If you're like me, you are sensitive or even allergic to many food additives. One such additive that is of particular concern for me is the flavour enhancer Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). For this reason, I've become a huge label reader, especially when it comes to flavoured potato chips, soups, and anything in a box or can. You never know what is lurking in the ingredients list. To make matters a bit more complicated, add a foreign language or two and the challenge is even greater. One thing I've learned in my travels, is that MSG can often be hidden under the label of something else. I've become a master label reader and know what to look for in any given country. I know how to read Monosodium Glutamate in many different languages and in this case, being in a Dutch speaking country, mononatriumglutamaat. So if you have a sensitivity or allergy to MSG, mononatriumglutamaat is what you look for on products here in Bruges. HOWEVER, there are two other ingredients you should be looking for: smaakversterker, which translates to "flavour enhancer" and E621, which is just another name for monosodium glutamate. We absolutely love to cook and eat soups, on a weekly basis actually, and I found out the hard way that MSG was lurking in the bullion cubes. The ingredients didn't include mononatriumglutamaat, so I thought I was safe, but upon looking again, it did contain smaakversterker. A closer look at many other products on my next grocery shopping outing showed that there is no consistency as to what name was used. So I now check the ingredient labels for three different names for MSG.
That applies for restaurants as well. If you mention mononatriumglutamaat, many times the waiter or chef will say there is not any in their meals, but they do, in fact, use smaakversterker. If you have an MSG issue, hopefully you can now better navigate the Bruges markets and restaurants with a bit more knowledge!
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Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! So excited to begin this blog series focusing on food and product alternatives in Bruges: gluten-free, dairy-free, chemical free, organic and vegan/vegetarian options. About Me
I semi moved here last summer and have some food and chemical allergies myself: gluten, msg (monosodium glutamate), parabens, and a few others. Generally, I try to eat as clean and healthy as possible. I travel quite a bit as well for work, so I've found it very challenging at times to identify those items I can't have, especially in countries that don't speak much English or where the labels are not printed in English. On my first visit to Bruges, in February 2016, I was pleased to see some gluten-free options, but there was no real guide to where I could find them. A quick Google search yielded a couple of great places to get pasta and baked goods. After spending more time here, I've been keeping track of who does what and the type of options they have and decided to share that for all who share the dietary restrictions that make travel so difficult. For those of you who live in Bruges, you most likely know many of these places. I, and my co-contributers, plan to find the lesser known places and write about it here. For those traveling to Bruges, we hope you are able to enjoy this fairytale city to a greater extent, knowing you can indulge in the culinary delights it has to offer. Let's Get Started! I've been planning this blog for while now. I attended Kookeet this last September and was so pleased with the alternative options available. That was my inspiration to get this site and blog going, but the holidays and work quickly ate up my time. So with the start of a new year, comes this project! Keep an eye here also for not just food alternatives, but products as well. There are so many chemicals in many of the regular products we use and many of us, for health reasons or simply by choice, seek out alternatives. We (I've got a few ladies that will be contributing as well) will be featuring some amazing products available locally as well and where to get them. We are looking forward to creating this guide for you and sharing what we find. If you know of something, please write to us and let us know. We'd love to hear from you! Until then...Happy Eating! |
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