Six Food Intolerance Living

Living gluten free does not mean one has to live pasta free. There is a large variety of gluten free pastas on the market, even some from well-known wheat-based pasta makers

• Deboles - With the wide variety of styles and grains, this brand is quickly becoming a favorite.
• Dr. Schar - Their collection contains unique shapes of corn and rice based pasta and they also make a variety of other gluten free products.
• Ener-G Foods - These pastas are made literally with just white rice flour and water, so they accommodate a variety of allergy needs.
• Mrs. Leeper's - In addition to their corn and rice based pastas, Mrs. Leeper's also makes boxed dinners.
• Orgran - All their products are Gluten Free, Wheat Free, Dairy Free, Egg free, Yeast Free, GMO Free and Vegan.
• Quinoa - This brand sets itself apart by using the naturally gluten free and nutritious quinoa grain.
• Tinkyada - One of the most well known and well liked gluten free pastas, this past is rice based and comes in a variety of styles.
• Trader Joes - They may skimp on the price, but never on the flavor!
• Another source for gluten free, economical pastas are Asian markets. They have many white rice and mung bean based noodles that are naturally gluten free. Often, there are also buckwheat noodles, however, check carefully as many brands mix wheat flour in with the buckwheat, be sure to choose a brand that is 100% buckwheat. Furthermore, a word of caution to those with Celiac or who are highly sensitive - noodles found in the Asian market are not certified gluten free and are often not produced here in the United States so there is always potential for contamination.

Cooking gluten free pasta is quite different from cooking wheat pasta. While the flavor of gluten free pasta is comparable to wheat pasta, getting the texture right can be tricky. Some helpful hints to ensure delicious, perfect pasta every time are:

• The first tip to making good gluten free pasta is to read the directions. There are many different types of gluten free pasta and all are not created equal. Unlike wheat pasta, the directions are not always the same. Some cook better at a constant, rapid boil like traditional wheat pasta, some (especially the kind found in Asian stores) are best soaked in cool water overnight, while others are directed to be dumped into a pot of boiling water, then to turn the heat off, cover them and let them sit in the cooling water until soft. The directions for your brand should be your guide.
• Wheat pasta tends to be heartier and yields more servings than gluten free pasta so always make a little more than what you are used to.
• Cook only as much gluten free pasta as you need at the moment because it does not freeze or reheat well. It is best eaten immediately after cooking.
• Gluten free pasta is known to be very sticky. To combat this, there are two things you can do - add 2-3 teaspoons of oil to the water before dropping in the pasta and stir often. The oil will help coat each strand of pasta, ensuring they won't stick and stirring will agitate the pasta in case some pieces do begin to attach to one another.
• To add flavor, as with wheat pasta, generously salt the water as you bring it to a boil.
• Do not overcook gluten free pasta. Cooking the pasta too long will cause it to get too soft, mushy and it will disintegrate into very small pieces.
• When you drain pasta from hot water (so not with the kind you soak in cool water overnight), run very cold water over the pasta to stop the cooking and to keep it al dente.
• When adding noodles to a soup, only do so at the very end as the noodles will not hold up to long boiling or simmering.