What is Gluten?
Gluten refers to the proteins commonly found in wheat, barley, rye, and a variety of other grains. It functions as a binding agent, helping foods retain their shape, akin to a 'glue' that keeps ingredients together. Owing to its useful characteristics, gluten is prevalent in numerous food items, necessitating those with sensitivities to diligently inspect food labels for its presence or seek out gluten-free alternatives.
The difference between Gluten free and No Gluten (named
on the ingredient list) and may contain gluten
Gluten-free label: These are foods that the manufacturer declares to be gluten-free - the safest option.
No Gluten on the label or may contain Gluten: It's your choice – these products typically do not contain gluten but are not certified as gluten-free; cross contamination in the factory is a possibility. You need to determine what is suitable for you, as some foods and brands are less likely to contain gluten than others. Remembering to take responsibility for our own health is essential.
Some Advice and Information
Being aware of your personal tolerance is crucial, whether you aim to completely eliminate gluten or just reduce your consumption. It's vital to identify and become comfortable with your own threshold.
Some commonly overlooked items to check include:
The list outlines the shops I regularly visit and my purchases. Living in the west of Johannesburg, I usually shop in this locality. This does not affect the online stores, which are also run by many of these shops. The list mainly features ingredients and snacks, with the majority of items being certified gluten-free.
NOTE: I am not affiliated with any of these companies or stores; they are simply places where I found what I was looking for.
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Woolworths |
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The products have been dependable
over the last few years. It s not cheap but I have found its worth it for me.
When it comes to Gluten Free, they stock mostly their own brand. |
Flours Free from Gluten All Purpose Flour Free from Gluten Bread/Pizza Flour Box Mixes Free from Gluten Chocolate Brownies Free from Gluten Vanilla Cake Free from Gluten Chocolate Cake Ready to eat Sliced Cooked Ham |
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Dis-Chem |
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I use them as a general store with a
lot of brands and products from other suppliers. They re reliable about
products across various stores. |
Please check Ranges found in various
stores Wholesome Earth range Nairn s Range Glutagon Range They have quite a good range of
cereal and biscuits. Thay also now stock some freezer items I haven t tried
them yet but I m sure I ll get around to it. |
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PNP |
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Very store dependent, but I have
found some more unusual products their stores. |
Some PNP stores have cereal, some
gluten free biscuits and P Gluten Free pasta. If you re looking for more unusual
items e.g. Red Adzuki Beans (this is the bean used for red bean paste) it s
worth looking at their Livewell range |
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Checkers |
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Products seem to be available across
the stores that I have used. No so many unusual products |
The Simple Truth range has not failed me. The Quick and rolled are some favourites of mine. Just keep in mind that note everything in the range is Gluten free check the label |
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Clicks |
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Maybe
it s the stores I ve used but I find they are not consistent I don t find the
same products from week to week but occasionally they have really good specials so keep an eye out. |
Snacks,
Nuts Almond
Flour Smartbites |
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Impala
Fruit and Flowers |
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Local to me Fruit and vegetables not sure if
there are other stores they have a lot of different types or Gluten free
types of flour |
Flours - Not all are gluten free some
unusual types of I ve not seen elsewhere details to follow. |
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Market
Kokoro |
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2 stores Asian products- Excellent
Website |
Glutinous Rice Flour |
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Azteca
Mexican Food Products |
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1 Store in Midrand, Website |
Masa Harina |
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Faithful
to Nature |
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Website |
Almond Flour Cassava Flour (No longer available) |
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Fresh
Earth |
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only 1 store but their products are
available at other stores like Dis-Chem and their website is excellent |
Seeded rusks |
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Spar |
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Very store dependent, but getting
better |
Wholesome Earth range Glutagon range |
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Takealot |
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Online only They don t always have the same
range, but they are worth looking at because they will sometimes have
excellent Specials |
Dutch Cocoa Powder Wholesome Earth Range |
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Linda's
Bake & Pack |
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Westdene, Johannesburg - Good Website |
Almond Meal, Ground Almonds,
Chocolate and Wafer Paper Pectin (I ve had a lot of trouble
finding pectin and they always seem to have it) Baking Supplies |
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Baker's
Paradise |
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Ontdekkers Road, Roodepoort - Website
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Almond Meal, Ground Almonds,
Chocolate and Wafer Paper Baking Supplies |
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Westrand
Plastic |
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Wentworth Park, Krugersdorp
Deliveries for bulk orders telephonically |
Bulk items Icing sugar, Castor sugar,
White sugar, Brown sugar, Cornstarch. Other baking supplies |
Ranges
found in various stores.
These are only the products that I
often use.
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Nairn s Range |
Nairn s All the products in this
range are oat based. They have quite some good options,
their boxes are well marked if the product is Gluten free if it doesn t say
very clearly at the top front of the GLUTEN FREE it s not gluten free Some of my favourites are
Gluten
Free Flatbread
Gluten
Free Wholegrain Cracker
Gluten
Free Dark Choc & Coconut Biscuit Break Chunky |
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Glutagon Range |
Glutagon
Potato Starch
Glutagon
Tapioca Starch
Glutagon
White Rice Flour
Vanilla
Cake Mix
Chocolate
Cake Mix
Banoffee
Muffin mix |
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Gallon Range Mostly focused on Sugar free but they
a couple of biscuits that I use often |
Gluten
free and Lactose Free Digestive Cookies |
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Schar Always pricey but sometimes on
specials |
Gluten
Free Crackers
Gluten
Free Wafers
Gluten
Free Maria Biscuits |
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Wholesome Earth Range |
Gluten
Free Wholegrain Oat Flour
Gluten
Free Cornflakes
Gluten
Free Honey Rings Cereal
Gluten
Free Fruit Loops Cereal
Gluten
Free Chocolate Loops Cereal |
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Health Connection Wholefoods |
Tamari
Organic Gluten Free |
Stabilisers
These are my own experiences with stabilisers and the recipes and products that I use.
Most gluten-free flours and blends require thickeners, stabilizers, and binders to ensure they behave more like wheat flour in recipes. Most pre-made flour blends in stores already contain one or more of these stabilizers therefore when a recipe requests one of these products, keep in mind that some quantity of the stabilizer is already included and remove or adjust the quantity.
The most commonly available products in South Africa are Xanthan Gum, Guar Gum, and Psyllium Husk, they are a bit costly but worth trying, I have used all three at various stages, and they all worked to some degree, it depends on what you are making, as they can affect the outcome in unexpected ways. For example, a product be wonderful on day one and completely stale on day two, or it may have strange or unexpected texture.
These products can be purchased at health food stores and online retailers. I have bought Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum at Dis-Chem, and I have bought and seen Psyllium Husk at Dis-Chem and various other stores.
This is an article if found about stabilisers that I found interesting. What
Stabilizers to Use to Improve Gluten-Free Baking
If you are using a flour mixture that contains a stabiliser and you sieve your flour through a fine mesh strainer, sometimes the stabiliser will left in the strainer after the sifting process is complete, remember to add it back into your recipe; otherwise, the product may suffer.
Some recipes do not need one of these specialising products because they have ingredients that are inherently stabiliser like starches and eggs.
In my experience yeasted products are particularly prone to issues with specialised stabilisers the structure when they raise is strange, so the product looks amazing but has that tell-tale taste that people associate with gluten free products, and it tends to get stale within a couple of hours.
The only way to know what words for you is the try all options and see what you like.