Eating out on a low FODMAP diet

Eating out can be tricky on a low FODMAP diet, in part because high FODMAP ingredients (such as garlic and onion) feature heavily in restaurant dishes, but rarely are mentioned on menus.

The following tips may help you to more easily eat out and enjoy a range of cuisines on a low FODMAP diet.

• Look at menus online to find restaurants with suitable low FODMAP options.
• Know your worst trigger foods so you can ask for these to be excluded from your meal.
• Order a gluten free meal that excludes your worst trigger foods.
• Choose protein-based meals (fish, red meats, or poultry) served with vegetables / salad / potato / rice / rice noodles on the side rather than bread or pasta.
• Avoid heavily sauced, rich dishes (such as curries) as they are harder to modify and often contain garlic and onion.
• Avoid dishes made with stock (such as soups and risotto) as they often contain garlic and onion.
• Ask for no garlic or onion, or for a recommendation regarding dishes that do not contain these ingredients.
• Ask for dips, sauces and dressings to be served separately (these often contain garlic and onion)
• Call the restaurant in advance (outside of busy hours) for more complicated requests.

Cuisines and dishes that may be more likely to offer low FODMAP options include:

Vietnamese:
Low FODMAP options include

• Rice vermicelli with beef, chicken, prawn or tofu (ask for firm tofu and no onion in the salad)
• Rice paper rolls (ask for no onion)
• Bun (ask for sauces separate, plain meat if marinated in garlic, and no onion in the salad)

Thai:
Avoid curries that typically contain high FODMAP ingredients and are harder to modify. Instead, choose stir-fry dishes served with steamed jasmine rice (Khao Plao). Ask for firm tofu, mild chilli and no garlic or onion. Low FODMAP options include:

• Duck breast stir-fry with lemongrass, chilli (mild), coriander and sweet basil
• Vegetarian stir-fry with firm tofu and low FODMAP vegetables
• Prawn and mixed seafood stir-fry with capsicum, chilli (mild) and green beans (Pad Talay)

Japanese:
As serving sizes are often small, higher FODMAP ingredients may be tolerated, for example, avocado in a hand roll or wheat in tempura batter. Remember, soy sauce and wasabi are low FODMAP. Low FODMAP options include:

• Sushi, sashimi and tempura (ask for condiments on the side)
• Grilled tofu, seafood, beef or chicken served with rice/vegetables/seaweed
• Rice noodles with your choice of meat and vegetables

Korean:
Korean dishes are often cooked on a barbeque in front of customers, allowing you to pick and choose which low FODMAP ingredients are included in your dish.

Greek:
Low FODMAP options include:

• Saganaki, olives (plain), horta, chargrilled fish/scallops/octopus/tiger prawns, patates, chicken from the spit and mixed grills with salad.
• Avoid dips, moussaka, pistaccio (baked pasta with béchamel sauce) and honey-based desserts.

Pub meals and pizza:
Low FODMAP options include:

• Pizza made with a gluten-free base and low FODMAP toppings
• Grilled meat/chicken/fish served with steamed vegetables / salad / potato. Ask for sauces to be served separately and plain meat if it is marinated.