Gluten-free (and delicious!) meal ideas?

Question

A friend of mine doesn't eat gluten, and I'd like to invite her to a dinner party. Since I'd also like to invite some Omnivorous Chowhounds, her usual diet of plain steamed fish, rice, and carrots won't do it this time. Does anyone have some ideas? I've googled around a bit, but all the gluten-free sites I find are not exactly focused on deliciousness or helpfulness... they mostly want to sell you recipes for fake-sounding baked goods. Bleagh.

I do know that my friend avoids vinegar and quinoa and, I think, oats. So she's pretty strict about the grey areas. But I certainly don't know the whole story.

Answer

Why does she avoid quinoa and oats? Both are gluten-free, not a grey area.

In any event, I think a paella is a nice option.

Would she eat something with sweet potatoes? Perhaps a nice roasted vegetable (fennel, sweet potatoes, beets, whole garlic cloves, rosemary or thyme) stew topped with feta cheese after it comes out of the oven.

Grilled salmon with roasted red peppers or with a mango or pineapple salsa.

You can do any fish au papiette (sp?) wrapped in parchment with lemon, some aromatics, herbs and baked for 20 min. Serve on brown rice.

Another option is an eggplant lasagna (eggplant in place of the noodles). Don't bread the eggplant. Just lightly grill and then layer with tomatoes and goat cheese and spinach, garlic, etc.

Answer

My dad is celiac and just came to visit, so I just spent a week cooking gluten-free. Some of the meals included: osso buco over polenta (don't dredge the veal in flour - thicken at the end with a little cornstarch), I made a few thai dishes with rice noodles (there is a thai soy sauce with a dragonfly on the bottle that is gluten-free - many soy sauces contain wheat), and various roasted meats served with vegetables and potatoes. Use fresh herbs and avoid any processed food labeled with "natural flavoring". If you need vinegar as an acid, any wine or rice vinegar is safe, it is distilled white vinegar that is made from wheat. Desserts can be any custardy-type dessert (flan, creme brulee, panna cotta, rice pudding - just watch using extracts, the alcohol can trigger gluten sensitivites - use a vanilla bean or some lemon zest for flavoring), seasonal fruits and cheeses, a cheesecake with a crust made with ground gluten-free cookies (Whole Foods has a good selection) or a flourless chocolate cake. There are plenty of delicious foods you could make that your other guest wouldn't even realize they were dietary restrictions in place. Some websites that have good gluten-free recipes are http://www.celiacchicks.com/ http://gluten-freerecipes.blogspot.com/ http://glutenfree-journey.blogspot.com/ 
Good luck!

Answer

To be gluten free just avoid grains. Any meat and fish are fine, along with any fruit or veg or rice. You're basically fine if you cook from scratch and don't serve bread. I have found that gluten free breads are awful (including for use as bread-crumbs) so I've given up on them. But gluten free flour makes just as good a chocolate fondants as regular flour (at least flavour-wise, they don't rise quite as much but who cares, it's a chocolate fondant). Dinner party staples - braised lamb shanks - use cornflour or arrowroot to thicken, otherwise everything you'd do normally. I'm struggling to think of a fish dish that I cook that contains gluten... ok, don't breadcrumb it or tempura it but seasoned cornflour works fine. 

If you can't tell I had a problem with a friend coming to dinner then realised it wasn't that much of a problem, just don't give them bread or beer. My friend Paul has coeliac disease and does have a problem with 'cheap' oats, in the same way that my friend Angie has a problem with cheap chocolate (she has a nut allergy) - basically we think it's about control in the factory/farm. But, you can't beat Dean - no wheat, no gluten, no yeast, no fish (incl shellfish) and Mary - no gluten, no dairy, no poultry, no fish. They are great fun to cook for - thank god they will never be at my house at the same time!

Oh, I can never remember with the whole no gluten thing if soy sauce is ok or not. But I'm pretty sure nam pla is fine.

Answer

I have Celiac and I know there have been many posts recently. Do a quick search for more ideas. 

Here are some ideas: Braised meat with parsnip puree and roasted potatoes or sweet potatoes, maybe some salad or soup too if you are hungry. Mexican food is great - Mexican bisteca for instance, with corn tortillas, or mexican potatoes. Thai rice noodles with coconut milk sauce - can add meat. Indian is great too - dosa is a fun bread that is GF. 

For dessert: Almond cake is my current favorite (made with ground almonds and egg), custards and ice cream, you can make a cheescake crust out of gluten-free corn flakes (one's without malt), pavlova, rice puddings, souffle, roasted fruit - there are so many choices. If you have a recipe that uses just a LITTLE BIT of flour (like a tablesspoon or two), it is easily adapted too. 

For starch, there is polenta, millet, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice of all types, corn.

All meat and fish is fine, as long as it isn't dredged in flour (either skip or I dredge in rice flour/corn starch mix or soy flour) or coated. 

Vegetables are fine. 

Things to watch out for that you may not think about soy sauce (there are wheat-free version, but they are stronger), premade stocks (many have barley malt in them), beer, and in some cases spice mixes that loosen it with wheat flour (I haven't found this to be a big problem, but I don't use a lot of mixes). 

Nam pla (fish sauce) is fine most of the time - read the label. 

It depends on how sensitive to gluten they are, but I have gotten sick eating sweets from others houses. My best guess is the ubiquitous double dipping when baking (e.g. use the same measuring cup for flour as for sugar) eventually contaminates the sugar enough for me to get sick. That being said, being conscious of cross-contamination

Answer

My little girl's best friend is Celiac and so when she comes for sleepovers, we are paralyzed with fear that we are going to expose her to gluten. There's a new frozen pizza here in middle Iowa with a crust that is a curious combination of hard and soft cheese. It's available at Hy-Vee Foodstores and is a hot-seller. After cooking it on a high temperature, you let is rest on the counter for five minutes and the crust sits up. I know that has nothing to do with your question, but I think you might find it interesting.

Answer

I have Celiac Disease and most often consume Indian, Mexican (and most other latin foods; Latin foods include lots of corn and not wheat based dishes...corn tortillas, corn arepas, corn empanadas, etc), Greek, & Middle Eastern food. Simple grilled foods and vegetables are always great too...be sure to use grape/wine, balsamic wine vinegar, or rice wine vinegars (naturally gluten-free) and not white grain vinegar or malt vinegar as these are not gluten-free.

You can make a lot of Italian dishes as well with Gluten-free brown rice pasta (best one is at Whole foods, Jewel foods, and Dominick's Finer Foods; I don't recall the brand but the bags are clear and purple and quite good...nearly identical to semolina/wheat pasta). Whenever flour is required, buy a small bag of all purpose Bob's Red Mill or Pamela's gluten-free flours. Pure cornmeal flour is great as well. Corn starch is great for thickening.

Make sure to read the label when cooking with storebought chicken, vegetable, or beef stock as many contain wheat or malt barley.

In general, when a store bought/highly processed food item contains more than 5-10 items, it can't possibly be good for you. It's pretty horrible that ton's of store bought processed foods contain 20, 30, even 40 different ingredients including several gluten laced ingredients.

As far as gluten-free cocktails are concerned; most apple or pear ciders, wine, tequila, rum, and potato vodka (Luksasowa is excellent and ranked higher than most of the finest grain based vodka's, plus it's triple distilled so it doesn't cause nasty hangovers) are fine. 

Custard based deserts like Spanish Flan or Italian Zabaglione (really easy), or rice pudding are quite tasty and are naturally gluten-free.

Answer

If your friend might like a savory tart or pot pie, there is a good idea for a rice pie crust in one of Nigella Lawson's cookbooks. It's made with cooked long-grain rice, one beaten egg, and a little parmesean I think. Pressed into a pan and pre-baked 10 minutes to set. 

I was planning on filling mine with a tuna, mint, and pea quiche-type filling.

Answer

I must admit that I'm surprised to see several Celiacs on this posting avoiding vinegar...why? I have Celiac Disease and cook constantly with balsamic or white distilled vinegar which are both gluten-free. The only vinegar that I know of that Celiac's should avoid is Malt Vinegar. Can anyone elaborate as to why they are avoiding Vinegar?
I just did some research on a couple of Celiac websites and all of the vinegars listed were gluten-free...Heinz, Safeway, & Trader Joe's Vinegars were all gluten-free.

Answer

I use vinegar as well. The distillation process takes out the gluten, but not for malt vinegar which is different process.

Answer

Check the Gluten-Free Goddess blog - she makes tasty food.

Answer

Don't forget Nigella Lawson's clementine cake. Gluten-free and a delicious way to use those clementines. It also works with the same weight of regular oranges. It's been discussed on Chowhound a few times, so you can search.

Answer

Does she like tofu? I like gluten, but a lot of people really don't care to much for it. My wife hardly eats meat but she hates gluten. Tofu is tasty and vege friendly. Pasta with no meat sauces is also nice.

Sim
Blog: http://foodlava.com/blog/

Answer

Back to the question at hand....

If your guest eats meat and eggs, there are lots of things to make. What about a nice quiche (no crust) or frittata with a veggie side or fruit salad? Or a bean salad? Roasted chicken or pork with rice? A filled twice-baked potato or stuffed pepper? Grilled steak salad with a creamy dressing? Roasted salmon (or another kind of fish) with some grilled veggies? As long as you're not limited with meat as well, there are limitless options! :-)) 

BTW, I've had to make dinner for someone who was intolerant of gluten AND lactose! Oh yes, and a vegan AND gluten-free person! (Not at the same time!) Talk about a challenge!

One thing I wanted to point out and I don't believe anyone mentioned this, is soy sauce and even tamari frequently have gluten added to them. I didn't realize this until it was pointed out to me by a "gluten-free" friend. 

Good luck! :-)

Answer

Many "normal" entrees are either gluten-free already or can be easily adapted. Find a chicken or meat dish you like. Roast chicken, beef stew, steak, chicken baked with various sauces and seasonings, grilled or broiled fish... you get the idea. Sides are easy, too, as others have mentioned: Rice, potatoes any number of ways, or polenta will all work. If your recipe calls for a bit of flour before browning the meat, just brown without the flour.

Roast chicken with roasted potatoes and garlicky greens will fit the bill and be enjoyed by everyone.

Here are two easy and delicious GF desserts. 

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/flourless-chocolate-cake-ii/detail.aspx
http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/port/almond_cake.html

Good luck!

Answer

As the Food Allergy Queen (I'm allergic to gluten, dairy, soy, rice and citrus...among other things) I always recommend two things when entertaining those of us with food issues. (1) keep it simple and make solid, good-tasting entrees without fancy sauces which could have hidden contaminants...there's gluten in baking powder, soy sauce and tamari for example; and (2) try to eat normal foods that happen to be contaminant-free so that you're not eating fake things with weird tastes and textures that are bound to disappoint everyone!

A simple roast beef au jus (my fave entertaining dish is Zuni Cafe's standing pork roast which can be done ahead...it's a star), served with a side of grilled vegetables with a little sea salt and olive or truffle oil to finish, and maybe some polenta, risotto or pan-roasted baby potatoes is my reco. For dessert, either poached pears in wine, or a flourless chocolate or nut cake. Fancy enough for company, simple and few ingredients. But because they are few, they should be top-notch quality. 

www.foodallergyqueen.blogspot.com

Answer

Good thread. I've got a catering gig this Sunday that's featuring one celiac among the guests. As our regular catering menu features a ton of bruschetta, crostini and pasta options, I had a lot of concerns. I've been told I can go ahead with the bruschetta/crostini (we're not baking the bread here - slim chance of airborne particles). 

I'm also doing a Sicilian-style eggplant dish (no breading), a Caesar salad using polenta croutons instead of bread, a hummus with a gluten-free pita bread, and an antipasti of roasted vegetables, meats and cheeses. The menu was run by the person who's the celiac who said it's OK.

However, they did mention to not use any pan sprays and to use only oil (which I would've anyway).

Answer

I was offline for a while after I posted this question originally, and now I come back to an amazing resource! Thank you so much, everyone! I especially appreciate all the specific tips about what to avoid that might have "hidden gluten" in it. I'm wowed. Go Chowhounds!

My friend is going to be so happy! I think I'll print this thread for her, so she can use it for menu ideas for herself.

Answer

My wife has Celiac and I do the cooking. Risotto is an all-time favorite. And, important, she can use Kikkoman Soy Sauce. The fermentation process seems to kill the Gluten in the wheat used. Also, we like Polenta and dishes based on grated potato such as Swiss Rösti.

Answer

Oats are debated (I avoid them) but quinoa has no gluten. The things to avoid are wheat, oats, barley, rye, spelt, triticale, and anything with them as ingredients.

Answer

How about a steak and mashed beans?? Was watching Nigella last night and this looked SO good (plus it'd make your omnivorous chowhounds happy too)!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_75388,00.html

Answer

How about: 

Meal 1

shrimp or scallop ceviche made with lime and jalepeno
grilled steak seasoned simply with sea salt and pepper, sliced and served with grilled corn tortillas
grilled onions, tomatoes, squash 
grilled corn on the cob with butter and lime
Flourless chocolate cake with chili for dessert

Meal 2

oven roasted Brussel sprouts (salt, olive oil and perhaps garlic cloves)
oven roasted asparagus spears served with shaved parmesan and topped with a poached egg
simply grilled non-white fish, rubbed with garlic, served with lemon and butter
polenta squares or white wine risotto
lemon mascarpone mousse 

Meal 3

cornmeal crusted fried green tomatoes served with homemade aioli
cornflake-crusted oven "fried" chicken
cornmeal spoonspread or cornmeal + cheese soufflee or mixture of mashed potato, cauliflower, turnip
green beans (or haricots verts) stirfried with thinly sliced garlic clove and olive oil
berries with whipped cream
watermelon granita

Answer

nobody has written on here in awhile but I am a newly diagnosed person with Celiac Disease. Very new in fact just last week. . Its been okay but I am having difficultly with cooking dinner...I have never been a great cook and now I have to cook all the time. I was just wondering if anyone could give me some easy recipes to make. It would be very helpful...thank you

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