Are you looking for some gluten-free meals that are big on nutrition but also easy to make? You’ve come to just the right place. Sure, you can find all kinds of different types of ready-made gluten-free products in the supermarket — there are more options out there for gluten-intolerant folks and Celiacs than ever before — but isn’t there something so satisfying about cooking your own food from the comfort of your kitchen? Plus it’s way healthier for you in the long term.
Sticking to a gluten-free meal plan can make it easier to stick to a healthy lifestyle, especially if your goal is to lose weight or gain muscle. Instead of processed products with a seemingly endless list of ingredients, when you make your own gluten-free meals you can control exactly what goes into what you’re eating.
Plus, you’ll One of the best things about making your own gluten-free meals from scratch is that you’ll undoubtedly save some money. Don’t worry — just because you make homemade food doesn’t mean it needs to be time-consuming! Let’s check out just how easy it can be.
Foods to include in a gluten-free meal plan
Making a gluten-free meal plan can be simple if you know what kinds of foods to include in your balanced diet. Some healthy gluten-free foods to add include:
-
Brown rice
-
Potatoes
-
Beans and legumes
-
Quinoa
-
Amaranth
-
Fresh fruit and vegetables
-
Meat and poultry
-
Seafood
-
Almond flour for baking
-
Oats (see sidebar)
For our fellow fitters, you can easily configure your meal plan to be gluten-free. In your app’s settings, choose the foods you wish to exclude from appearing in your recipes (in this case, bread and wheat products) and we’ll narrow it down for you automatically.
A quick note about oats:
Make sure to double check that your oats are certified gluten-free. Some varieties get processed on the same equipment as wheat, thus increasing the risk of cross-contamination.
3 easy gluten-free meals
To matters easy peasy, we’ve curated gluten-free meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that you can include as part of your gluten-free meal plan. For more inspiration, be sure to check out some of the many gluten-free recipes inside the fitnessinf.
Breakfast
Blueberry Flax Quinoa
25 min500 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp ground flax seeds
- ¼ cup blueberries
- pinch of salt (optional)
- ½ cup quinoa (uncooked)
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Method
- Rinse and dry quinoa and set aside.
- Melt the oil in a pot over medium heat.
- Add the quinoa and cook, frequently stirring until toasted and golden brown (about 5 minutes).
- Next, add the almond milk and a pinch of salt (optional) and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed for about 15-20 minutes.
- Fluff the quinoa with a fork then serve in a bowl.
- Top with fresh blueberries, flax, and cinnamon. Enjoy!
Lunch
Yoga Bowl
30 min490 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ tsp coconut oil
- ½ onion (medium sized)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 ¾ tsp ginger (grated)
- Pinch of chili flakes
- ½ tsp cayenne
- Pinch of salt
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ cup red lentils (dry)
- ½ cup diced tomatoes (no added salt or sugar)
- 1 ¼ cups fresh or frozen vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, green beans)
- ½ cup water
- 1 Tbsp mixed herbs (frozen or fresh)
Method
- Wash and prepare your veggies if you’re using fresh ones.
- Cut them into bite-sized pieces.
- Peel the onion and garlic — mincing both.
- Heat coconut oil in a pot, and add the onion and garlic. Lower the heat and cook for around 3 minutes until the onions have softened.
- Add the ginger, chili, cayenne, salt and cinnamon, cooking for another 3 minutes, continuously stirring so they don’t burn.
- Add the lentils, diced tomatoes, veggies and water.
- Cover and simmer until the lentils are cooked through and the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
- If it’s too dry, add a little water — depending on how much liquid the lentils absorb.
- Add herbs and let it cook for another minute.
- Serve in a bowl and enjoy.
Dinner
Spicy Turkey Tacos
20 min500 kcal
Ingredients
- ½ tsp olive oil
- ½ medium size onion
- ½ fresh chili pepper
- 1 ¼ tsp fresh cilantro
- ½ avocado
- 3 oz ground turkey
Method
- Heat a large pan to medium heat. Add olive oil.
- In the meantime, peel and chop onion. Remove seeds and slice pepper. Wash and chop cilantro. Peel and chop avocado.
- Add onion, pepper, and ground turkey to pan.
- Cook it all together about 8 minutes, or until the turkey is nearly cooked through.
- Add seasoning (salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder) and water. Stir. Reduce heat and allow to simmer about 5 minutes, until most of the moisture reduces and the flavorings thicken up.
- Serve onto toasted corn tortillas and top with cilantro and avocado.
Like the above recipes but have a craving for something sweet? Be sure to check out our gluten-free desserts article here to finish off with a bang!