Probiotics Rich Food without Dairy
Probiotics Rich Food – We’ve all heard about the importance of probiotics. They’re essential in maintaining a healthy and diverse gut microbiome, and can be sourced in multiple ways! Here at Clean Cuisine, we make it a point to regularly include probiotic rich foods in our diets on a daily basis. Of course we keep limit these foods to only dairy-free sources for an anti-inflammatory, healing approach!
Want to learn where we’re getting all of these probiotics rich food? Keep reading!
What are Probiotics?
Before we jump into how to get more probiotics into your diet, we should probably explore exactly what probiotics are! Probiotics are made up of live bacteria and yeast (the good kind) that help to balance your gut, and maintain a healthy microbiome. There are many factors that may throw our gut bacteria out of balance (such as antibiotics, alcohol, poor dietary choices, lack of sleep, etc.), and probiotics help to combat this.
Probiotics are available in supplement form (consult your doctor on which probiotic supplement may be best for you), as well as through our diet. While you definitely should be intentional about getting extra probiotics into your diet, there’s a good chance you are already consuming at least a small amount in your diet! We’ll elaborate on how to intentionally add more probiotics into your diet later on.
The Benefits of Probiotics
Now since you know what probiotics are, let’s get a little further into the details of exactly why you should add more probiotics into your diet. While some of these may be obvious, you might not know just how much good gut health can benefit the rest of your body! Probiotics are…
- Incredibly Helpful for Digestion: Probiotics are essential for a healthy gut microbiome in general, but additionally, in nutrient absorption! In turn, probiotics are beneficial in processing the foods our body uses for fuel.
- Great for the Liver, and Detoxifying: Probiotics have been studied to aid in proper liver function, and detox toxins out of your body. This good bacteria filter toxins in the gut before they make it into the bloodstream. The presence of probiotics makes transferring the toxic waste in your colon much quicker. In turn, it prevents toxins from staying in your body, and helps to prevent reabsorption in your bloodstream.
- Beneficial for your Skin: Your skin is a mirror to the inside of your body. If you are prone to skin issues, an unhealthy gut will likely present in the form of acne, or other skin conditions. Better gut health equals better skin health!
Probiotics Rich Food
Probiotics rich food is often associated with dairy-based products. Here are Clean Cuisine, we strongly believe that dairy does not do the body any good. For us, the risks far outweigh any potential benefit we may receive from consuming it. Furthermore, dairy based foods such as yogurt and kefir are not the best choice of probiotics from a stability or bioavailability standpoint anyways. Besides, there are tons of great dairy alternatives and probiotics rich food out there totally dairy-free! There’s simply no need for it with such a variety of less risky, dairy-free options.
So no, you don’t need to down pounds of yogurt per day to get in your probiotics. Here are some of our favorite dairy-free probiotics rich food to enjoy on a regular basis. This will help increase your daily probiotics intake!
Coconut Yogurt
If you enjoy yogurt, but don’t love the effects of dairy, we have a solution! Coconut yogurt is a delicious dairy alternative, and can easily be homemade, or bought in stores! GT’s offers an excellent, clean, gum and refined sugar-free probiotic-rich yogurt. This can be found in health food stores, as does Coyo, and Lavva!
Want to take a few extra minutes to make it at home? Our Recipe for Homemade Yogurt with Coconut Cream is quick, easy, and can always be found in our fridge!
Luvele Yogurt Maker
Homemade coconut yogurt is a great dairy-free, probiotic-rich, clean eating alternative to store bought yogurt. Luvele’s Yogurt Maker makes it easy and quick!
Kombucha
Kombucha is a probiotic-rich, tart drink made from fermented tea that has been all the craze the past few years! Bubbly, refreshing, and full of probiotics and health benefits, this drink is the perfect replacement for soda, or alcohol. It is also a great source of antioxidants and B vitamins.
While most commercial kombucha is “non-alcoholic” (unless otherwise stated on the bottle), it does still contain a small amount of alcohol from the fermentation, + a slight flavor of alcohol as well. This makes it the perfect alcohol replacement!
Our favorite brand of kombucha is GT’s brand for purity, ingredient transparency, and a large flavor selection!
Pickled Veggies
Pickled veggies are a great way to pack in your probiotics! They’re also great for satisfying that salty/savory craving when it hits. Pickled carrots, beets, and cucumbers are rich in probiotics and very tasty. However, it is important to find or make pickled veggies without vinegar, as those with vinegar do not contain live probiotics.
Want to learn how to pickle from home? It’s easy and requires few ingredients.
Water Kefir
Kefir is one of those probiotic-rich foods, traditionally made with dairy. However, water kefir is a great alternative to dairy-filled kefir, and is another refreshing, tangy drink! GT’s offers a great water kefir that can be found in many health food stores, and can also easily be made from scratch.
Kimchi
Kimchi is a slightly spicy and tangy dish of fermented veggies, including cabbage, radishes, carrots, and more! It’s a great side dish, and even delicious when spread on sandwiches, or used to top salads. There are many great brands of kimchi that you can find in health food stores in the refrigerator isle (I love the Wildbrine brand), or you can whip one up at home pretty easily as well!
Sauerkraut
Sauerkraut is fermented cabbage, and a great source of probiotics! This is also delicious on sandwiches, in nourish bowls, or as a side dish! Sauerkraut is incredibly easy to make from home, and can require as few as 3 ingredients! A seriously easy, and delicious way to get in loads of probiotics through food!
Easy Ways to Add in More Probiotics Rich Food
Now since you’re know all of our favorite probiotics rich food to enjoy, I will leave you with some easy ways to add them into your diet on a daily basis!
Add Coconut Yogurt into your Smoothie: If you enjoy a daily smoothie like we do, it’s easy to add a tablespoon or two of coconut yogurt into your drink! Not only will this add extra health benefits to your smoothie, it will add a delicious, tart flavor as well. Health benefits or not, I always prefer the flavor of yogurt in my smoothies!
Water Kefir Popsicles: Want to get the kids in on more probiotics as well? These Water Kefir Popsicles are a treat everyone will love! They also only require two ingredients, so they’re easy peasy.
Add Pickled Veggies, Kimchi, or Sauerkraut to Meals: Enjoy any of these fermented treats as side dishes to your meal, or enjoy on top of a salad! We particularly love adding pickled veggies to our Burger Bowl Salad.
I hope this article helped to explain the importance of probiotics, and made the process of adding them into your diet a breeze! Remember, much of our health revolves around the state of our gut. Because of this, it is vital to give it extra love and attention on your clean eating journey!
Hi Ivy, I’m trying to connect with others who are ‘moving over’ to the ‘clean cuisine’ way of eating, but when I signed up for your email subscription and tried to join the facebook group, I didn’t receive replies. Are these avenues still active? Thanks!
Hi Miriam, I am so sorry for the delay getting back to you. We were out of the country and I am just now returning and getting back in the swing of things. I have not officially been running the Challenge as an organized group (I am making it available but have not really promoted it) –so I temporarily made the facebook page inactive. However, I do plant to do it as a group VERY soon! Hopefully within the month. I can definitely put you on the list if you would like to be notified. In the meantime, you should start to receive our weekly newsletters. If not, please do let me know!
Are any kind of pickles you can buy at a grocery store ok (anything without added sugar etc.)?
Hi Laurie, yes, you definitely want to look for pickles without sugar or additives. But, to get the probiotic benefits you’ll want to get pickles in the refrigerated section that are made without vinegar. Lacto-fermentation is a traditional method of making pickles without using vinegar. Pickles made in this manner are alive and rich in probiotics. Bubbies is a great brand you can buy at just about any natural food store. Look for it in the refrigerated section though! Here is the website: http://bubbies.com/kosher_dills
Hello! I am having problems making my own yogurt with a yogurt maker. I have ulcerative colitis and gluten and dairy allergies. I was hoping the probiotic in homemade yogurt would help my gut heal better then the pills. I have the breaking the cycle book. Any advice on how I can get the same amount of probiotics from homemade yogurt from other sources? I was hoping the massive amounts of pro uotics would help clear out the bad bacteria. Thanks!
Hi Alyson, I am so sorry to hear about your health issues but I do think you are on the right track with seeking out probiotics. Have you tried making coconut yogurt with coconut milk? Coconut kefir is another great option. If you aren’t up for making your own yogurt though, SO Delicious just recently released a cultured coconut yogurt that has no added sugar. Here is the link: http://sodeliciousdairyfree.com/products/cultured-coconut-milk/unsweetened-cultured-coconut-milk Also, want to mix it up and get your probiotics from a number of other non-yogurt sources too (miso, “real” sauerkraut, kimchi, Kombucha, etc.) I would also suggest taking a broad spectrum probiotic supplement. I hope this helps? And I sure hope you feel better soon…
Hi, how much sauerkraut would you need to eat each day to benefit?
Thanks for the info!
Hi Shel, I am so sorry for the lengthy delay in getting back to you—we were on a one-week cruise and it has taken me about a week to catch up from taking so much time off! Anyway, if you eat about 1/4 cup of sauerkraut that should get the job done 😉
Hi Ivy, this is off this topic, but I really need to help my mother in law. She is diabetic, and has been diagnosed with cystitis. I was wondering if this challenge would be ok for her to follow. I am concerned with all the fruit. She has horrible eating habits, and I want to bring her to my house to see if I prepare the meals, she will start to feel better. Any advise will be very helpful.
Hi Martha, Oh my gosh, I can totally sympathize with your mother-in-law, I know all about bladder problems =( Cystitis can be a nightmare, BUT it is an inflammatory condition and there are a number of things she can do to improve her symptoms. Dr. Weil actually has a good article on the issue here: http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA357498
As for the fruit, I know so many people are concerned about the “sugar” content and we discuss this in detail in our book because as long as she eats the “whole” fruit (not fruit juice!) then it won’t be a problem. I know this is hard for people to digest—especially those with type 2 diabetes or who are overweight—because they are under the misconception that all sugar is the same, but it most definitely is not. In fact, there have been real studies done on real people (not mice, chimpanzees, etc.) that show fruit consumption is inversely associated with BMI and body weight. In other words, people who eat fruit weigh less (and if your mother-in-law loses weight her type 2 diabetes will definitely improve!!) In a study published in the journal Nutrition, of the 77 overweight and obese dieters enrolled in a 6-month randomized controlled trial, those who ate the most fruit lost the most weight. Also, a study published in Diabetes Care showed that eating three servings of fresh fruit each day is associated with an 18% decrease in risk of diabetes.
Anyway, in conclusion, yes, the Clean Cuisine Challenge would definitely be good for both of your mother-in-laws conditions 😉 Hope this helps?
Hi, I was wondering if yogurts and kefir made with almond and soy milk would be another good way to get the probiotic into our daily dose?
Hi Holly, oh sure, those would be good (as would coconut milk-based yogurts). However, just be careful to read the ingredients and make sure they don’t contain globs of sugar (or you could, of course, make your own with a homemade yogurt machine and a yogurt starter). I am sure healthful non-dairy yogurt brands exist that don’t have loads of sugar, I just don’t know the brands off the cuff. But, if you can’t locate any or you have questions about specific brands, please do let me know and I will look into it for you 😉
GREAT Post— really helpful to have this list to work from 🙂
Q1: If you’re battling Candida, which of these would be your top choice?
Q2: Does cooking any of these (ie. raw sauerkraut) harm the probiotic content?
Thanks so much! 🙂
Hi Lance! So glad this info helped =) To be honest, it would be a good idea to include as much VARIETY as you possibly can—because by getting a good variety of foods you will be getting a variety of strains, you know? And yes, cooking the sauerkraut will, unfortunately, harm the probiotics =( It is definitely best to eat the sauerkraut raw. Hope this help?
Hi Ivy, what about the concern of kombucha and candida?
Hi Patty, this is a VERY GOOD question. Please be sure to read this link for a very thorough explanation http://bodyecology.com/articles/can-fermented-foods-help-to-eliminate-candida —please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any additional questions!