INTRODUZIONE
The Gluten Free Chinese Recipe Collection was written out of a passion for real Chinese cooking with a loved one’s special dietary needs in mind. Celiac disease can be a miserable ailment and I hope that you too wall be able to enjoy these simple recipes if you or a loved one suffers from the disease but craves the exotic taste of real Asian cooking.
Inside The Gluten Free Chinese Recipe Collection you will find easy to prepare, low cost recipes that are tasty, hearty and, best of all, gluten free.
Background
Twelve years ago, long before gluten-free cooking became popular, I married my loving husband who was stricken with an undiagnosed case of celiac disease. My husband, Monty, being the proud and strong man that he is, suffered through the condition in silence. In fact, he wasn’t even aware of why he often suffered from pain, discomfort and fatigue, thinking that it was just part of his life. There were days when I would see the quiet suffering in Monty’s eyes and wish I could ease his pain.
As our relationship grew deeper and we became closer, I noticed that some days were better than others. That was when I began to suspect Monty may be suffering from an allergy. Food allergies were common on my side of the family, my little sister has a peanut allergy and, on my mother’s side, a severe case of lactose intolerance.
I made an appointment for an allergist who tested for various allergens. Right away he suspected celiac disease. He sent us to a specialist who performed blood tests looking for abnormally elevated levels of endomysial and anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies. They came back positive, but as a final precaution to confirm the diagnosis, the doctor performed an
esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) by inserting a long, flexible viewing endoscope through my husband’s mouth and into the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine, which is connected to the stomach.)
After confirmation, the doctor recommended a gluten free diet, informing us that those suffering from celiac disease who eat gluten-free experience fewer symptoms of the disease.
Needless to say, Monty wasn’t very happy about all the hubbub. He had an aversion to doctors and avoided seeing them at all costs. But he knew that I was worried and wanted to please me.
And I was pleased. Not that my husband was suffering from a disease, but that the disease he was suffering from was treatable with the proper diet. The doctor informed us that through careful monitoring of the types of food he ingested, my husband could lead a normal, healthy life, free from painful cramps and stomach aches and with renewed energy. All that was required was to remove gluten from his diet.
A Gluten Free Diet
The basic definition of a gluten-free diet is a diet that excludes the protein gluten. But where do we find gluten and how do we avoid it? There are certain foods in particular where gluten is found, namely in grains such as wheat, barley, rye. Thankfully, most traditional Chinese recipes didn’t contain these grains.
In the beginning, I believed that adjusting my family’s menu to avoid foods that contained gluten would be difficult. I wasn’t much of a cook at the time, relying on my mother’s traditional Chinese cooking when growing up, then fast food and the cafeteria adjacent to my dorm in college after I left my childhood home. I spoke with my mother about my frustration. She w'as thoughtful for a moment then she replied, “Dear, look to your heritage. As
someone of Chinese ancestry, you should consider going back to your roots and learn the basic dishes from our homeland. Nearly ever}' recipe that I serve at the dinner table is gluten free. Let me show you the recipes that I learned from your grandmother. They are simple to learn and cheap to make. And with a few adjustments, I am sure will please both your palate and your pocketbook, as well as keep Monty on a strict gluten free diet.”
I learned my mother’s recipes and, along with many other non-Chinese recipes I’d created and/or gleaned from various cookbooks and altered to fit his diet, we have been living gluten free for the last decade. That is, aside from when he is out of town or at the office late when my kids and I indulge in a feast of pizza and breadsticks! 🙂
How to Serve
You can make these dishes as single serve recipes or combine them to make a robust dinner for a party. For my family of four, my preference is to combine four or five of the recipes in The Gluten Free Chinese Recipe Collection for each meal. For instance, a typical dinner with my husband and two children would consist of the following:
From 20 Gluten Free Chinese Soup Recipes:
-White Radish Soup
From 20 Gluten Free Chinese Noodle & Rice Recipes:
-Mee Hoon Kuey (Homemade Noodles)
From 20 Gluten Free Chinese Main Dish Recipes:
-Beef Broccoli
-Steamed Ground Pork with Salted Egg -Cashew Chicken
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