Folks with food allergies are accustomed to sorting through the pieces of the puzzle that is the next meal, snack, or beverage they want to enjoy safely. This means we don’t get the luxury of going into auto-pilot when ordering at a restaurant or eating a meal at a friend’s house. However, there is joy and pleasure that comes with cooking a meal that’s allergy-friendly from start to finish and that’s so delicious, no one even knows it’s top 9 allergen-free! It’s also a great way to flex your culinary muscles as you continue to get used to which substitutions work for your allergy needs and per your taste preferences.
Here are my three tips to keep in mind when modifying a recipe to become allergy-friendly.
Even if it’s food we’ve eaten a million times, we always have to read labels and check ingredients, on the off chance that the formulation has changed, or producers have changed suppliers. Look through the ingredients and see if the allergen can be easily left out. Is this simply a topping on a pizza or a salad that won’t be missed in the final product? Absolutely. Or is this a baked good that requires the structure, taste, texture, etc. of a certain ingredient that can’t be left out without it affecting the overall product like a dough or batter? Chances are we need to see if it makes sense to buy a pre-made option (like a premade flour mix, premade dough, etc.) or if we can easily replicate it with ingredients we already have on hand.
The five basic tastes - sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami - are the key items to keep in mind when having to create a well-rounded, delicious, and safe allergy-friendly meal. Oftentimes when we’re taking something out of a recipe, that flavor profile will be gone so we should swap it in with something that could seamlessly take its place or be fine without it. Take a look at the menu I put together from Natural Delights’ recipe database below to hit all five tastes to round out into a beautifully nutritious and delicious meal. The ingredients that need to be swapped out for an allergy-friendly variation are noted so you can get to cooking!
Something sweet: Pizza with Caramelized Onions and Dates
Swaps to make it top 9 allergen-free: pizza dough, fresh mozzarella
Something sour: Grilled Pineapple Topped with Feta, Cilantro, & Medjool Date Strips with Tajín®
Swaps to make it top 9 allergen-free: feta cheese
Something salty: Herb Pork Loin
Swaps to make it top 9 allergen-free: none!
Something bitter: Apple, Date, & Walnut Salad
Swaps to make it top 9 allergen-free: walnuts, gorgonzola cheese
Something with umami: Summer Corn Salad
Swaps to make it top 9 allergen-free: none!
At the end of the day, eating isn’t something we should aim to do “perfectly.” There are many times I’ve tried out an ingredient swap three or four times until I get just the right balance of flavors I like and to make me feel like I’m eating a great variation of the “original” and not sacrificing anything just so that it’s a safe meal. There’s nothing worse than eating an allergy-friendly meal and knowing it’s an allergy-friendly meal. IYKYK - these dishes are often lacking any sort of seasoning or spice, bland, and lackluster. If you have time, get the littles involved and see what they want to add to the dish. Maybe take your usual main dish and get creative with the side veggies and starch. Think of it as a choose-your-own-adventure that allows you to reap the rewards at the end of your delicious journey. Let’s not forget we deserve to eat well, too!
Tessa Nguyen, MEd, RD, is an internationally acclaimed chef, registered dietitian, and speaker. Tessa's multiethnic heritage and lived experience across multiple countries has centered her in providing inclusive services founded on cultural humility. She is the founder and principal of TN Media, which is a consulting agency that provides culinary development, cultural auditing, bespoke content development, speaking engagements, healthcare guidelines and resources, and countless media work for clients across the healthcare, food, nutrition, and agriculture industries.
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