The Gluten free Guide to Portugal

Tremocos are gluten free, and tasty. They are regularly served in the local wine bars for free with a drink. Please note that the skin is hard to digest and normally taken of before eating tremocos!

This gluten free Portugal guide shares some of what was safe, what was off limits, and the lessons I learned in the process the hard way — I’m looking at you, yellow mustard. Portugal’s emphasis on quality ingredients as the building blocks of their meals made it easy to find food safely.

As with many countries, snack time is the hardest — on-the-go sandwiches are off limits, as are the amazing pastel de nata tarts, though gluten free versions have popped up around town. I found that the country’s grocery items were clearly marked for celiacs — a sticker applied to packaging states that it is gluten-free.

Companies are also required by law to disclose any allergen, including wheat, rye, barley, or oats, and these are identified in bold on the ingredient list. Where they are gluten free, in Portuguese they would often say isento de glúten. For eating out, many menus of the day (larger lunchtime meals) include a simple grilled main with roasted potatoes, vegetables, and rice. These were almost always safe.

Check the list of foods below, and bring the gluten free card with you, to double check. Grilled chicken and piri-piri chicken was almost always safe, unless made using a marinade or broth that had wheat. I did not have any trouble with this in Portugal, though I have at Portuguese restaurants abroad.

See my full list of Gluten Free Translation Cards & Guides for more safe eating around the world:

www.legalnomads.com/gluten-free/portugal/