There are lots of gluten-free pastas out there. Some are mushy, some are, in the disparaging words of my 6-year-old, "rice corn", but a few are excellent. Here's our take on a few brands:
Trader Joe's brown rice pasta: It's OK, and the price is great. No one will be fooled into thinking it's regular pasta, but if you don't overcook it, the texture is OK. Since it's 100% rice and not enriched, the nutrition data aren't so impressive--a definite minus if you have a child who thinks plain pasta is a meal.
Tinkyada rice pasta: A little step up from Trader Joe's, but very similar. For the price, if you can get Trader Joe's, it's a better value.
Schar: This is the top-selling brand in Europe, and for good reason. It has a nice al dente texture, and you can even get annellini, tiny rings that are great for soup. Some varieties include pea protein, which improves the nutritional profile. If you need to avoid salicylates, note that this pasta uses corn, so it wouldn't be your best option. My allergy-free kid is happy to eat it.
Bionaturae: This European brand is, hands-down, our favorite. It's pricey, but worth every cent. It's made from rice, potato, and soy, giving it a good balance of nutrients. I don't know the salicylate content of the potato, but moderate amounts of this pasta don't give me any trouble. It's so good that I've been known to eat more than moderate amounts. My allergy-free kid is happy to eat it, even cold in her lunchbox.
Orgran corn pasta: This is the dreaded "rice corn" pasta. Orgran makes other types of pasta, which we have not tried, but the corn pasta is, well, corny. It has a glowing yellow color, which doesn't help matters.
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