Gluten is a protein found in grains, products made from grains and some starchy vegetables. If you have celiac disease or problems digesting gluten, it is important to know which foods contain gluten so that you can avoid them. Some sources of gluten are obvious, while others are not.
Grains
These grains contain gluten: wheat (including wheat bran and wheat germ), triticum or durum wheat species, bulgur wheat, farina (cream of wheat), couscous, barley (including barley malt, malt extract, malt flavoring and barley grass), rye, kamut, semolina, spelt (dinkle), corn (including corn flour, corn meal, grits and masa), rice, millet and oats.
Grain Products
Products made from grain contain gluten. These include products made from wheat flour and graham flour, like breads, biscuits, crackers, pizza, pasta, cookies, cakes and pastries. Bleaching flour does not remove gluten. Beer and grain-based coffee substitutes contain gluten, but distilled alcohol products do not. Other grain products that contain gluten include heeng, hing, hydrolyzed wheat protein, hydrolyzed wheat starch, kluski pasta, maida, matzah, miso, udon, soba noodles, some meringues, maltose, some dry roasted nuts, orzo and anything thickened with a roux.
Grain Derivatives
There are a number of products made from grain that may not be obvious. These include edible films and coatings, cereal binding, brewer's yeast, soy sauce and soy sauce solids, teriyaki sauce, seitan, tabbouleh, horden vulgare extract and malt vinegar. Gluten-containing products are added to or used in the manufacturing of a number of products, depending on the manufacturer: artificial color, clarifying agents, baking powder, glycerides (including monoglycerides and diglycerides), emulsifiers, suet, food starch and modified food starch, glucose syrup, fat replacers, ground spices, seasonings, gravy cubes, stock and bouillon cubes, smoke flavoring, hydrolyzed plant protein (HPP), hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP), hydrogenated starch hydrolysate, hydroxypropylated starch, modified food starch, protein hydrolysates, non-dairy creamer, tocopherols and mixed tocopherols, surimi and seafood analogs, vegetable broth, vegetable protein, vegetable gum and vitamins. For these foods, the only way to determine the absence of gluten is to contact the manufacturer; most manufacturers are happy to provide this information. Keep in mind that manufacturing processes can change without notice and always read product labels carefully.
