Grocery Shopping

CUPBOARD STAPLES

There are some gluten free ingredients that I always find handy to have around.  Here’s what I recommend that you keep on hand for some quick meals.

Olive Oil

Zantaran’s rice mix

A can of Red Beans

Cornmeal

Corn Tortillas

Rice Crackers

Cheese

Sausage

Cereal

Tamales

Tomato Sauce

Pesto Sauce

Pasta

Jasmine Rice

Arborio (risotto) Rice

Grilled Chicken Strips (Trader Joe’s brand)

Corn Starch

Potatoes

Onions

Butter

Frozen peas

Tamari (a type of gluten free soy sauce- in the Asian section)

Flour:      Purchasing gluten free flour blends off the shelf is expensive so I purchase the ingredients and combine them myself.  My basic recipe is 1 cup (4.875 oz.) sorghum flour, 1 c (5.375 oz.) potato starch, 1 tsp xanthum gum, ½ cup (1.7 oz.) almond flour.  It really helps if you have a digital scale to weigh your flours.  If you think you’ll do a lot of baking then it’s well worth the investment.  Xanthum gum is very expensive but I bought a small Bob’s Red Mill bag over a year and a half ago and am still using it.  I’ve found that it’s cheapest to purchase the other flours in cases of 4 packs each from amazon.com.   The initial expense is great but in the long run you’ll save more than you would if you purchase the pre-blended flour off the shelf.  The good thing is that once you have your gluten free flour you can pretty much substitute your flour for the ones in your favorite recipes without a problem.  This fails however when it comes to cookies, yeast breads, and pizza crust.  If you need to purchase gluten free flour mixes then I recommend Pamela’s Gluten Free Pancake Mix. Keep far away from Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Flour.  They use bean flour in their mix and it tastes terrible.

WHERE TO BUY

The good news is that most major grocery stores are know carrying gluten free products.  Some stores definitely sell them for less money than others. For things like crackers and corn based items like tortiallas don’t buy them from the gluten free section, but instead head to the Mexican and Asian aisles.  You can find the same things for a lot less. This is what I’ve found in the D.C. area:

Trader Joe’s has some of the best prices on gluten free cupboard staples.  They have great pastas (I prefer the rice based ones to the corn ones) and oatmeal.  They also have tamales and taquittos that are not marked as gluten free but have never made Brandon sick.  They also sell baked goods for some very reasonable prices.  They sell Udi’s products (see below) and tortillas too.

I typically buy Bob’s Red Mill flours on-line from Amazon.com.

Although Whole Foods has a huge selection of gluten free products, their prices are ridiculous.  I only purchase things from them if I absolutely can’t find what I need anywhere else.

Wegman’s has a huge gluten free selection and their prices are excellent.  I can almost find everything I need there.  Their brand of rice crackers (found in the Asian foods section) are particularly good.

A FEW BRANDS TO LOOK FOR

Chex makes a large variety of gluten free cereals.  Nature’s Path Organic (you can find it at Whole Foods) is also a great cereal.

I’ve tried countless hamburger/hot dog bun recipes and brands but Udi’s is undoubtedly the best.  If they’re on sale buy a whole bunch and freeze them.

Ka-me rice crackers are great and can be found in the Asian part of the grocery store.

Zantaran’s makes a huge variety of gluten free rice mixes.  They’re great as a side dish or as a main meal with some added meat or beans.

Beer

One of the greatest products missed by celiacs.  We’ve tried many gluten free beers and here’s our top three beer rankings.

Green’s- Blond or Dark

Lakefront Brewing Co. -New Grist

Damm S.A.- Estrella Damm Daura