It is constantly surprising how many things contain wheat, barley or rye. There are obvious things that you cut out straight away—bread, pasta, beer, cakes and pastries—unless they’re specifically marked “gluten free”. But there are a host of less obvious things as well, turning you into an expert in reading food contents labels. Things to check carefully on a gluten-free diet include:

• chocolate and lollies
• cereals
• biscuits and crackers
• French fries—these can be coated with flour before deep frying
• gravy mixtures
• processed meats and sausages
• salad dressings
• sauces, including soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Hoisin sauce
• seasoning mixes, including rice and noodle flavourings
• seasoned snack foods, such as potato and corn chips
• soups and stocks
• spreads, such as Vegemite, peanut butter, Anchovette paste
• yoghurts—some of the flavoured ones are thickened with gluten.

To anyone attempting a gluten-free diet, making the change seems daunting—“what am I going to eat?” being the primary concern. Our diets are often so loaded with breads and cereals that you can’t have any more, it can be a real challenge to find alternatives. There are plenty of delicious things that you can eat, it’s just about making sure you eat enough to fill you up.

Gluten-free fillers

Our favourite gluten-free fillers are:

• chickpeas, lentils, beans (kidney, cannellini, butter, fava, black)
• quinoa, buckwheat, polenta
• seeds, nuts
• corn, rice, potatoes
• eggs
• plus a host of other fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and fish.

Gluten-free substitutes

If you’re really struggling to fill up, here are some of the things that we’ve substituted into our meals to make them gluten free.

Tasty gluten-free meals

Gluten free doesn’t mean flavour free! We make some delicious gluten-free meals. Once you learn what you can and can’t eat it makes it much easier to adapt your recipes to suit. Check out some of our regular dishes:

Soups

• Zucchini, potato and feta soup
• Dhal
• Chestnut soup
• Pumpkin soup

Salads

• Witlof, apple and walnut salad
• Quinoa tabouli
• Asparagus and pea salad
• Orange and fennel salad
• Coleslaw
• Caramelised pear & fennel salad with gorgonzola

Mains

• Herbed rissoles
• Coconut chicken curry with banana chutney
• Pasta with cauliflower, peas, mint and quinoa
• Coconut, chicken and banana curry
• Thyme and lemon lamb with zucchini and chickpea
• Lamb and haloumi skewers
• Beef tacos
• Fish with charred Mediterranean vegetables
• Tuna with bean salad

The fresh banana chutney is critical to the dish. It takes a simple tasty curry to the next level—being sweet, spicy, tangy all at the same time. A brilliantly refreshing summer dish.

Ingredients

For the coconut chicken curry:

1kg chicken breast, diced into 2–3cm pieces
3 tsp turmeric
2 tbs peanut oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1–2 birdseye chillies, seeded and finely chopped
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 tsp mild curry paste (I use Korma paste)
1 cup chicken stock
400ml coconut milk

For the fresh banana chutney:

2–3 fresh bananas, diced
½ a small purple onion, finely diced
1 birdseye chilli, seeded and finely chopped
¼ cup fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
2 tbs freshly squeezed lime juice

Method

Heat 1 tbs of the peanut oil in a large saucepan. Add the chicken pieces and turmeric, and stir to coat. Cook the chicken over medium heat until golden brown and cooked. Remove from the saucepan and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 tbs of oil in the pan and add the onion, garlic, ginger and chillies. Allow to cook over medium heat until the onion is starting to soften. Add the curry paste and tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes so the tomato starts to break down. Return the chicken to the saucepan and add the stock and coconut milk. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to low and allow to simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour or until thickened to your liking.

When the curry is just about ready, make the banana chutney. Place the onion in a bowl with the lime juice and allow to sit for 2 minutes. Add the banana, chilli and mint and stir to combine.

Serve the coconut chicken curry on a bed of rice with a couple of spoonfuls of the fresh banana chutney.

As a parent trying to feed fussy eaters, chicken nuggets are often a go-to food to give to children. Parmesan crumbed chicken is a healthier alternative to store-bought chicken nuggets. It is so tasty—thanks to the umami from the parmesan cheese—that adults and even the fussiest of children will love them. Parmesan crumbed chicken also eliminates all the unnecessary salt, sugar, flavours and thickeners found in frozen chicken nuggets.

Parmesan crumbed chicken does take a little bit of preparation but once you taste those crispy golden brown chicken pieces you’ll realise it was all worth it.

Ingredients

1kg chicken breast
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 cup dried wholemeal breadcrumbs
Olive oil (approximately 1–2 tbs)
2 tsp butter (optional)

Method

Mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese together so they are well combined. Cut the chicken breast into smaller portions (five or more pieces depending on the size and thickness of the chicken). Dip each chicken portion into the egg, then into the crumb mixture and pat firmly to coat the chicken thoroughly. Set aside.

Heat olive oil (and butter) over medium heat in a large non-stick frypan. Add the crumbed chicken pieces in a single layer and fry until golden brown and cooked through. I find that putting a lid on the frypan helps ensure that the chicken is cooked through and stays tender.

Serve with chips and salad, mashed potato and steamed vegetables, or for a lighter meal coleslaw.

2 tsp garam marsala
1 tbs vegetable oil
3 large chicken breasts
1 large onion, sliced
4 tomatoes, roughly chopped
450ml chicken stock
2 tbs curry paste (I use Madras, but Korma is also good)
200ml thickened cream
80g almond meal
50g desiccated coconut
2 large bananas, sliced to 2cm thickness

Method

Mix chicken with garam marsala and set aside. Heat oil over medium heat in a large saucepan and add the onion. Cook for around 10 minutes, until soft and golden. Turn the temperature up and add the chicken. Stir occasionally until cooked through and golden.

Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the stock and curry paste, and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10–15 minutes.

Stir in the cream, almond meal and coconut. Simmer for 5–10 minutes. Add the banana slices and simmer for 5 minutes, until the bananas have softened.

Serves 4 people with steamed rice.

A Mediterranean feast is also very easy to prepare with the help of a good providore. Our staples for eating this way are:

• olives—we love smoked kalamatas, Sicilian olives marinated in lemon and garlic, and green olives stuffed with either feta or blue cheese
• ciabatta or Turkish bread—1cm slices lightly toasted
• garlic dip (this is essentially fresh garlic cloves ground with salt and olive oil till it’s light and creamy—delicious)
• dolmades—vine leaves stuffed with rice and herbs
• baby Roma tomatoes
• marinated Persian feta
• marinated artichoke hearts.

Just today we had a variation of this for lunch. If you wanted to have meat as part of this then you could add some finely sliced salami or ham.

When we are entertaining or having a Mediterranean feast for dinner we add:

• Greek salad
• Grilled haloumi (with onion, parsley & lemon)
• Chicken souvlaki (I use Jamie Oliver’s wicked souvlaki recipe, but substitute pork for chicken)
• Marinated lamb skewers.

There are many ways to make a Greek salad but I have a simple and effective recipe that can be put together in no time.

Greek salad

2 cups salad leaves, torn
1 Lebanese cucumber, diced
200g baby Roma tomatoes, cut into halves or quarters
12–16 pitted kalamata olives
250g marinated Persian feta, drained but retaining the liquid to use as salad dressing
½ a Spanish onion, finely sliced (optional)

Combine these ingredients in a large salad bowl. Drizzle some of the marinade from the Persian feta over the salad and toss to coat. Once the salad is dressed, serve immediately.

Grilled haloumi is something I love. Haloumi has a high melting point so, despite being fried or grilled, it holds its shape and chewy texture.

Grilled haloumi

250g packet of haloumi
½ a brown onion, diced
Juice of half a lemon
⅓ cup of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Combine the onion and lemon juice in a bowl and leave to stand (this will soften the onions and take away any astringency). Meanwhile cut the haloumi into 5mm slices. Heat some olive oil in a fry pan. Fry the haloumi over medium heat until golden on both sides. Remove from the heat and drain the slices on paper towel. Add the chopped parsley to the lemon and onion and toss to combine. Arrange the haloumi on a serving plate and sprinkle the onion, parsley and lemon over the top.

This dish is not Genovese sauce but it is inspired by those simple flavours, and a lot more filling.

Ingredients
1 tbs olive oil
2 chicken breast fillets
10 medium-sized mushrooms (Swiss browns are good)
½ cup pesto
1 cup cream, marscarpone or crème fraiche

Method

Cut the chicken into small pieces and fry in olive oil on medium heat until golden.

Slice the mushrooms and add to the pan. Mix through until coated with pan juices and starting to cook through.

Reduce the heat to low, and stir the pesto through. Heat through until fragrant.

Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Stir until thickened, leaving enough liquid to coat freshly cooked pasta.

 Bellissimo!

The chicken comes out moist and tender, and the flavoursome crumbs are light and crunchy.

Here’s what you’ll need:

¾ cup breadcrumbs (dried, panko or fresh)
1 cup parmesan, finely grated
2 shallots, finely chopped
zest and juice of 1 lemon
4 tbs butter, melted
freshly ground salt and pepper
4 chicken breast fillets, cut into large pieces
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Mix the breadcrumbs, parmesan, shallots, lemon zest, melted butter, salt and pepper in a bowl.

Lay the chicken pieces out in a baking dish and cover with an even layer of the breadcrumb mixture.

Bake in the oven for around 20 minutes until the top is golden brown and the chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle lemon juice (to your taste; we like a lot of lemon so we use all the juice) and parsley over the top then serve.

This dish is great served with creamy mashed potato and lots of steamed greens.

Recently that was a quick dish grandly called Garlic Chicken Majestic. Grand it may sound, majestic it is in taste, but it is simple comfort food at its best.

I have no idea where the recipe came from, and it sounds like a strange combination, but it is absolutely delicious and very quick to prepare.

2 chicken breasts, cut into chunks
20g butter
1 tsp oil
1 tbs soy sauce (or tamari)
1-2 tbs curry powder
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp plain flour (optional)
1 cup cream

Heat butter and oil in a saute pan. Cook chicken over medium heat until cooked through and golden. Remove from the pan and cover with foil to rest.

Reduce heat to low and saute the garlic. Add curry powder and soy sauce, and stir into a paste. Add cream (and plain flour if desired) and heat gently till the sauce starts to thicken.

Return chicken and juices to the pan and heat through. Serve chicken on a bed of rice with your choice of steamed greens.