Worcestershire Sauce & Gluten-free Diet

If you have celiac disease or a wheat allergy, the only way to control it is by following a gluten-free diet. This can be frustrating because following a gluten-free diet means you must read product labels for a long list of gluten-containing ingredients. Gluten is in many unexpected places, from soups to sauces. Your favorite Worcestershire sauce may contain this wheat protein.

Ingredients

Worcestershire sauce may include ingredients such as malt vinegar and soy sauce. Both of these ingredients are on the "foods to avoid list" from the Children's Digestive Health and Nutrition Foundation Gluten-Free Diet Guide for Families. Malt vinegar always contains wheat. There are varieties of gluten-free soy sauce.

Allergen Alerts

Even if you don't see soy sauce, malt vinegar or other common gluten-containing ingredients on the Worcestershire sauce label, it may have gluten in it. These ingredients may simply be identified as "flavoring" or "spice." The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act requires companies to declare wheat, one of the top eight allergens, on product labels. However, it does not require this identification if malt, barley or rye derivatives are used in a flavoring.

Double-Checking

Many brands of Worcestershire sauce are gluten-free. Look at the product label to see if the manufacturer identifies the sauce as gluten-free. If not, the best way to determine whether a sauce contains gluten is to contact the product manufacturer. If you find a brand of Worcestershire sauce that you like, continue to check the product label each time you buy it, because product formulations can change.

Homemade Sauce

You can make your own gluten-free Worcestershire sauce. Combine 2 tbsp. gluten-free soy sauce, 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp. molasses, 2 tbsp. water, 1/4 tsp. each ground ginger, onion powder, dry mustard and garlic powder and 1/8 tsp. each pepper and cinnamon in a saucepan. Simmer the ingredients for about one minute before removing them from heat, recommends the nonprofit organization Talk About Curing Autism. A gluten- and casein-free diet is purported to curb the effects of autism, though this concept is controversial.