beans and lentils, and am starting to think CC might be the source of some of my relapse - my GI doctor thinks I am either super sensitive or refractory.

Are there any certified gluten-free canned bean brands that are tested? Or any dried beans (black and pinto) or lentils that are certified? Every bag of beans I pick up at the supermarket says "may contain wheat".

Thanks!

[T.H.]

I know that some sensitive celiacs who can tolerate foods that are around 5 ppm or so have done all right with, of all things, the Super Value brand dried pinto, navy, and lima beans. This is the Albertson's generic brand. I think some did okay with Arrowhead Mills Green Lentils, too.

These definitely depend on your sensitivity level, though. Foods at 5 ppm concentration make me ill, so I'm still looking for safe beans. :-/

[dilettantesteph]

I'm still looking for safe beans too. They could be the source of your problem, especially if your doctor thinks that you might be super sensitive. One thing that you could try is sorting them carefully. I have found wheat particles in beans before. Then wash carefully before eating. If that improves things, I think you found the source of your problems. If they don't completely clear up, washing might not be enough for you. I find with me that washing helps, but it is necessary for me to grow my own to be able to eat them with absolutely no reaction.

[T.H.]

I find with me that washing helps, but it is necessary for me to grow my own to be able to eat them with absolutely no reaction.

I just tried that this year! Although I'm such a crappy farmer...I think out of y entire crop, I got maybe a bowlful of beans, and that was it, LOL.

[dilettantesteph]

I'm still working on it too - growing my own.

[MrsVJW]

I actually just got a SUPER detailed list in response to an question to Goya on their dried beans and lentil products, and they actually list out "gluten-free", "contains wheat" and "cross-contamination" categories. Sadly, their lentils are in the cross-contamination category, but a lot of their other beans are safe. (If there was an easy way to post an Excel spreadsheet here, I'd do it...)

[keezyfresh]

I know this is an old thread, but have y'all tried the beans from edison grainery? They test their beans to be <5 ppm. They also carry alot of other products verified to be <5 ppm, but it's important to check each item before buying, because some of their are only tested to <10 ppm.

[apprehensiveengineer]

I had given up on beans for a bit, as I had problems with most brands of canned beans where I live (in Canada it's typically just store brand or other budget brands with warnings). I've since switched to dry beans, and had good luck with Western Rice Mills as they only process rice, quinoa and beans in their plant. AFAIK their stuff is generally sourced in the USA or Canada.

I don't know how available their products are outside of my immediate area, as it is a local company in my area. Their products are little more expensive than average, but not excessively so - and all are labelled gluten-free.

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[keezyfresh]

22 hours ago, apprehensiveengineer said:

I had given up on beans for a bit, as I had problems with most brands of canned beans where I live (in Canada it's typically just store brand or other budget brands with warnings). I've since switched to dry beans, and had good luck with Western Rice Mills as they only process rice, quinoa and beans in their plant. AFAIK their stuff is generally sourced in the USA or Canada.

I don't know how available their products are outside of my immediate area, as it is a local company in my area. Their products are little more expensive than average, but not excessively so - and all are labelled gluten-free.

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I'll have to check them out, thanks. I wonder if they do any gluten testing of the finished product, because as you may know: even if they're processed in a gluten-free facility, there is still some risk of cross-contamination if they are grown in a crop-rotation cycle with gluten-grains. This is actually quite common and when this is the case, they often use the same equipment to harvest the beans and the grains, just switching out attachments. something to consider. The company i mentioned in my last comment, edison grainery, uses a gluten-free facility and they test all of their beans to <5 ppm.

[apprehensiveengineer]

I doubt they do any testing (never contacted them specifically though). I've never ordered from Edison, but had considered it before finding success with this brand. Another one that I've seen that's labelled gluten-free in Canada is San Remo (organic varieties only). Not sure if they test either, but had good results with their stuff too - it's just really expensive.

That said, I would suspect that the lack of shared lines for Western Rice Mills is a big improvement over the other options available in my area, which are for sure packed on the same lines as barley, couscous etc. Since their products are all from the USA/Canada, I'd imagine that pre-processing CC is likely - whether it's worse than misc. beans from Asia, I have no idea though. I do wash and pick through my stuff before I cook it as a precaution, though I'll admit that I doubt that this does much if there is any serious contamination.