Hey Gluten-Free Friends! We are back again this week for Week 2 of our weekly Wins and Losses series while living on the road. For those of you who are new, this post has 100% unedited photos and an honest account of living on the road while gluten free with celiac disease. This week covers a perfect meal prep recipe for home and travel, an awesome new product for tastier and speedier cooking, and some sketchy ‘gluten-free’ product labels.
Gluten Free Wins:
Win 1. Converting an easy VgF baked recipe to a stirfry that I could make on my two burner camp stove.
Truthfully, we are lazy meal-preppers. I love good food but would rather spend my weekends outside with friends and away from the kitchen. That’s why the VgF recipes typically have less hands-on cooking time than most recipes.
We made this Easy Roasted Chicken Fajita Bowl on the camp stove. Here’s what you need to know to cook this recipe on the stovetop (or while camping) yourself:
- Make sure you have a large skillet (we barely fit it all) or scale down the recipe - this recipe makes a lot of food! We recommend the former for lots of tasty leftovers and even some to freeze afterwards 😉
- If you thinly slice the veggies and cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces, you can easily cook the entire thing in one pan and all at the same time. We layered the onions, bell peppers, chicken, and spices in the pan before we even lit the burner.
- It took 20-25 minutes to cook everything through on a camp stove (likely less time on your stovetop at home). Stir on occasion at the start and more frequently as it cooks through.
- Include all spices (fresh cilantro, lime, etc) to take this dish from a 7/10 to a 10/10! We originally lost our lime and didn’t pick up fresh cilantro, but made a special trip to the store because we missed the extra punch of flavor. We try our best to keep ingredients minimal without sacrificing on flavor, so if I suggest it, I promise it’s worth the extra effort!
Win 2. Discovering and using Litehouse Freeze dried Garlic and Ginger
These two products are incredible for saving time and mess while adding a ton of flavor to your dish! They taste fresh and I highly recommend them.
However, the dried Cilantro from Litehouse does not taste like fresh cilantro. Not even close.
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Gluten Free Losses
Sketchy Gluten Free Labeling
Last week I mentioned that I was feeling unwell after eating too many processed foods while adjusting to vanlife. As this week progressed, it became more obvious that it was a gluten-related reaction, as I developed the gluten rash (dermatitis herpetiformis).
It was a very minor glutening and I bounced back quickly (save for that rash -- it takes forever to heal) but I’m now playing the ‘what glutened me game’.
In particular, I’m concerned with the label “GF” in a circle (not the certified gluten-free label, but the one made to mimic it). Since the words “gluten free” are not explicitly written on the package, I suspect that the product may be exempt from the FDA requirement for maintaining a testable gluten level below 20ppm. Sketchy right? Have you seen labels like this?
If I learn anything after calling the company, I will absolutely share my findings here!
Overall, it was a great week on the road, with beautiful sunsets, fun travel, and the friendly Southern California vibe.
Hungry for more?
Check these out–
- Gluten-Free Wins and Losses: Week 1
- Our Recipe Index
- Gluten Free Life Tips
- Gluten-Free Travel Tips & Destinations
Any gluten-free wins and losses for you this week?
With love and gratitude,
❤︎ Jamie
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