False Economy Gluten Free Products

Since I was diagnosed with coeliac disease in May 2010, gluten free foods have become more popular and diverse. Even three years ago, I couldn't find any fresh bread, and instead had to make do with the postage-stamp sized, vacuum packed loaves that were readily available in large supermarkets. There didn't seem to be much variety in snacks you could buy, which is why I relied, and still rely on my own baking.

Supermarket ranges have now vastly improved. Our local Sainsburys has an entire aisle dedicated to free from alternatives, for example.

Unfortunately, I've also noticed foods cropping up that are a bit of a false economy. Tomato and Basil soup, Tikka cooking sauce and Chilli Con Carne cooking sauces are just a few of the examples I've found while browsing Free From aisles. While it's important for coeliacs to check allergy advice and ingredients on everything we purchase, these products should be gluten free anyway! I had a look at some of these products in other parts of the supermarket that weren't specifically targeted at the gluten free consumer and noted that they were fine for coeliacs! I'm sure SOME of them might have the 'may contain:' warning on them, but for the most of them will be safe.  The specific 'free from' branded pouches are smaller and more expensive. Why take advantage and con money out of people just by placing a 'free from' brand on a product? It's expensive enough as it is.

You may have heard of Sweet Mandarin, a restaurant in Manchester. Featured on Dragon's Den, they now have a successful selection of dipping sauces. At first, I was skeptical because one of their products is a sweet chilli sauce, which again, should be naturally gluten free. I've just done a quick search on a supermarket's website for sweet chilli dipping sauces - all 8 results are gluten free and between 50p and £1.55 cheaper than Sweet Mandarin sauces.

However, having researched the company more, my mind has been changed. Not only are they gluten free, they are also vegan accredited, contain no artifical flavourings (most of the others do) and no MSG. More importantly, as well as sweet chilli and sweet and sour sauces, they also do a barbecue dipping sauce. It's not often I've found gluten free barbecue sauce! Sweet Mandarin restaurant was also voted best restaurant in Manchester by Gordon Ramsay.

To me, Sweet Mandarin's approach is different to supermarkets cashing in on gluten free customers.  They bring something new to the market and are clearly passionate about what they do. You can read about their sauces and the history of their family-run business here.

Have you tried these sauces? Have you visited their restaurant? Let me  know what you think!