Diet Tips:Slow-cooked low-FODMAP Lamb Casserole

By Lyndal McNamara 

Slow-cooked low-FODMAP Lamb Casserole ............................................................................................. Serves: 8 .............................................................................................   Ingredients 1 kg diced lamb 2 tbs. garlic infused olive oil 5 rashers short-cut bacon, diced 1 tbs. ground coriander 1 tbs. ground cumin 1 tsp. ground cardamom ½ cup red wine ½ cup tomato paste 1 x tin diced tomatoes 1 tin canned lentils, drained and rinsed 2 cups beef stock (no onion or garlic) 3 large carrots, chopped 1 kg potato, cooked and mashed (add 1 tbs. milk, 1 tbs. butter and 1 tsp. black pepper) Parsley, to garnish Method Heat oil in a large, heavy based pan Cook lamb in batches until browned, set aside In the same pan, cook bacon until browned, add spices and cook for a further minute or until fragrant Add red wine, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, lentils and stock, bring to the boil Add cooked lamb, carrot and sauce mixture into a slow cooker Cook on medium heat setting for 5-6 hours or until meat is tender and flaky and sauce has thickened Serve with mashed potato and garnish with parsley    NUTRITION INFORMATION per serve Energy total Protein CHO Fat total          - Saturated Sodium 2409KJ 53g 26g 24g 7g 1032mg Tips: Use lean diced lamb where possible This casserole can be cooked in a large batch and stored in the freezer for a convenient mid-week meal

Diet Tips:Not just another stir fry!

By Marina Iacovou (PhD Candidate and Accredited Practising Dietitian)

Following on from our recent blogpost of a low FODMAP stir-fry recipe, keep in mind that a stir-fry is one of those dishes that can be made in many different ways – to suit all tastes and tolerance levels. A stir-fry may be made low FODMAP to start with, but when symptoms are well-controlled and you are ready to re-introduce foods into your diet, add in a moderate-FODMAP ingredient and continue to monitor your symptoms. If well tolerated, next time include another ingredient from the moderate-high FODMAP group. When you get started with re-introducing foods into your diet, you may like to try an ingredient you have missed eating for some time, or work with your dietitian to create a list of ingredients to be re-introduced first.

Stir-fries can be made to suit vegans, vegetarians, pescatarians and meat-eaters – the options are many.  Some other dishes that can be adapted in the same way include, pizza, wraps consisting of a variety of meats, tofu and vegetables, and baked potatoes. See link for a previous blogpost on baked potatoes http://bit.ly/1SzdxH2

Below is a list of the many ingredients you may include from the green serves (low FODMAP), the amber serves (moderate FODMAP) and the red serves (high FODMAP) for a stir-fry that suits your tastes and tolerance-level. All of these and more can be found in our Monash University low FODMAP diet app.

Low FODMAP (green)	Moderate FODAMP (amber)
Carrots	Snow peas (7 pods)
Capsicum	Celery
Green beans	Button mushroom (1/2 tablespoon)
Firm Tofu	Savoy cabbage (3/4 cup)
Chicken	Coconut
Been	Hazelnuts (20 nuts/30g)
Prawns	Peas (18)
Spring onion (green part)	High FODMAP (high)
Lemon / lime juice	Spring onion / shallots
Oyster sauce	Garlic
Bean sprouts	Mushrooms
Bok choy	Snow peas (10 pods)
Choy sum	Cauliflower
Red cabbage	Silken tofu
Snow peas (5 pods)	Almond / cashews
Peanuts	Mung beans

You may also like to include white, basmati or brown rice as the base to your stir-fry dish. Alternatively, try rice based noodles such as rice vermicelli.

Flavour with chilli, a variety of herbs and spices and garlic infused oil - for example, some ginger or galangal and lemongrass with coriander. You may also like to add, soy sauce, oyster sauce or a sweet and sour sauce. There are many ways to flavour a stir-fry and other dishes – it all depends on your preference.

Here are some images of a stir-fry I created at home which included a number of low FODMAP and moderate FODMAP ingredients, flavoured with ginger, coriander, an Asian stir-fry sauce and lime, served with basmati rice.

              

Please feel free to share your ingredient ideas for a stir-fry with us and others – not all stir-fries need to be the same.

Enjoy!

Diet Tips:A Guide to Low FODMAP Meal Planning

By Lyndal McNamara (Dietitian) 

Meal planning is a great skill to have, not only for those with special dietary needs, but anyone who leads a busy lifestyle (let’s be honest, that’s most of us!).

As a dietitian with IBS, planning my meals in advance not only saves precious time during the week but also helps ensure that my low FODMAP diet is nutritionally balanced and well thought out (helping me avoid uncomfortable mistakes!).

Here is an example of what my typical day looks like. I like to use the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating (AGHE) to help plan out my day according to the number of serves I need of different foods from the five food groups. As a 23 year old female, the AGHE recommends that each day I aim for:

-          5 serves vegetables/legumes/beans

-          2 serves of fruit

-          6 serves of grain/cereal foods

-          2 ½ serves meat/alternatives

-          2 ½ serves dairy foods

Check out the AGHE website for more information about the 5 food groups and how much you need each day (this varies depending on your age, gender and activity level)

https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/food-essentials

Sample Meal Plan:

Breakfast	Porridge with yoghurt, cinnamon & banana ½ cup cooked rolled oats (120g) 1 tsp. chia seeds (5g) 1 tbs. low-fat milk (25g)* low-fat natural yoghurt (100g)* 1 medium banana (100g)  Sprinkle of cinnamon
Snack	Small handful mixed nuts (30g)
Lunch	Moroccan chicken & roast vegetable salad: chicken tenderloins (40g) ¼ cup roasted sweet potato (35g) ¼ cup roasted red capsicum (26g) ½ cup baby spinach leaves (19g) ¼ cup canned chickpeas (42g) 1 tbs. garlic infused oil (to cook chicken and vegetables) 1 tbs. Moroccan spice mix (cumin, coriander, cinnamon & ginger  ½ cup cooked quinoa
Afternoon Tea	2 x wholemeal crackers (18g)  2 slices low-fat cheese (40g)
Dinner	Beef stir-fry  Beef stir-fry strips (65g)  ¼ cup red capsicum (26g) ¼ cup carrot (30g) ¼ cup green beans (43g)   ¼ cup bok choy (22g) 1 tsp grated ginger (3g)  ½ red chilli (14g) 2 tsp oyster sauce (10g) 2 tsp soy sauce (10g) 1 cup steamed brown rice
Supper/dessert	Tub of low-fat yoghurt (200g)*  1 cup strawberries (140g)

*I am not lactose intolerant so use regular dairy products. Please substitute for a lactose free alternative if you malabsorb lactose.

	Total/day
Energy	7223kJ
Protein	103.5g
Carbohydrates	170.7g
-          Sugar	68.0g
Fat	63.6g
-          Saturated fat	14.8g
Dietary fibre	31.4g
Iron	12.8mg
Calcium	1075mg
Sodium	2059mg
Total FODMAPs (excluding lactose)	LOW

Meal Planning tips: 

• Set aside a few hours each weekend to think about the coming week and plan your meals using the Monash App. Decide what you will have for dinner each night (at a bare minimum) and use this plan to write a shopping list. 

• Busy week ahead? Why not spend a few hours each Sunday afternoon cooking 1-2 healthy low FODMAP meals to set aside or freeze for those hectic weeknights! 

• Pre-prepare and stock your fridge with healthy low FODMAP snacks such as tubs of low-fat yoghurt (lactose free if needed), small zip-lock bags of low FODMAP nuts, cut up vegetable sticks (carrot, cucumber, capsicum) with Roasted Red Pepper & Pumpkin Hummus or Low FODMAP Tzatziki Dip, low FODMAP fruit, cheese and plain crackers etc.