Gluten-free

Every food and recipe in the library that fits a gluten-free pattern. Derived from what each ingredient is, not from a product label — the food library carries the same filter, and remembers it across the site.

Foods

• AbaloneA shellfish loaded with vitamin B12 and iodine, two nutrients that are genuinely hard to get enough of.
• Acorn SquashAcorn squash looks plain, but one cooked cup gives you more potassium than a banana, plenty of fiber, and a good hit of vitamin C.
• Adzuki BeansAdzuki beans are small red beans packed with fiber, iron, and folate — good nutrition that comes from eating the whole bean, not from a special powder or "detox" trend.
• Alcoholic BeverageAlmost all the energy in a spirit comes from the alcohol itself, not from sugar.
• Almond BeverageA low-calorie drink that is mostly water. Check the label for added calcium — that is the part that matters.
• Almond ButterAlmond butter packs healthy fats, vitamin E, and magnesium into a small scoop — but it's easy to eat way more than one serving.
• Almond MilkA seventh of milk’s protein. Everything it does offer was added at the factory.
• AlmondsA genuinely good vitamin E source, wrapped in fibre and healthy fat.
• AmaranthAmaranth is a tiny ancient seed packed with a rare protein building block most grains lack, but its calcium doesn't count for as much as milk's does.
• AnchoviesAnchovies are small, salty fish that pack a surprising amount of protein, calcium, and heart-healthy fat into just a few bites.
• AppleMost of its fibre, and a notable antioxidant, live in the skin.
• Apple JuiceAn apple with the fibre removed and the sugar left in.
• ApricotApricots are a sweet, low-calorie fruit loaded with vitamin A that helps your eyes, skin, and immune system -- just never eat the seed inside the pit.
• ArtichokeArtichokes are a fiber-packed flower bud that feeds your gut bacteria and gives your liver a gentle nudge to make more bile for digesting fat.
• Artichoke Hearts (Canned)Four point seven grams of fibre on 25 calories — the best ratio in the library.
• ArugulaArugula's spicy taste and its vitamin K, calcium, and nitrates all come from the same peppery plant compounds.
• AsparagusA prebiotic fibre source, famous for a harmless and genetically variable side effect.
• AvocadoMore potassium per serving than a banana — not the food people expect.
• Avocado OilAvocado oil is loaded with heart-healthy fat and vitamin E, but only if the bottle you bought is actually pure avocado oil.
• BaconProcessed meat: the salt and the curing agents are the issue, not the fat.
• Baked BeansFour point eight grams of fibre a hundred, for 91 calories. The tin is better than its reputation.
• Baking SodaNot a food, an ingredient. It has no energy at all, but gram for gram it carries more sodium than salt.
• Balsamic VinegarThe only vinegar with real sugar in it — and still 79 calories per hundred.
• Bamboo ShootsFourteen calories per hundred grams — the lightest food in the library.
• BananaA practical potassium source — tablets are capped far lower for safety.
• Banana PrawnA very lean seafood that’s mostly protein, with barely any fat.
• BarramundiA mild-tasting fish that is not just filler — it carries a real dose of omega-3, more than most white fish manage.
• BasilA fragrant herb that is genuinely nutrient-dense by weight, though you only ever eat a small amount of it at a time.
• BassaLean, mild and inexpensive — a white fish that gives you protein rather than omega-3.
• BeanDried, fresh and canned beans look like different foods but mostly differ in how much water they hold.
• Bean SproutsBean sprouts are crunchy, low-calorie veggies with real vitamin C and vitamin K in them, but they should be cooked, not eaten raw, to stay safe.
• Beef (Lean)Its iron absorbs well on its own — no vitamin C pairing needed.
• Beef DrippingFifty-two grams of saturated fat per hundred — seven times canola oil.
• Beef LiverA small serving of beef liver packs more vitamin A, B12, iron, and copper than almost any other food -- so a little goes a long way.
• Beef Mince (Regular Fat)The fat percentage on the label is raw. What you eat depends on how you cook it.
• BeetrootRaw, baked, boiled or canned — the cooking method changes this vegetable more than most.
• BeetsA natural nitrate source that genuinely improves blood flow — the same idea behind citrulline supplements.
• Bell PeppersContains more vitamin C per serving than an orange does.
• Berry JamTwo-thirds sugar, and the sugar is why it keeps.
• BeverageChocolate milk drinks are mostly milk. The powder adds flavour, sugar, and sometimes added vitamins.
• Beverage BaseMostly sugar with some cocoa — the milk you mix it into does most of the nutritional work.
• BisonBison is a lean red meat that's packed with iron and vitamin B12, but its low fat means you have to cook it gently or it turns tough and dry.
• Bitter MelonBitter melon is a super low-calorie vegetable packed with vitamin C, and some studies show it can gently help lower blood sugar, but it's not a magic diabetes cure.
• Black BeansA type of starch that reaches your colon mostly intact — which is the whole point.
• Black PepperA spice used by the shake, but with a genuinely useful trick — it helps your body absorb other nutrients better.
• Black TeaAbout a third the caffeine of coffee, with tannins that blunt iron absorption.
• Black-Eyed PeasBlack-eyed peas aren't really peas — they're beans packed with fiber and plant protein, plus a B vitamin called folate that helps your body build new blood cells.
• BlackberriesOne of the few fruits with enough vitamin K that it matters for anyone on blood thinners.
• BlackcurrantBlackcurrants are small, tart berries loaded with vitamin C and deep purple plant compounds called anthocyanins that are good for your heart, eyes, and blood vessels.
• Blood OrangeBlood oranges look different because of a special red pigment — not because they have way more vitamin C than regular oranges.
• Blue CheeseBlue cheese's blue streaks are edible mold that give it its bite, and every bite also brings calcium for your bones — just watch the salt.
• Blue GrenadierLean white fish, and baking or steaming it changes almost nothing except how much water is left in.
• BlueberriesA mixture of hundreds of antioxidant compounds no single pill copies.
• BocconciniA soft, fresh cheese — a good calcium and protein source without too much salt.
• Bok ChoyBok choy is a crunchy, low-calorie green that quietly packs a lot of bone-friendly vitamin K and immune-supporting vitamin C.
• Borlotti BeansBorlotti beans are a fiber and folate powerhouse, but eating them raw or undercooked can make you sick, so always cook them all the way through.
• BoysenberryBoysenberries are a man-made berry mix, packed with fiber and vitamin C, that helps your gut and immune system.
• Braised Steak OnionsMost of what is in the tin is sauce and onion, so there is less meat in it than the name suggests.
• Brazil NutsOne Brazil nut can pack more selenium than you need for the whole day, so a couple of nuts is plenty.
• BreadfruitBreadfruit looks like a big green potato-fruit, and just like a potato, you always cook it before eating -- raw breadfruit is hard, bitter, and unpleasant.
• BreamA common Australian fish that’s genuinely rich in omega-3.
• BrieBrie is a soft, buttery cheese that gives you calcium for bones and B12 for blood and nerves -- just make sure it's pasteurized.
• BroccoliContains something no supplement quite copies — and it depends how you cook it.
• BroccoliniBroccolini is a friendly veggie hybrid with crunchy stems and a mild taste, and it packs a big dose of vitamin C and vitamin K into every bite.
• Brown RiceThe bran layer left on is where the whole difference from white rice lives.
• Brown SugarWhite sugar with a film of molasses on it. That is the entire difference.
• Brussels SproutsOne of the most concentrated vitamin K sources in the produce aisle.
• BuckwheatDespite the name, it is not wheat at all — and it is naturally gluten-free.
• Buckwheat GroatsA gluten-free seed cooked like rice, with more magnesium and protein than most grains.
• Buffalo (Cube Roll)A red meat cousin to beef that is usually leaner, with a similar dose of iron, zinc and protein.
• ButterA real source of vitamin A — and the fat that helps you absorb it from vegetables too.
• Butter BeansA soft, buttery bean that must always be cooked — never eaten raw.
• ButtermilkButtermilk sounds rich and buttery, but it's actually a tangy, low-fat drink made by fermenting milk with good bacteria.
• Butternut SquashButternut squash's orange color is basically a vitamin A signal, but your body only turns as much of it into usable vitamin A as it needs, and cooking plus a little fat helps that process along.
• CabbageAn underrated vitamin C source, and the raw material for sauerkraut and kimchi.
• Cacao NibsCacao nibs are crushed, unsweetened chocolate beans — full of minerals and a gentle, coffee-like lift, but they're not a sugary treat.
• Calamari (Squid)Squid is a lean, mineral-packed seafood — just don't let deep-frying turn it into junk food.
• CamelRed meat, but leaner than beef — which changes how you have to cook it.
• CamembertThe white fuzzy skin on Camembert is safe to eat, but if you're pregnant, check the label: only pasteurized Camembert is considered safe.
• Canned BeetrootThe nitrate that lowers blood pressure survives the tin. Some of it, anyway.
• Canned Tuna (in Brine)Twenty-six grams of protein, 752 mg of omega-3, and a mercury question worth answering properly.
• Cannellini BeansCannellini beans are a fiber and plant-protein powerhouse — just be sure they're fully cooked, since raw beans can make you sick.
• Canola OilThe lowest saturated fat of any common cooking oil, and it costs the least.
• CantaloupeCantaloupe is mostly water and natural sugar, but it still packs a real dose of vitamin C and vitamin A into every juicy bite.
• Capers2,348 mg of sodium per hundred grams — the saltiest food in the library.
• CapsicumGreen capsicums are just unripe red ones — and ripening is what builds the vitamin C and colour.
• Caraway SeedsThe seed behind rye bread and goulash, and one of the highest-fibre things in this database by weight.
• Cardamom SeedThe nutrition table is per 100g. Nobody eats 100g of cardamom.
• CarrotsCooking actually makes its signature nutrient easier to absorb.
• CashewsOne of the better magnesium sources among common nuts.
• CassavaCassava is a starchy root that gives you quick energy — but eating it raw or undercooked can make you seriously sick.
• CatfishCatfish is a mild, budget-friendly fish loaded with protein and B12 — and being a "bottom feeder" doesn't make it dirty.
• CauliflowerBroccoli’s milder cousin, with a gentler version of the same compounds.
• CeleriacCeleriac looks like a dirt-covered brain, but it's really celery's underground cousin — and it's loaded with vitamin K, potassium, and fiber.
• CeleryFamous for being low-calorie, but the real story is fibre and potassium.
• Chayote SquashChayote is basically water with a crunch, but it quietly delivers a solid dose of folate.
• Cheddar CheeseSome aged cheeses genuinely supply vitamin K2, made by bacteria during fermentation.
• CheeseEvery cheese in this list is the same milk with a different amount of water left in it.
• CherryFresh, frozen and canned cherries are the same fruit with very different amounts of added sugar.
• ChestnutRoasted chestnuts taste more like a starchy vegetable than a typical nut — because that’s basically what they are, nutrition-wise.
• Chia SeedsForms a gel in liquid the same way oat fibre does, only faster.
• ChickenNearly all the fat in chicken sits in the skin, not the meat.
• Chicken BreastThe lean protein most diets are built around by default.
• Chicken LiverOne small serving of chicken liver packs more vitamin A, B12, and iron than a whole day's worth of most other foods — which is exactly why it's a once-in-a-while food, not an everyday one.
• Chicken PieceCoated fried chicken is mostly ordinary chicken plus batter, oil and salt.
• Chicken ThighChicken thigh gives you protein plus iron and zinc, all from real food you can actually taste.
• Chicken WingsThe skin doubles the fat and adds nothing else. That is the whole decision.
• ChickpeasA plant iron and protein source that also feeds your gut bacteria.
• Chicory (Witlof)A low-calorie, slightly bitter leafy vegetable — from the same plant whose root is roasted and used as a coffee substitute.
• ChilliGreen chillies are just unripe red ones, and ripening is what builds up the colour and the vitamins.
• Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan)Chinese broccoli looks like a leafy stem vegetable, but it packs a serious punch of vitamins A, C, and K into very few calories.
• ChivesChives pack a vitamin K punch pound-for-pound, but since you only ever use a small sprinkle, don't expect much from a garnish-sized serving.
• Chocolate Hazelnut SpreadMore than half sugar, under a third fat, and the hazelnuts are the smallest part.
• ChokoA mild, watery vegetable that takes on whatever it is cooked with.
• ChorizoThe paprika is the point, and 868 mg of sodium comes with it.
• Chutney or RelishMade of fruit and vegetables, but preserved with enough sugar and salt to change what it is.
• CiderFermented apple juice, where about half the kilojoules come from the alcohol rather than the sugar.
• ClamsClams pack more vitamin B12 into a few bites than almost any other food on Earth, plus a big dose of iron.
• ClementineClementines are a quick hit of vitamin C in a fruit you can peel with your thumbs.
• Cocoa PowderThe drinking chocolate without the three-quarters sugar. Almost nothing else changes.
• CoconutCoconut has good fiber and minerals, but most of its fat is saturated fat -- the kind that can raise cholesterol if you eat a lot of it.
• Coconut BeverageFortified or not is the whole question — and either way it is not a swap for milk on protein.
• Coconut CreamCoconut milk's richer, more concentrated cousin — less water pressed through the coconut flesh means more fat per spoonful.
• Coconut MilkA rich, fatty liquid pressed from coconut flesh — most of its calories come from saturated fat.
• Coconut OilCoconut oil gives quick energy from a small part of its fat, but most of it still raises your cholesterol like butter does.
• Coconut WaterSold as nature’s sports drink. It has the wrong electrolyte for the job.
• CodA lean white fish giving a lot of protein for very little fat.
• Cod or HakeThe fish is lean and mild. The smoking is what adds the salt.
• CoffeeThe most widely used stimulant on earth, and one of the best studied.
• Cola (Regular)Liquid sugar with no fibre to slow it and no satiety to show for it.
• Collard GreensCollard greens are a leafy green loaded with vitamin K, calcium, and vitamin A — cooking them with a little fat helps your body use more of it.
• Condensed MilkEvaporated milk plus 45.8 g of added sugar per hundred. That is the entire difference.
• ConeA hollow biscuit that holds the ice cream. It is the ice cream that carries the calories.
• CordialDiluted to taste, which is exactly the problem.
• Cordial BaseThis is a syrup meant to be watered down, so the numbers on the table are about four to five times what ends up in the glass.
• CorianderA herb that is either a favorite or (for a real genetic reason) tastes like soap to some people — and is genuinely rich in folate and iron by weight.
• Coriander SeedThe numbers here look impressive, but a teaspoon weighs two grams — treat this as flavour, not nutrition.
• CornPart vegetable, part grain — and one of the best food sources of the eye pigments.
• Corn TortillaSoaking corn in lime doesn't just turn it into dough — it unlocks nutrients that plain corn keeps hidden away.
• Corned Beef (Canned)Genuinely good protein and B12, wrapped in 750 mg of sodium.
• Cornflour (Cornstarch)Pure starch, nothing else — which is exactly what it is for.
• CornmealCooking polenta does not change what is in it much — it mostly adds water.
• Cottage CheeseA slow-digesting protein, genuinely useful before a long gap without food.
• CrabCrab is a lean seafood that packs a big dose of vitamin B12 and zinc into very few calories.
• CranberriesCranberries are tart, low-sugar berries packed with vitamin C and fiber, and a natural compound that keeps bad bacteria from clinging to your bladder.
• Cranberry Juice DrinkThe UTI evidence is thinner than the marketing, and this is mostly added sugar anyway.
• CrawfishCrawfish tail meat is a lean, low-fat way to get a big dose of protein, vitamin B12, and selenium in one bite.
• CreamDairy-free, but not lighter — most of its fat is saturated and there is sugar in it that real cream does not have.
• Cream CheeseLegally a cheese, nutritionally much closer to cream.
• Cream of TartarAn acid powder for baking — the huge potassium number on the table is per 100g, and a recipe uses about a gram.
• Crème FraîcheCrème fraîche's richness comes from fat, not magic - and that same fat is exactly why it won't curdle when you cook it.
• Crocodile (Back Leg)A very lean white meat — good for protein, but do not count on it for iron the way you would beef.
• CucumberMostly water by weight — which is exactly the point of it.
• Cumin SeedThe table says cumin is loaded with iron. A teaspoon of it is not — read the serving size first.
• CumquatA citrus small enough to eat whole, peel included — and the peel is the sweet part.
• CurrantFresh currants are a berry. Dried currants are tiny grapes. They are different plants that happen to share a name.
• CustardNinety-eight calories and 115 mg of calcium — the mildest thing on this shelf.
• Custard AppleCustard apple's sweet, creamy pulp is packed with vitamin C and potassium — just don't eat the seeds or skin, which contain a toxin.
• Custard PowderIt is cornflour with colour and vanilla in it. Everything nutritious in the finished bowl comes from the milk.
• Daikon RadishDaikon is a crunchy, watery radish that's low in calories but surprisingly high in vitamin C, and its natural enzymes may give your stomach a small hand with starchy food.
• Dairy BlendButter softened with vegetable oil — the two versions on the shelf differ only in salt.
• Dark ChocolateThe higher the cacao percentage, generally the more good compounds and the less sugar.
• DateVery sweet, and genuinely sweet on its own — nothing is added. The fibre and potassium are what separate it from a sweet.
• DatesDates taste like candy, but their fiber helps keep blood sugar from spiking as fast as you'd expect.
• Davidson PlumA very tart native plum, rich in vitamin C and deep purple plant pigments.
• Decaffeinated CoffeeNot caffeine-free, and not stripped of everything else either.
• Diet ColaNot the villain it is painted as. Also not the win it is sold as.
• DillA soft, feathery herb traditionally used to calm an upset stomach — eaten in small amounts, so its nutrient numbers are mostly theoretical.
• DipA high-fat food where the fat is the good part — the salt is the part worth watching.
• Dragon FruitDragon fruit is a juicy, mildly sweet fruit that gives you vitamin C and fiber, and its red color can turn your pee or poop pink for a day -- that's totally normal.
• Dried Apricots1,428 mg of potassium per hundred — the highest of any fruit in the library.
• Drinking ChocolateThree-quarters sugar by weight. The cocoa is the minority ingredient.
• Duck BreastDuck breast looks like chicken but acts more like steak — it's poultry that's unusually rich in iron.
• DurianDurian is a big, spiky, super creamy tropical fruit loaded with energy, potassium, and vitamin C — but it really doesn't mix well with alcohol.
• Edam CheeseA firm, aged cheese that’s a strong calcium source, though it comes with a good amount of salt.
• EdamameYoung soybeans — a rare plant food with complete protein, from tofu’s source crop.
• Egg WhitesEgg whites are almost pure protein with barely any fat or calories, but you should always cook them first.
• Egg YolkAlmost every nutrient in the egg is here — and so is all the cholesterol.
• EggplantEggplant isn't a dangerous nightshade -- it's a low-calorie veggie with real fiber, and its purple skin holds most of the good stuff.
• EggsA genuinely complete protein — and a choline source most people overlook.
• ElkElk is a lean, mild-tasting red meat packed with protein and iron, with much less fat than most beef.
• Emu (Fan Fillet)A bird whose meat behaves like beef, not chicken — lean but packed with iron and B12.
• EndiveEndive is a bitter, crunchy leaf that's surprisingly loaded with vitamin K and folate for almost no calories.
• Energy DrinkA coffee’s worth of caffeine, a cola’s worth of sugar, and B vitamins for show.
• EspressoReads as the most caffeinated coffee there is. Per cup, it usually isn’t.
• Evaporated MilkMilk with the water taken out and nothing added — 256 mg of calcium per hundred.
• FatIt came from plants, but it is hard at room temperature, and that is what matters.
• Fava BeansFava beans are a hearty bean packed with protein, iron, and folate -- but if you carry a certain genetic trait, eating them can make you seriously sick.
• FeijoaA small, fragrant fruit that’s low in calories but a decent source of vitamin C and fibre.
• FennelCrunchy raw fennel is a low-calorie veggie that can calm an upset stomach while giving you vitamin C and potassium.
• Fenugreek SeedA spice, not a food. The impressive iron and fibre numbers shrink to almost nothing at the teaspoon you actually use.
• Feta CheeseFeta is salty, tangy cheese that gives you calcium and B12, but it's also one of the saltier cheeses, so a little goes a long way.
• FigsOne of the few fruits with a real calcium contribution, especially dried.
• FishHow oily a fish is, and what is wrapped around it, matters far more than the word on the packet.
• Fish FingersProcessed, yes. Processed meat, no — and 756 mg of omega-3 per 100 g.
• Fish SauceSaltier than seawater by a wide margin, and a genuine iodine source.
• FlatheadA very lean fish — lots of protein, very little fat.
• FlaxseedA plant omega-3 source your body converts far less efficiently than fish oil.
• Flaxseed OilFlaxseed oil is a plant-based way to get omega-3 fat, but your body only turns a small part of it into the "active" omega-3s found in fish oil.
• FrankfurtCloser to a paste set in a skin than to a piece of meat — and the salt is the number to watch.
• Fresh GingerGinger really can calm an upset stomach -- but the dose in most studies is stronger and more exact than what's in a cup of tea.
• Fresh Turmeric RootThe bright-yellow root is packed with a compound called curcumin, but your body barely absorbs it unless you eat it with fat and black pepper.
• Fruit DrinkA fruit drink is not a fruit juice, and neither one is fruit.
• Fruit SaladDrain it and you pour away some of the vitamin C; keep the juice and you keep the sugar too.
• Garlic (Fresh)The compound behind its reputation only forms once you crush or chop it.
• GelatineEighty-four per cent protein and one of the least useful proteins you can eat.
• GemfishA softer, oilier fish with more vitamin A than most fish give you.
• GheeGhee is basically pure butterfat: the milk sugar and milk protein are cooked out, but nearly all the fat, calories, and vitamins A, E, and K stay behind.
• GingerA spice, not a food — read the table knowing a teaspoon weighs under two grams.
• Ginger BeerThe most sugary thing in the soft drink fridge, sold on a health-food association.
• GlucoseNot the same thing as the glucose in your blood test. This is a thick starch syrup used to stop sweets going grainy.
• GlutenThe stretchy protein in wheat, sold on its own. Harmless for most people, genuinely dangerous for those with coeliac disease.
• Gluten-Free BreadBread made without wheat, rye, or barley — useful for anyone who cannot tolerate gluten, though it tends to run higher in salt.
• Goat CheeseGoat cheese is real dairy — it still has lactose and milk protein, but many people find it gentler on the stomach than cow's-milk cheese.
• Goat MeatGoat meat is a lean, protein-packed red meat that gives you iron and B12 without much fat.
• Goat MilkGoat milk breaks into a softer, looser curd than cow's milk, so many people find it gentler on the stomach — but it's still milk, with its own allergy and safety rules.
• Goji BerryA dried fruit that behaves like other dried fruits, whatever the packet says.
• Golden SyrupRefinery by-product, rebranded as heritage. Seventy-five grams of sugar per hundred.
• GooseberryThis tangy little berry packs a real vitamin C punch — and it's not the same fruit as the "Indian gooseberry" people sometimes confuse it with.
• GoudaGouda is a rich, buttery cheese that also happens to be one of the best food sources of vitamin K2, a nutrient your bones rely on.
• GrapeThe different colours are mostly a difference in pigment, not in sugar.
• GrapefruitGrapefruit is packed with vitamin C, but it can also make certain medicines act stronger than they should.
• GrapesContains resveratrol — the same compound sold as a standalone supplement.
• Grapeseed OilSixty-four per cent polyunsaturated — the highest here — and almost no vitamin E to protect it.
• Great Northern BeansGreat Northern beans are a mild white bean packed with fiber and plant protein — filling, heart-friendly, and easy to cook once you know the soak-and-boil trick.
• Greek YogurtA food first and a probiotic second — the two get mixed up constantly.
• Green BeansGreen beans are a crunchy veggie that gives you fiber, vitamin C, and a bone-friendly vitamin called K — just make sure they're cooked, not raw.
• Green LentilsGreen lentils are a small, cheap plant food loaded with iron and folate that digests slowly, so it keeps you full without spiking your blood sugar.
• Green PeasA legume eaten fresh like a vegetable, with surprisingly solid protein.
• Green TeaThe calm-alert combination is real. The fat burning is a rounding error.
• Ground CardamomA fragrant seed spice traditionally chewed or brewed to settle the stomach after a meal.
• Ground ChilliThe most nutrient-dense thing in this batch, in the smallest serves.
• Ground CinnamonA warming spice with modest, inconsistent evidence for blood sugar, and a caution most people have never heard of.
• Ground ClovesA tiny dried flower bud that packs enough eugenol to be used in dental clinics, not just spice racks.
• Ground CuminA spice whose iron content looks spectacular on paper and arrives a teaspoon at a time.
• Ground NutmegA cozy baking spice that’s completely safe in normal amounts, but genuinely not something to eat by the spoonful.
• Ground TurkeyGround turkey is a budget-friendly, protein-packed meat — but only a truly lean option if you check the label, since "ground turkey" can be nearly as fatty as ground beef.
• Ground TurmericThe spice behind curry’s color, best known for a compound your body has a hard time absorbing on its own.
• GuavaA single guava can give you more vitamin C than several oranges — seeds, skin, and all.
• Habanero PepperHabaneros are super spicy peppers packed with vitamin C — the burn you feel isn't your body being damaged, it's a nerve alarm going off.
• HaddockHaddock is a mild, flaky white fish that's low in fat but packed with protein and important vitamins.
• HalibutHalibut is a lean, mild white fish loaded with protein, selenium, and B12 — just don't expect salmon's omega-3 punch.
• HalloumiHalloumi is a salty, high-protein cheese that stays firm and squeaky on the grill instead of melting into a puddle.
• Ham (Lean Leg)Genuinely lean — and still processed meat, with the salt to match.
• HazelnutsHazelnuts pack heart-healthy fat and a big mineral boost, but they're calorie-dense, so a small handful goes a long way.
• Hemp SeedsHemp seeds are tiny, nutty seeds packed with healthy fats and protein — and no, they can't get you high.
• HerringHerring is a small, oily fish packed with vitamin D and healthy fats — it's one of the easiest ways to get vitamin D from food instead of sunlight or pills.
• Hoki (Blue Grenadier)A very low-calorie white fish that quietly delivers one of the better selenium doses around.
• HoneySugar with trace extras — and one genuine, well-evidenced use.
• Honeydew MelonHoneydew is basically nature's flavored water — light, hydrating, and still packed with real vitamin C and potassium.
• Hot DogA processed sausage in a white roll. The salt is the number worth knowing.
• HummusBeans and sesame paste team up in hummus to give your body a fuller set of protein building blocks than either one gives alone.
• Ice Cream (Vanilla)Mostly air, sugar and cream — with more calcium than you would guess.
• Iceberg LettuceIceberg lettuce isn't "just crunchy water" - it's mostly water, but that water comes packaged with real vitamin K.
• Instant CoffeeA genuine niacin source, and the coffee with the most acrylamide.
• JackfruitJackfruit tastes sweet and fruity and shreds like pulled meat, but it's really a fiber-and-potassium fruit, not a protein powerhouse.
• JalapeñoA jalapeño's fire is a trick your nerves fall for, not an injury — and it definitely won't give you an ulcer.
• JamThe sugar in jam is not just for sweetness — it is doing the setting and the preserving.
• JellyEvery calorie in a bowl of jelly is sugar, and there is nothing else in it.
• Jelly CrystalsSugar and gelatine in a sachet. Once made up with water, a serving is mostly water.
• JicamaJicama is a crunchy, juicy root that's low in calories but high in fiber and vitamin C — just make sure you peel off the skin, since only the inside root is safe to eat.
• JuiceA glass of fruit juice and a squeeze of lime are not the same kind of food, even though both are juice.
• KaleA calcium source your body genuinely absorbs, unlike spinach’s.
• Kangaroo (Loin Fillet)A very lean red meat — high in protein and iron, with far less fat than most beef.
• KefirA fermented dairy drink with far more strain variety than most yogurt.
• Kidney BeansThe bean where cooking it properly genuinely matters for safety, not just texture.
• King George WhitingA delicate white fish that’s nearly all lean protein.
• KiwiMore vitamin C than an orange, plus a genuine digestive enzyme.
• KiwifruitGold kiwifruit is sweeter with more vitamin C; green is sharper with more fibre and more of the enzyme that helps digest protein.
• KohlrabiKohlrabi is a crunchy stem (not a root) loaded with vitamin C, and it's one cabbage-family veggie that isn't a vitamin-K bomb.
• KombuchaLive cultures, yes. A probiotic in the sense the word actually means, no.
• KumquatKumquats are eaten whole — sweet peel and tart middle together — so you get fiber and vitamin C in one bite-sized package.
• Lactose-Free MilkIdentical to milk in every respect except one enzyme added at the factory.
• LambLamb is packed with protein, iron, zinc, and vitamin B12 — nutrients your body absorbs unusually well from meat.
• LecithinIt is the ingredient that stops oil and water separating — sold in a tub as though it were a breakfast cereal.
• LeeksA milder relative of onion and garlic, with its own prebiotic fibre.
• Legume PastaNearly three times the protein of white pasta and three times the fibre.
• LemonA real vitamin C source — though the lemon water detox claims go well past the evidence.
• Lemon JuiceToo small a serve to feed you. Big enough to change what your gut absorbs.
• Lemon PeelMost of a lemon's fibre and aroma is in the skin, not the juice.
• LemonadeThe soft drink people order when they’re avoiding soft drink.
• LentilsA plant iron source without the oxalates that block spinach’s iron.
• LettuceNearly all water — but the darker the leaf, the more it actually gives you.
• Lima BeansLima beans are a filling, fiber-rich bean that helps keep blood sugar steady — just make sure they're fully cooked, not raw.
• LimeA lime won't make your body "alkaline" or flush out toxins — but it is a real, small source of vitamin C.
• LobsterLobster is a lean, low-fat way to get a whole day's worth of selenium and vitamin B12 in one meal.
• Lobster or CrayfishVery lean, very high in protein — until the melted butter arrives.
• LonganLongan is a sweet, juicy little fruit that packs a big dose of vitamin C into very few calories.
• LoquatA small orange fruit that ripens in early spring, when almost nothing else does.
• Lotus RootThis crunchy root looks like plain starch but it's actually packed with vitamin C and potassium -- just make sure it's always cooked, never raw.
• LupinA bean that is mostly fibre and protein, with hardly any starch in it.
• Lupin BeansLupin beans are a super high-protein bean, but you can't eat them straight from the pod — they need a long soak to wash out bitter, unsafe compounds first.
• LycheeLychee is a sweet, juicy fruit packed with vitamin C — but eating a big bowl of them with an empty stomach is a real risk for young, malnourished kids.
• Macadamia NutsMacadamia nuts are rich in heart-friendly fat, but they're so dense your body takes its time breaking them down.
• Macadamia OilMacadamia oil is mostly heart-friendly fat, but it's not the vitamin E superstar the beauty ads make it out to be.
• MackerelA smaller, cheaper fish that often beats salmon on omega-3 per serving.
• Mahi MahiMahi-mahi is a lean, protein-packed fish that's easy on fat but needs careful handling to stay safe to eat.
• MaizeCoarsely ground maize with the oily part taken out, so it stores well but has lost some of its nutrition.
• Mandarin OrangeMandarins are a sweet, easy-peel way to get most of a day's vitamin C, without needing a pill.
• MangoOne of the few fruits genuinely rich in both vitamin C and vitamin A.
• Maple SyrupSixty grams of sugar per hundred. The tree does not change that.
• Margarine (Polyunsaturated)A fifth of butter’s saturated fat, and one of the better vitamin D sources in the country.
• Margarine SpreadTwo things separate one tub from another: which oil it is made from, and how much water has been whipped into it.
• MarjoramA teaspoon is about a gram, so divide everything in the table by a hundred.
• MarmaladeJam with peel in it, which changes the taste and almost nothing else.
• MayonnaiseTwo-thirds fat — but mostly the unsaturated kind, which changes the story.
• Meat AlternativeWhat these are made from matters more than the fact they replace meat.
• Meatball or RissoleTwo entries, raw and cooked, but the useful fact is what sits alongside the beef: breadcrumb, fat and a great deal of salt.
• MelonAll melons are mostly water. The colour of the flesh tells you what else is in there.
• MeringueAlmost pure sugar, whipped with egg white and dried out.
• MilkA genuinely strong, well-absorbed calcium source — especially when fortified.
• Milk ChocolateThe cocoa research is real. Most of it does not apply to this.
• MilkfishA moderately oily fish, and the raw, grilled and steamed versions differ mainly by water lost in cooking.
• MilletA naturally gluten-free ancient grain with a gentler blood sugar impact than white rice.
• Mineral WaterPlain mineral water is water with dissolved rock in it. The flavoured version is usually water with sugar in it.
• MintMore than a garnish — mint (specifically its oil) has real evidence behind it for calming an upset stomach.
• MirinA sweet rice seasoning that is about a quarter sugar, used a tablespoon at a time for shine and flavour.
• MisoMiso is fermented soybean paste that adds deep, salty-savory flavor along with gut-friendly bacteria and plant nutrients.
• Mixed BerryFrozen at harvest, which usually means more vitamin C left than in fresh berries a week off the plant.
• Mixed Dried FruitFruit with the water taken out, so everything in it — sugar included — is about four times as concentrated.
• Mixed Leafy GreensA mix of different leaves, and they are not the same leaf nutritionally.
• Mixed VegetablesFrozen mixed vegetables are picked and frozen fast, which is why they hold up better than they sound like they should.
• MorwongAn everyday Australian fish that’s a genuine source of iodine, a nutrient most foods barely contain.
• MozzarellaA calcium and protein source people think of as pizza topping rather than food.
• MulberryMulberries are a sweet-tart berry packed with vitamin C and a natural compound that can help slow sugar spikes after a meal.
• MulletRaw, baked and steamed are the same fish. Cooking mainly removes water, which makes every number look bigger.
• MullowayWhite fish, but not the omega-3-free kind people assume white fish to be.
• Mung BeansMung beans are small green beans that cook fast, are gentle on digestion once cooked, and are loaded with fiber, protein, and folate.
• MushroomsOne of the only foods that can still make vitamin D after being picked.
• MusselsMussels are small, but they pack in vitamin B12, iron, and selenium -- nutrients many people don't get enough of.
• MustardThe rare condiment where the flavour costs almost nothing.
• Mustard GreensMustard greens are peppery leafy greens that pack an outsized dose of vitamin K along with vitamin A, vitamin C, and plant compounds you won't get from lettuce.
• Mustard PowderGround mustard seed. It only turns hot when mixed with cold water, and only for a while.
• MuttonAlmost everything that separates one mutton cut from another is fat, not meat.
• Napa CabbageNapa cabbage is a light, crunchy vegetable that gives you vitamin C for your immune system and vitamin K for strong bones — for almost no calories.
• Nashi Pear (Asian Pear)A crisp, juicy fruit that’s mostly water and a little fibre and natural sugar.
• NattoNatto is sticky fermented soybeans loaded with vitamin K2, a nutrient that helps your body put calcium into bones instead of blood vessels.
• Navy BeansNavy beans are a small white bean that packs in more fiber than almost any other food - but they have to be cooked the right way to be safe and easy on your stomach.
• NectarineThe peach-plum-cross story about nectarines isn't true — it's just a peach without the fuzz.
• Nori (Dried Seaweed)2,200 mcg of iodine per hundred grams, against a daily upper limit of 1,100.
• NutAlmost all of them are high in fat — but chestnuts are starchy, and peanuts are not really nuts at all.
• Nutritional YeastA savoury powder that happens to be one of the densest B-vitamin foods there is.
• OctopusOctopus is a lean, protein-packed seafood loaded with vitamin B12 and minerals — despite its odd reputation, it's easy on saturated fat.
• OilAll cooking oils have nearly the same calories. What separates them is the type of fat and whether they survive a hot pan.
• OkraOkra is a slippery pod full of fiber and vitamins that can gently help steady blood sugar over time, but no vegetable "detoxes" your body overnight.
• OliveGreen or black is mostly about ripeness — the thing they all share is the salt from curing.
• Olive OilThe fat that helps you absorb the nutrients in everything else on the plate.
• OlivesOlives aren't a low-effort veggie snack — they're a fruit that's salt-cured, so a handful can carry as much sodium as a small bag of chips.
• OnionsA prebiotic fibre source that feeds gut bacteria much like an inulin supplement.
• OrangeA genuinely good vitamin C source, with fibre a pill does not give you.
• Orange JuiceReal vitamin C and folate, arriving with none of the fruit’s fibre.
• OreganoOne of the most concentrated antioxidant foods there is, per gram — but you use it a pinch at a time.
• OstrichOstrich is technically a bird, but it eats, cooks, and nourishes you like a lean cut of beef.
• OystersOysters pack more zinc than almost any other food, making them a real immune and wound-healing powerhouse — not just a myth about romance.
• Palm OilPalm oil is the world's most-used cooking oil, and whether it's "healthy" depends almost entirely on whether it's been refined.
• PaneerPaneer is a soft, fresh cheese made by curdling hot milk with something sour, like lemon juice — no rennet, no aging, no melting in the pan.
• PapayaContains a digestive enzyme, plus one of the highest vitamin C counts of any fruit.
• PaprikaGround dried peppers, carrying a lot more color-giving antioxidant per gram than the fresh pepper it came from.
• ParmesanA small amount goes further on calcium than most cheeses.
• ParsleyThe herb pushed to the side of your plate is quietly loaded with vitamin C and vitamin A.
• ParsnipParsnips look like pale carrots but pack more fiber and folate per bite than most root vegetables, and cooking them is completely safe.
• Passion FruitPassion fruit's tangy pulp packs a lot of vitamin C and fiber into a tiny fruit -- but the "it helps you sleep" idea actually comes from a different plant.
• PasteThese are flavour bases, not foods. The numbers are per 100g, and a recipe uses a teaspoon.
• PawpawA soft, mild tropical fruit with a lot of vitamin C for very few calories.
• PeaLeft on the plant to mature and dry, a pea turns into something closer to a lentil than to the green peas in the freezer.
• Pea ProteinPea protein gives your muscles almost everything they need to rebuild, straight from a humble split pea.
• PeachA solid source of vitamins A and C together, both tied to skin health.
• Peanut ButterPeanut butter is packed with plant fat and protein that keep you full for hours — it's not empty calories.
• Peanut OilThe stir-fry oil, and usually safe in peanut allergy — with one exception that matters.
• PeanutsTechnically a legume rather than a tree nut — which matters for allergies.
• PearOne of the higher-fibre fruits, most of it in a form that slows digestion.
• PecansPecans are crunchy little bundles of healthy fat and minerals that your body slowly breaks down for steady energy, not a quick sugar rush.
• PersimmonPersimmons are a sweet, vitamin-rich fall fruit -- but eating a lot of unripe ones on an empty stomach can actually cause a real stomach problem.
• PestoThirty-seven per cent fat, and most of it the kind worth eating.
• Pickled GherkinsTwenty-three grams of added sugar per hundred. In a pickle.
• PigeonDark poultry meat wrapped in a lot of fat — take the skin off and the numbers change completely.
• Pigeon PeasPigeon peas are small but mighty: full of fiber, protein, and iron, and you don't have to eat them with rice at the exact same moment for the protein to "count."
• Pine NutsPine nuts are tiny, buttery seeds packed with minerals — but don't count on them to melt away fat.
• PineappleContains bromelain — the same enzyme sold as a digestive supplement.
• Pinto BeansPinto beans are a cheap, filling food that's secretly packed with fiber, protein, and folate.
• PistachiosOne of the lower-calorie nuts, and unusually good for the eye pigments.
• Plain YogurtPlain yogurt gives you protein and calcium in a form that's often gentler on your stomach than milk, thanks to the friendly bacteria that made it.
• PlantainPlantains are a starchy cooking fruit — more like a potato than a sweet banana — that's rich in potassium and gut-friendly starch.
• PlumPrunes aren't just an old home remedy -- real science backs them up for keeping you regular and for helping keep bones strong.
• PluotPluots are a plum-apricot mix — but mostly plum — that pack vitamin C, potassium, and fiber into one juicy, low-calorie snack.
• Poblano PepperPoblano peppers are a mild, meaty green chile that bring real vitamin C and just a hint of heat without overwhelming a dish.
• Polenta (Cornmeal)Corn is filling and easy to grow, but eating it as your main food for too long, without other proteins, can leave your body short on a B vitamin called niacin.
• PomegranateOne of the most compound-dense fruits — much of it from the peel and pith.
• Popcorn (Air-Popped)A genuine whole grain snack, once you skip the butter and heavy oil.
• Poppy SeedsA tiny seed that’s surprisingly rich in calcium and fat, but the serving size keeps its real-world impact modest.
• PorkWhich cut you buy changes the fat far more than how you cook it.
• Pork BellyThirty-one grams of fat, and more thiamin than almost anything else you will eat.
• Pork TenderloinPork tenderloin is a lean, high-protein meat that's also packed with a B-vitamin most other meats barely have.
• PorridgeMade with water it is plain and modest. Made with milk it becomes a proper source of protein and calcium.
• PotatoMore potassium than a banana, and the cooking method decides everything else.
• PrawnNearly all protein and water, with barely any fat — whichever prawn you buy.
• Prickly PearA cactus fruit that’s mostly water and fiber, with a solid dose of vitamin C.
• Processed Cheddar1,420 mg of sodium per hundred — more than double natural cheddar.
• ProsciuttoThe leanest thing on this counter and the saltiest — 1,700 mg per 100 g.
• Protein PowderWhey is protein taken out of milk; hemp powder is ground seed with most of the oil removed. The label word to read is the source.
• ProvoloneProvolone is a firm Italian cheese that's easy on the stomach for most lactose-sensitive people but easy to overdo on salt.
• PruneA dried plum with a real, well-tested effect on constipation — and a good reason not to eat the whole packet.
• PrunesOne of the few foods with trial evidence for constipation — and it beat the fibre supplement.
• PsylliumA fibre that turns to gel in water — which is why it needs plenty of it.
• PumpkinPumpkin's bright orange color is basically edible sunshine for your eyes and immune system.
• Pumpkin SeedsOne of the richest everyday food sources of zinc.
• Purple Yam (Ube)This vibrant purple tuber gets its color from real antioxidant plant pigments, not food dye, but it's not the same food as purple sweet potato.
• QuailA small bird that is basically all dark meat — richer and fattier than chicken breast, gram for gram.
• Quail EggsQuail eggs are basically tiny, extra-rich chicken eggs — good protein and choline, but not a magic health food.
• QuandongA tart wild peach-like fruit, high in vitamin C and folate.
• QuarkQuark is a simple strained dairy food that gives you a lot of protein and calcium without much fat or sugar.
• QuinceQuince looks like a bumpy pear, but you almost always have to cook it before eating — raw, it's rock-hard and mouth-puckering.
• QuinoaA rare plant food that is genuinely a complete protein.
• RabbitRabbit meat gives you a lot of protein for very few calories, but eating only rabbit without any fat can actually make you sick.
• Rabbit (Farmed, Whole)A very lean white meat — high in protein, but famously too lean to eat as your only food.
• RadicchioRadicchio is a bitter, ruby-red salad leaf that's surprisingly packed with vitamin K -- more per bite than almost any other lettuce-like green.
• RadishRadishes are mostly water and crunch, but that spicy bite is doing real work in your body.
• RaisinsSeventy-four grams of sugar per hundred, and it is all intrinsic to the grape.
• RambutanRambutan is a juicy, low-calorie fruit with a good hit of vitamin C -- just peel it, eat the white flesh, and skip the hairy skin and the seed.
• RaspberriesUnusually high in fibre for a fruit, and worth separating from the “raspberry ketone” pill sold under its name.
• Red CabbageRed cabbage is green cabbage with a superpower: the purple pigment that gives it color is also a strong antioxidant, and that same pigment changes color when it touches something acidic or basic.
• Red LentilsRed lentils are a cheap, fast-cooking way to get iron, fiber, and protein — pair them with vitamin C to help your body absorb more of the iron.
• Red SnapperRed snapper is a lean, mild white fish that gives your body high-quality protein plus a big boost of selenium and vitamin B12.
• Red WineThe heart-health story was real research. It did not survive better methods.
• RedcurrantRedcurrants are a sour, ruby-red berry packed with vitamin C — and they're not the same as the dried "currants" you find in trail mix or muffins.
• Reduced-Fat CheddarLess fat, less salt, and more protein and calcium than the full-fat version.
• RhubarbA very low-calorie, high-fiber stalk vegetable with a distinctly tart bite.
• Rice BeverageCloser to thin rice water than to milk — there is almost no protein in it.
• Rice Bran OilThe highest vitamin E of the plain oils, and more saturated fat than most people expect.
• Rice CakesRice cakes look like a light diet snack, but because they're basically pure puffed starch with almost no fiber, they can spike your blood sugar faster than candy does.
• Rice MilkThe thinnest of the plant milks, and the one with an age restriction.
• Rice NoodlesAlmost nothing but starch — and almost nothing else either, which is the point.
• Rice Paper WrapperA thin sheet of rice and tapioca starch. It adds almost nothing to a roll except the ability to hold it together.
• RicottaOne of the few cheeses that literally contains whey protein — the same stuff sold in powder tubs.
• Roasted Soy NutsA crunchy handful of soy nuts packs more protein than most nuts, for a fraction of the fat.
• RocketRocket is in the mustard family, not the lettuce family, and that is where the peppery taste comes from.
• Romaine LettuceRomaine is mostly water and crunch, but it packs a real dose of vitamin K and vitamin A into very few calories.
• RosemaryThe herb behind "rosemary for remembrance" — genuinely rich in antioxidants, though the memory claim is weaker than the folklore suggests.
• Safflower OilSafflower oil comes in two very different types, so "is it healthy" depends on which bottle you actually bought.
• SaffronThe most expensive spice in the world, used a pinch at a time, so its nutrition table is a curiosity rather than a plan.
• SageA herb, not a food. The impressive numbers on the table belong to 100g of dried leaf, and a generous pinch is about one gram.
• SagoAlmost pure starch. Dry sago is dense; cooked sago is mostly the water it swallowed.
• Salad Dressing (French or Italian)The fat is the part doing you a favour. It’s the fat-free version that costs you.
• SalamiThirty-seven per cent fat and 1,495 mg of sodium — but nobody eats 100 g of it.
• SalmonOne of the few foods that really is packed with omega-3.
• Salt Substitute (Potassium Chloride)One of the few dietary swaps with a hard trial outcome behind it — and a real contraindication.
• SardineThe calcium is in the bones, so whether you eat them whole is the whole story.
• SardinesOne of the few foods where you eat the bones — and that is where the calcium is.
• Sausages VegetablesRead the name in the other order: this is a vegetable stew with some sausage in it.
• Scallions (Green Onions)A few tablespoons of chopped scallions can give you more vitamin K than you'd expect from a simple garnish.
• ScallopsScallops are a lean, quick-cooking seafood that packs a lot of protein and vitamin B12 into very few calories.
• Sea BassSea bass is a lean, mild fish packed with protein, selenium, and vitamin B12 — just don't eat it every single day.
• Seaweed (Boiled)Fifty-four calories, and still twice a day’s iodine in a hundred grams.
• Sesame OilSesame oil isn't magic, but it's a genuinely different kind of fat thanks to plant compounds most cooking oils don't have.
• Sesame SeedsTiny seeds, big mineral punch — just don't count on all that calcium actually getting into your bones.
• ShallotsShallots taste like a cross between onion and garlic, and that sharp flavor comes with a real dose of antioxidants.
• SharkPlain shark fillet is about as lean as protein gets. The batter is where the calories come from.
• ShrimpHigh in cholesterol on paper, with far less effect on your blood than once believed.
• Silver PerchA mild, easy fish that gives you vitamin D and omega-3 in one go.
• Silverbeet (Swiss Chard)A leafy green packed with vitamin A, plus iron and folate.
• SkyrSkyr looks like yogurt but is actually a thick, strained cheese packed with protein and calcium.
• Smoked SalmonThe omega-3 and vitamin D of salmon, plus 1,015 mg of sodium.
• Snap PeasA handful of snap peas can cover your whole day's vitamin C, pod and all.
• SnapperA lean, popular Australian fish with a bit more calcium and potassium than most fish give you.
• Snow PeasSnow peas are the crunchy whole pod you eat, pea and all -- low calorie, high in vitamin C, and good for digestion.
• Soft DrinkThe whole range splits in two: sweetened with sugar, or sweetened with something that carries no kilojoules.
• SorghumA gluten-free whole grain that keeps its bran, because there is no easy way to take it off.
• Sour CreamSour cream is real cream that friendly bacteria turned tangy -- it gives you a little calcium and vitamin A, but most store-bought tubs no longer have live bacteria in them.
• Southern Rock LobsterA very lean seafood — almost all protein, with barely any fat of its own.
• Soy BeverageThe thing worth checking on the carton is whether calcium has been added. Unfortified soy milk has almost none.
• Soy MilkSoy milk is a plant milk with real protein, close to what you'd get from cow's milk, plus calcium and vitamin D when it's fortified.
• Soybeans (Dry)Soybeans pack complete protein like meat, plus special plant compounds — and no, eating them won't mess with your hormones.
• Spaghetti SquashSpaghetti squash turns into noodle-like strands when you cook it, and it's mostly water -- so you get a big, filling plate for very few calories.
• SpamCured, canned pork. It keeps for years because of the salt and the nitrite, and both of those are the nutritional story.
• SpinachThe Popeye story about spinach and iron is not quite true.
• Spirits (40% ABV)The purest form of the thing itself: alcohol, water, and essentially nothing else.
• Split PeasOne of the highest fibre-to-calorie foods around, and it skips the overnight soak most dried beans need.
• SpratA small fish you eat whole. The bones are the point.
• SpreadYeast spreads and chocolate spreads sit side by side and have almost nothing in common.
• SproutSprouting turns a dry seed into a small fresh vegetable, and the conditions that do it also suit bacteria.
• Squab (Pigeon)A whole small bird, skin included — richer and fattier than most poultry, but still a decent source of iron and zinc.
• SquashA summer squash, picked young — which is why it is watery and mild rather than sweet and starchy like a pumpkin.
• Squid or CalamariVery lean protein. Cook it for under two minutes or for over half an hour — the middle is where it turns to rubber.
• Star FruitStar fruit is a juicy, star-shaped snack packed with vitamin C, but people with kidney problems should never eat it.
• StarchNot a flour. Starch is the one part of the plant left after everything else is washed away.
• Steak VegetablesConvenient and safe for years on a shelf, but diluted with sauce and salted to make up for it.
• StrawberriesA genuinely strong vitamin C source people do not associate with berries.
• SugarRaw, brown and white sugar are the same thing with different amounts of molasses on the outside.
• SultanaA sultana is a grape with the water taken out, which concentrates everything else about fourfold.
• Sunflower OilSunflower oil is one of the richest food sources of vitamin E, but not all bottles labeled "sunflower oil" are the same fat.
• Sunflower SeedsSunflower seeds are a crunchy snack loaded with vitamin E, healthy fat, and minerals — just skip the shells and keep portions modest.
• SwedeA mild, low-calorie root vegetable that's a genuine vitamin C source, related to cabbage more than to potatoes.
• Sweet CherriesThe sleep research used tart cherry juice, not these. Worth knowing before you buy a punnet.
• Sweet PotatoCooking it, and adding a little fat, both genuinely improve what you absorb.
• SweetcornA vegetable that is really a grain, and one of the few good sources of the pigment that concentrates in the back of the eye.
• Swiss ChardOne cup of cooked Swiss chard packs a huge dose of vitamin K — great for most people, but something to watch closely if you take blood thinners like warfarin.
• Swiss CheeseSwiss cheese packs a surprising amount of calcium, protein, and B12 into a low-lactose, comparatively low-sodium slice.
• SwordfishSwordfish gives you a lot of protein and vitamin D in one meal -- but it's also on the short list of fish doctors say to skip if you're pregnant or feeding young kids.
• SyrupSugar made from grain starch instead of cane. It sounds gentler than it is.
• Table Salt (Iodised)The single biggest sodium source in most diets — and, iodised, a public-health success.
• Taco ShellCorn tortilla plus deep frying — the frying is most of what shows up on the label.
• TahiniTahini is sesame seeds ground into a creamy paste — a good source of calcium, copper, and healthy fats, but your body only absorbs part of that calcium, and sesame itself can trigger allergies.
• TamarilloAn egg-shaped fruit related to the tomato, rich in vitamin A and fibre.
• TamarindTamarind is a sour-sweet fruit pulp that's surprisingly rich in fiber and minerals — but it can make some pain relievers hit harder than usual.
• TangeloPeels like a mandarin, tastes like a tart orange, and carries a bit of grapefruit in its family tree.
• TangerineTangerines are a sweet, easy-peel way to get a big dose of vitamin C plus a special orange pigment your body can turn into vitamin A.
• Tangerine or TangorThe easy-peeling citrus. What changes across the group is sweetness, seeds, and how easily the skin comes away.
• TapiocaAlmost pure starch from a root vegetable. It is there for texture and energy, not nutrition.
• TaroTaro is a starchy root that's totally safe and nutritious once cooked, but eating it raw can burn your mouth and throat.
• TartThe custard is basically baked milk and egg; the pastry around it is where the fat and salt are.
• Tart CherriesOne of the few foods that naturally contains measurable melatonin.
• TeffTeff is a tiny, gluten-free grain that's genuinely rich in iron and calcium -- but eating it alone isn't as good at raising iron levels as meat or a supplement would be.
• TempehTempeh is fermented soybeans pressed into a firm, nutty cake -- fermentation makes its protein and minerals easier for your body to use than plain soybeans.
• Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)TVP is dried soy chunks that turn hearty and meaty once you soak them — cheap, high in protein, and not the "hormone bomb" people worry about.
• Textured Vegetable Protein Soy GranulesThe packet says over half protein. That is the dry granule; soaking roughly triples its weight and thirds the number.
• Thickened CreamThirty-six per cent fat, and the thickener is what makes it whip reliably.
• ThymeA herb used a pinch at a time, so its impressive-looking nutrient numbers barely apply to how you actually eat it.
• TilapiaTilapia is basically pure lean protein, great for muscles, but don't expect the omega-3 boost you get from salmon.
• TofuA plant protein whose calcium content depends entirely on how it was made.
• TomatilloTomatillos are a tangy, low-calorie veggie that gives you a solid dose of vitamin C without much sugar or fat.
• Tomato PasteThe one thing on this shelf that is concentrated nutrition rather than concentrated salt.
• Tomato Sauce (Ketchup)A quarter sugar by weight, and one of the better lycopene sources you will eat.
• TomatoesOne of the few foods where cooking increases what you get from it.
• Tonic WaterAs sugary as lemonade, and the only mixer containing an actual drug.
• Treacle (Molasses)The one sweetener whose mineral content is genuinely worth mentioning. It is still 69% sugar.
• Treacle or MolassesWhat is left over when sugar is refined out of cane, minerals included.
• TroutTrout is a mild, easy-to-cook fish loaded with protein, vitamin D, and heart-friendly fats.
• TunaOne of the most concentrated omega-3 sources, with a real mercury caveat.
• TurkeyThe sleepiness reputation is really about how much you ate, not the turkey.
• TurnipTurnips are a low-calorie root packed with vitamin C, and their leafy tops are even more nutritious than the root itself.
• Urad Dal (Black Gram)Urad dal is a small black bean packed with plant protein, iron, and folate — but you have to cook it well to unlock the good stuff.
• UV-Exposed MushroomsMore vitamin D than salmon, from a fungus that made it out of sunlight.
• Vanilla Bean ExtractReal extract and imitation essence taste different, but neither adds anything nutritionally at the amounts used.
• Vanilla EssenceNutritionally nothing, and it makes food taste sweeter without any sugar.
• VealVery lean meat from a young animal. It cooks fast and dries out fast.
• Vegan Hard CheeseNought point nine grams of protein per hundred. It is coconut oil and starch shaped like cheese.
• Vegetable JuiceThe one juice that isn’t a sugar problem. It’s a salt one instead.
• Vegetable Oil (Blended)The label tells you nothing about what is in the bottle.
• VenisonVenison is a super-lean red meat — big on protein and iron, low on fat — but hunters really do need to get wild deer tested for a brain disease that cooking can't destroy.
• Vine LeafA dark leafy green, packed in enough salt to change the answer entirely.
• Vinegar (White & Cider)Sixteen calories per hundred grams, and a small real effect on blood sugar.
• Walnut ButterWalnut butter's fat is mostly the good, unsaturated kind, and it's the only nut butter with a real dose of plant omega-3s.
• Walnut OilWalnut oil is a plant-based source of omega-3 fat, but your body only turns a little of it into the same omega-3s found in fish.
• WalnutsThe best plant omega-3 source — though a different type from fish.
• WaterTap, bottled and sparkling hydrate identically. What differs is fluoride, sodium and price.
• Water ChestnutA water chestnut is a crunchy underwater plant stem, not a nut, and it stays crunchy even after you cook it.
• WatercressWatercress is a peppery little green that punches way above its weight -- basically a multivitamin with crunch.
• WatermelonThe original natural source of citrulline — the same compound in the supplements.
• Wattleseed (Ground)A roasted, ground native seed used a spoonful at a time as a nutty, coffee-like flavouring.
• Wax JambuBell-shaped, waxy-skinned and about ninety per cent water — crisp and refreshing rather than sweet.
• Whey Protein PowderEighty-five per cent protein, and the most-studied protein supplement there is.
• White RiceWhite rice is a fast, easy source of energy, but most of its fiber and vitamins are polished away -- unless it's "enriched," where a few get added back.
• White SugarPure sucrose. No micronutrients at all — this is the reference point.
• White WineRed wine’s polyphenol story doesn’t apply here. The alcohol does.
• Wild RiceWild rice isn't really rice — it's a grass seed with more protein and fiber than regular rice, and it's gentler on blood sugar too.
• WineMost of the energy in any wine is the alcohol itself, not the sugar.
• YamWhat you call a yam is probably a sweet potato — true yams are a different, starchy root that must be cooked to be safe.
• YeastExtraordinary nutrition per 100g, and almost nobody eats anything close to 100g of it.
• Yellow-Eye MulletAn overlooked fish that’s unusually rich in B12 and selenium.
• Yellowtail KingfishA farmed Australian fish that’s genuinely rich in omega-3 and vitamin D.
• YoghurtPlain yoghurt and flavoured yoghurt are the same food apart from a few teaspoons of sugar.
• Yuba (Tofu Skin)Yuba is the skin that forms on hot soy milk — dried and eaten, it's one of the most protein-packed plant foods around.
• ZucchiniMild and mostly water, but a real source of potassium and gut-friendly fibre.

Depends on the product

These are not excluded and not included: the answer belongs to a certificate, a refining method or a production line, and the library will not guess it for you.

• Baking PowderHalf a teaspoon in a cake is nothing. A spoonful straight is a medical emergency.
• Banana ChipA fried snack made from fruit, closer to a crisp than to a banana.
• BarThe health-food end and the confectionery end of this shelf are closer together than the packaging suggests.
• Barbecue SauceThirty-eight grams of sugar per hundred. More than most confectionery.
• Beef SausageLeaner than pork and saltier. Three micrograms of B12 is the genuine upside.
• Breakfast CerealTwo cereals can sit side by side on the same shelf and be almost nothing alike.
• CaramelsSugar, butter and milk cooked together. Cook it longer and hotter and a chewy caramel becomes a hard one.
• Chicken Luncheon MeatTwenty grams of protein on 1.2 g of fat — and still processed meat.
• ChocolateNeither of these is the chocolate the health headlines are about.
• Coffee MixInstant coffee, sugar and a fat-based whitener dried into one powder. The coffee is the smallest part of it by weight.
• ConfectioneryThese are all chocolate around a centre. A nut centre means more fat; a fruit or sugar centre means more sugar.
• Corn ChipsFried nixtamalised maize and salt — more fibre than a potato crisp, and roughly the same amount of salt.
• Cornflakes (Fortified)Nutritionally, most of what is on the label was sprayed on afterwards.
• Curry PowderFifty-three per cent fibre and 25 mg of vitamin E. In teaspoons.
• Dairy or Yoghurt DessertSomewhere between a yoghurt and a pudding: the calcium is real, and so is the added sugar.
• DressingDressing is mostly oil and salt, and the oil is the part that helps you absorb what is in the salad.
• Extruded SnackLight, salty and gone in seconds — which is exactly the design, and exactly why a bag disappears so easily.
• FrankfurterThe shape is the hazard, more than anything on the nutrition panel.
• GravyAlmost no calories, almost no nutrients, and a great deal of salt.
• Gravy PowderMostly salt and thickened starch — the sodium figure is the whole story here.
• Ice ConfectionA water ice is basically frozen sugar water. A milk stick has cream in it, which changes almost everything.
• Instant Cup SoupAlmost no food in it — but a serious share of your day’s sodium.
• LiquoriceBlack liquorice contains a compound that can genuinely raise blood pressure. The coloured allsorts mostly do not.
• LollyAn honest treat. The differences between types are about texture and how long they linger, not nutrition.
• Oat BranOat bran's sticky fiber grabs onto cholesterol-related stuff in your gut and carries it out, so your liver has to pull more cholesterol out of your blood to keep up.
• OatsOne of the few foods with strong evidence for lowering cholesterol.
• Pork SausageNineteen grams of fat, 763 mg of sodium, and a Group 1 classification.
• Potato CrispsA third fat by weight — and genuinely hard to stop eating, by design.
• Potato Crisps or ChipsFrying swaps the potato's water for oil. That single swap is most of what you are eating.
• Potato StrawsA treat food where the cut, not the potato, decides how much oil ends up on your plate.
• SauceSauces split into two kinds: a spoonful on the side, and half the meal poured from a jar.
• SausageThe meat in a sausage matters less than the fat and salt packed in with it.
• SeedGrind them, or you get very little. The whole seed's shell survives digestion more or less intact.
• SnackThey feel light because they are mostly air, not because there is less in them.
• Snack Ball"No added sugar" is true here and slightly beside the point — the dates bring the sugar with them.
• Soba NoodlesSoba noodles give you steady energy from buckwheat carbs and a plant-protein boost -- but check the label, because most soba also has wheat mixed in.
• SoupInstant soups differ mostly in thickener and salt, not in nourishment.
• Soy SauceThe saltiest thing in most kitchens — and a tablespoon is half a day’s sodium.
• StockA stock cube is mostly salt, and the numbers only make sense once you dilute it.
• Stock CubeEighteen grams of sodium per hundred. One cube is a quarter of a day’s worth.
• Taco SeasoningA spice mix that is mostly salt and sugar, sold as spice.
• Taco Seasoning MixEvery number here looks extreme until you remember a sachet is 30 grams shared between four people.
• Vegetable Crisps or ChipsThey are vegetables the way hot chips are vegetables: the frying oil is most of what you are eating.
• Vegetarian Sausage (Fortified)Same shape, no nitrite, an eighth of the saturated fat — and the B12 was put back.

Recipes

• Air-Popped PopcornA wholegrain that comes in bowls the size of your head, for about a hundred calories.
• Amaranth Porridge with PearA seed the Aztecs farmed, which happens to have more protein than any grain on this list.
• Apple with Almond ButterTwo ingredients, no real recipe needed — but the pairing is deliberate.
• Apple with CheddarSweet, sharp, crisp and salty — a pairing that has been on cheese boards for centuries.
• Baba GanoushAubergine burnt until the skin collapses, which is where all the smoke in it comes from.
• Baked Apple ChipsTwo hours in a low oven with nothing added at all, and they come out sweet enough to be suspicious.
• Baked Avocado & EggAn egg baked into half an avocado. Two ingredients, one tray, no technique.
• Baked Cod with White BeansA lean white fish sat on beans that soak up everything in the pan.
• Baked Egg MuffinsA tray of these on Sunday is five breakfasts you do not have to think about.
• Baked Pear with RicottaA dessert that is mostly fruit, and the only sugar in it came with the pear.
• Baked Portobello with FetaA mushroom big enough to be the main thing on the plate.
• Baked Salmon & BroccoliOne tray, one temperature, dinner in under half an hour.
• Banana Peanut Butter Protein ShakeA blender snack that covers a real chunk of a day’s protein target.
• Beef GoulashPaprika is not a garnish in this dish — it is measured in tablespoons and it is the whole flavour.
• Beef with Roasted VegetablesA classic combination that leans on the oven to do most of the work.
• Beetroot & Berry SmoothieThe colour is alarming and the nitrates in it are the reason cyclists drink beetroot juice.
• Beetroot & Goat Cheese SaladSweet roasted beetroot against sharp cheese — that contrast is the entire recipe.
• Berry Protein SmoothieBreakfast for people who cannot face chewing before eight in the morning.
• BibimbapFive vegetables cooked separately and arranged in wedges, then destroyed with a spoon the moment it hits the table.
• Black Bean EnchiladasRolled, sauced and baked. Assemble it in the morning and it goes in the oven untouched at seven.
• Black Bean Rice BowlA vegetarian bowl with enough protein that you won’t notice there’s no meat.
• BorschtThe colour alone justifies making it, and the vinegar at the end is what stops it tasting like soil.
• Buckwheat Blueberry PancakesNutty, gluten-free pancakes that taste like more than the flour they are missing.
• Buckwheat Kasha with MushroomsA savoury breakfast grain from Eastern Europe, for people who have never once wanted fruit at 7am.
• Butter ChickenThe marinade is the recipe. Everything after it is thirty minutes of stirring a pan.
• Calamari with Rocket & LemonSquid is either cooked in two minutes or in forty. There is nothing in between.
• Celery with Peanut ButterThe childhood snack that turns out to have been right all along.
• Cheddar & Quince PasteSharp cheese and something sweet and firm beside it, which is the oldest pairing on the list.
• Cheese & Tomato Rice CakesWhat to eat at four in the afternoon that is not from the vending machine.
• Chicken CacciatoreHunter’s chicken: browned thighs braised in tomato, olives and wine until the meat comes off the bone.
• Chicken Caesar SaladThe salad that is only a salad by reputation — and better for knowing that going in.
• Chickpea & Spinach StewTwo tins and a bag of spinach, and dinner is twenty-five minutes away.
• Chilaquiles with EggYesterday’s tortillas simmered in salsa until they go soft at the edges and stay crisp in the middle.
• Chocolate MilkThe recovery drink that outperformed most of the sports products it was tested against.
• Chocolate-Dipped StrawberriesThe strawberries must be bone dry. A drop of water and the chocolate seizes into a grainy mess.
• Cobb SaladInvented at a Hollywood restaurant at midnight out of leftovers, and it shows in the best way.
• Coconut & Date BitesThree ingredients into a food processor, rolled into balls, and they keep two weeks.
• Coconut Rice PuddingRice pudding eaten at the right time of day for once, which is the morning.
• Corn on the CobBoil it for four minutes, not fifteen. Overcooked corn is the reason people think they dislike it.
• Cottage Cheese Breakfast BowlThe highest-protein-per-calorie way to start the day that still tastes like dessert.
• Cottage Cheese with BerriesA high-protein snack that still reads as something sweet.
• Dark Chocolate Energy BitesNo-bake bites for when you want something sweet without reaching for candy.
• Devilled EggsSix eggs, ten minutes of boiling, and about 6g of protein in each half.
• Dried Apricots & AlmondsThe snack to keep in a bag, a drawer and a glovebox.
• Duck Breast with CherriesStart the duck in a cold pan. All the fat renders out and the skin ends up like glass.
• Eggplant ParmigianaRoast the eggplant instead of frying it and the dish stops being a sponge for oil.
• FeijoadaBrazil’s national dish. Two hours of nothing happening, and then the best pot of beans you will eat.
• Fig & Goat Cheese BitesHalved figs, a spoon of goat cheese, six minutes under the grill.
• Figs with Walnuts & RicottaThree weeks a year this is the best thing in the fruit bowl. Make the most of them.
• Fish TagineA North African braise where the fish goes in at the very end and poaches in the sauce.
• Fried Plantain with EggsWest Africa and the Caribbean both got here independently, which is usually a sign a combination works.
• Frozen Banana BitesA freezer full of these ends the ice cream question permanently.
• Frozen Banana Ice CreamFrozen banana, blended. There is no second ingredient and it still comes out like soft serve.
• Frozen Berry CupFrozen berries straight from the bag, with yogurt poured over to freeze onto them.
• Frozen GrapesThe single laziest thing in this library, and genuinely better than the unfrozen version.
• Frozen Yogurt BarkA tray of yogurt in the freezer, snapped into shards — the closest thing here to ice cream.
• Ful MedamesEgypt’s national breakfast: mashed fava beans, lemon and oil. Cheap, filling, and about 15g of fibre a serving.
• Grapefruit & Cottage CheeseA breakfast from 1975 that has aged better than most of what replaced it.
• Greek SaladNo lettuce. A real Greek salad is tomato, cucumber, onion and a slab of feta on top.
• Greek Yogurt ParfaitLayered yogurt, fruit, and crunch — most of the work is done by the fridge.
• Greek Yogurt with Honey & WalnutsThree ingredients, and the closest thing to dessert on this list that still counts as protein.
• Green ShakshukaThe same eggs-poached-in-a-pan idea, with the tomatoes swapped for a pan of greens.
• Green SmoothieA way to eat two handfuls of spinach without noticing you have done it.
• Grilled Chicken SaladA genuinely filling salad, built around real protein instead of just lettuce.
• Guacamole with Corn ChipsMash it with a fork. A blender makes it into paint.
• Halloumi & EggsThe cheese that does not melt, fried until it squeaks, with eggs and a tomato salad.
• Halloumi FriesCheese cut into chips and fried. There is no defending it nutritionally and it is very good.
• HariraThe Moroccan soup eaten to break the fast in Ramadan, built to refill someone who has not eaten all day.
• Heart-Healthy Trail MixA portable, no-cook snack that keeps in a bag for days.
• Hummus with Carrots & CucumberA dip-and-crunch snack that’s mostly vegetables.
• Instant Miso SoupUnder 50 calories, mostly water, and it stops the 4pm biscuit more reliably than anything else here.
• Jacket Potato with TunaThe British office lunch. One hour of oven time, ninety seconds of assembly.
• JambalayaOne pot, three proteins and rice cooked in the middle of it all. Do not stir it once the rice goes in.
• Kale ChipsThe trick is drying the leaves properly. Wet kale steams in the oven and never once goes crisp.
• Kefir & Chia PotMade in a jar the night before by someone who will not be awake enough to make it in the morning.
• Kefir Mango SmoothieA drinkable snack with more bacterial variety than most probiotic capsules.
• Kohlrabi & Apple Slaw with HamKohlrabi is the vegetable nobody buys, which is a shame, because raw it is better than cabbage.
• Korean Rolled OmeletteAn omelette rolled in layers rather than folded once, which turns out to be easier than it looks.
• Lamb Cutlets with GreensCutlets take four minutes a side, so everything else has to be ready before they hit the pan.
• Lamb Rogan JoshNinety minutes, almost all of it unattended, and the lamb ends up falling apart in the sauce.
• Lemon Garlic Chicken ThighsSkin-on thighs, a whole head of garlic, and a tray that needs no attention for forty minutes.
• Lentil & Feta SaladA tin of lentils, dressed while still at room temperature, which is when they take on flavour.
• Lentil & Walnut SaladThe lunch that survives being made on Sunday and eaten on Wednesday without complaint.
• Lentil Shepherd’s PieThe lentils do not pretend to be mince. They are just good in their own right under mashed potato.
• Mango Chia PuddingChia seeds turn coconut milk into pudding overnight — no cooking, no thickener, no effort in the morning.
• Mapo TofuSilken tofu in a fierce, numbing sauce, and it is on the table in twenty-five minutes.
• Masala OmeletteAn omelette with actual flavour in it, which is more than can be said for most of them.
• Millet Porridge with DatesA grain most people have only ever bought for a bird, cooked the way half the world eats breakfast.
• Miso Soup with TofuEight minutes, four ingredients, and never let it boil.
• Miso-Glazed CodFour ingredients and eight minutes of work, and it is the best-looking plate in the library.
• MujadaraLentils, rice and a mountain of fried onions. Three ingredients, and one of the great cheap meals.
• Nori Snack SheetsAlmost no calories, a lot of iodine, and gone in about ninety seconds.
• Octopus & Potato SaladA Mediterranean harbour dish. The octopus needs an hour and absolutely no attention.
• Olives & FetaA snack that is mostly fat, and entirely fine for being so.
• Ostrich Steak with GreensA red meat from a bird, leaner than chicken breast, and ruined by anything past medium rare.
• Oven-Baked Fish & WedgesFish and chips without the deep fryer, and no worse for it.
• Pad ThaiTen minutes of cooking and twenty of preparation, in that order, because there is no time to chop once the pan is hot.
• Paneer BhurjiScrambled eggs without the eggs — crumbled fresh cheese cooked with onion, tomato and spice.
• Papaya Boat with Yogurt & LimeHalf a papaya used as the bowl. Nothing to wash up and about a day’s vitamin C in it.
• Pea & Mint DipA bag of frozen peas and four minutes. The greenest thing you can put on a table.
• Pepper Strips with HummusPeppers hold dip better than any cracker, and bring their own vitamin C.
• Peri Peri ChickenSpatchcock it. A flat bird cooks in forty minutes instead of ninety and the skin crisps everywhere.
• Pistachios in the ShellThe shells are the feature. Having to open each one slows you down enough to notice you are full.
• Pork & Pineapple TacosThe pineapple is not a garnish — its enzymes tenderise the pork while it marinates.
• Prawn & Avocado CocktailA 1970s starter that was always secretly a very good lunch.
• Prawn & Mango SaladSweet, sour, hot and salty in one bowl — the four notes a Thai salad is built on.
• Prawn Green CurryPrawns go in last and cook in ninety seconds — everything else is ready before they see the pan.
• Prosciutto & MelonTwo ingredients, no cooking, and it has been on Italian tables for about four hundred years.
• Quark with RaspberriesA soft cheese with the protein of a protein shake and the texture of a dessert.
• Quinoa Breakfast BowlLast night’s quinoa, warmed in milk, doing a completely different job.
• Quinoa Chickpea SaladA make-ahead salad that actually improves after sitting in the fridge for a day.
• Quinoa Porridge with BlackberriesQuinoa for breakfast rather than as the sad base of a salad, which is what it is actually good at.
• Quinoa TabboulehA herb salad with a little grain in it, not a grain salad with a little herb.
• RatatouilleEvery vegetable cooked separately before they meet, which is the whole argument between a good one and a bad one.
• Red Lentil DahlLentils, spice and coconut milk — the cheapest hot meal in the library, and one of the best.
• Rice Cakes with Peanut Butter & BananaThe three-minute snack that heads off the 4pm trip to the vending machine.
• Roast Cauliflower & Tahini BowlCauliflower roasted hard enough to go brown at the edges, which is the only way it is worth eating.
• Roast Chicken with Root VegetablesOne tray, one oven, and the vegetables cooked in the chicken fat.
• Roast Pork with ApplePork and apple, together for the reason every classic pairing exists: the acid cuts the fat.
• Roast Pumpkin & Quinoa SaladOne tray of roast pumpkin becomes lunch for the next two days.
• Roast Pumpkin SoupRoast the pumpkin rather than boiling it, and the soup tastes like twice the ingredients.
• Roast Veg & Halloumi SaladA tray of vegetables and a pan of fried cheese, which is most of what a good lunch needs.
• Roast Veg Buddha BowlOne tray of roast vegetables, a grain, and a tahini sauce that ties the whole thing together.
• Roasted Broad BeansThe same idea as roasted chickpeas, with about half again as much protein.
• Roasted ChestnutsThe only nut that is mostly starch rather than fat, which makes it the lowest-calorie one by a distance.
• Roasted Pumpkin SeedsThe best part of carving a pumpkin, and available in a packet the rest of the year.
• Salade NiçoiseA composed salad, which means nothing is tossed — everything is put where it goes and left there.
• Salmon & Sweet Potato BowlTwo of the site’s most-recommended foods, in one bowl.
• Salmon en PapilloteFish steamed in a paper parcel, which means no pan to wash and no way to overcook it.
• Salted MacadamiasAn Australian native, and the fattiest nut on the shelf, which is exactly why a small handful is enough.
• Sardines on CrackersA tin, a cracker and a lemon. About 25g of protein and a week of B12 in four minutes.
• Scallops with Pea PuréeScallops take ninety seconds a side. Everything else on the plate should be finished before they go in the pan.
• Seafood PaellaDo not stir it. The crust on the bottom of the pan is the best part of the dish.
• Seed Crackers with CheeseCrackers made entirely of seeds — no flour at all — which is why they are mostly fat and fibre.
• ShakshukaEggs poached directly in a spiced tomato sauce, one pan start to finish.
• Shirred Eggs with SpinachEggs baked in cream over greens. The lazy way to cook eggs for more than two people at once.
• Shrimp with Zucchini NoodlesA lighter, lower-carb take on shrimp scampi.
• Skyr with Toasted AlmondsIcelandic strained yogurt, which is essentially a soft cheese pretending to be a breakfast.
• Smoked Mackerel & Beetroot SaladOily fish against sweet beetroot and bitter leaves — a plate built on contrast.
• Smoked Salmon Cucumber BitesCucumber instead of a cracker, which turns a canapé into something you can eat a plate of.
• Smoked Salmon ScrambleSoft scrambled eggs, taken off the heat before you think they are ready.
• Snapper CevicheFish cooked by acid rather than heat, which takes fifteen minutes and no equipment at all.
• Soft Polenta with Poached EggThe gluten-free answer to eggs on toast, and better than it in every way except speed.
• Spanish TortillaPotato and egg, cooked slowly in far more oil than you are comfortable with, and worth every drop.
• Spiced CashewsTwelve minutes in the oven and a jar of nuts becomes something you have to hide.
• Spinach & Feta OmeletteThree eggs, a pan, and the two things in the fridge that always go together.
• Split Pea & Ham SoupThick enough that the spoon stands up in it, which is the traditional test and a fair one.
• Steak with ChimichurriA raw herb sauce that takes five minutes and outperforms anything you can buy in a jar.
• Stewed Apple with CinnamonKeeps five days in the fridge and turns yogurt, porridge or toast into something else entirely.
• Stuffed Cabbage RollsFiddly for half an hour, then an hour in the oven where nothing can go wrong.
• Stuffed Dates with Almond ButterDessert-sweet, but the sugar arrives wrapped in fibre rather than on its own.
• Sweet Potato Breakfast HashA skillet you can build from whatever is in the vegetable drawer, with eggs cracked in at the end.
• Sweet Potato CrispsSoak the slices first. It washes off the surface starch, which is what makes them crisp instead of bend.
• Sweet Potato ToastSlices of sweet potato through the toaster instead of bread. Sounds like a gimmick, works completely.
• Sweetcorn ChowderA thick soup that gets its body from blended potato rather than a pint of cream.
• Thai Beef SaladSteak, sliced thin across the grain, over a salad that is mostly herbs.
• Tofu Vegetable CurryA fully plant-based curry that still hits a real protein target.
• Tom Yum with PrawnsHot, sour, and about 120 calories a bowl. The most flavour-per-calorie dish in the library.
• Tropical Mango SmoothieFrozen mango, a splash of coconut water, and no ice needed anywhere.
• Tuna Cucumber BoatsCucumber hollowed out and used as the vehicle, which drops the carbohydrate to almost nothing.
• Tuna on Rice CakesTwenty grams of protein assembled from things that live in a desk drawer.
• Turkey & Cranberry SaladWhat to do with the leftovers, any month of the year.
• Turkey LarbA Laotian minced-meat salad, eaten in lettuce cups, that is basically all protein and herbs.
• Turkey Stuffed PeppersPeppers used as the dish as well as the vegetable.
• Turkish Eggs with YogurtPoached eggs on garlic yogurt under chilli butter. The best ten-minute breakfast anyone has invented.
• Turmeric Tofu ScrambleThe scramble you make when the eggs have run out and you still want the protein.
• Tuscan Bean & Tuna SaladTwo tins and an onion. The best thing you can make from a cupboard in under ten minutes.
• Two Brazil NutsTwo is the serving. This is the rare food where eating more is actively worse for you.
• Vegetarian Bean ChiliA big batch that tastes better the next day — freezes well too.
• Veggie OmeletteA full vegetable drawer folded into three eggs.
• Watercress, Pear & Blue CheeseThree strong flavours that have no business working together, arranged so that they do.
• Watermelon & FetaSalt on watermelon, which sounds wrong until the first mouthful.
• White Bean & Rosemary DipHummus made from what is actually in the cupboard, and lighter than the chickpea version.
• Yogurt Dip with Veg SticksA dip with real protein in it, and something crunchy to carry it.

Other patterns