We Americans tend to eat a lot of wheat products even though 20% of us are likely intolerant to gluten (the protein in wheat, rye, barley and triticale). It is easy to get into a rut while trying to incorporate whole grains into one’s diet. Who wants to eat brown rice every day? Not me. There are a number of grains out there to try—and many can be cooked in less time than brown rice and are gluten-free. If you experience regular bloating, gas, constipation or diarrhea you might consider giving up glutinous grains for a month or so to see if your symptoms improve. Even if you are not completely gluten intolerant, you may find that eating fewer grains in general or sticking to whole grains of a non-glutinous variety improves your digestion and overall health.
Amaranth and quinoa are a great choices, especially for vegetarians, because they have the highest protein content of all the grains (at 12-30%) and almost perfectly balanced essential amino acid compositions. For 1 cup of the grains, use 2 cups liquid for quinoa, or two and a half cups liquid for the amaranth and simmer for 20 minutes just like rice. Millet cooks in 30 minutes and cornmeal (polenta) can be cooked in 15 minutes—both use three cups liquid to one cup grain. Teff, the tiny Ethiopian grain, cooks in 20 minutes and requires four cups cooking liquid to one cup grain.
Grain-cooking tips:
• soak grains from one to 12 hours and rinse before cooking to eliminate phytic acid, making them easier to digest
• cook grains in vegetable or chicken broth instead of water or add some sea vegetables to the cooking liquid to add some flavor
• a little splash of olive or sesame or safflower oil will help keep grains from sticking together
• do not stir grains as they cook; water will escape in the form of steam and the grains will get mushy
• when grains + liquid mixture hits boiling, immediately reduce heat to low and simmer for the suggested time
Serve grains with legumes for a nutritious dish containing a complete protein—enjoy them, knowing you are getting a hearty and healthy dose of fiber, B vitamins, essential fatty acids, minerals and amino acids. Throw in some green leafy vegetables and you could eat nothing else for a long time and still be healther than a large portion of the world’s population.
Christina Rutheiser, CNHP, Holistic Nutrition Consultant for Integrative Health Centers
