Baklava

High FODMAP

Typical portion

Any typical portion High

Fructans Excess Fructose

Baklava is High FODMAP, a wheat pastry layered and drenched in sweet syrup that stacks up two fermentable carbs at once.

The Fructans come from the wheat filo pastry, while the honey or sugar syrup soaking every layer brings Excess Fructose, so any typical portion lands high.
Baklava comes in many nut and syrup variations, but the wheat and syrup base stays the same across most versions, and that is what drives the level regardless of the filling.

When you want something sweet in this style, a small treat built on rice or corn and sweetened with plain sugar or maple syrup keeps things far friendlier.

Why baklava is rated high

Baklava is high FODMAP because two parts of it work against you at once. The paper-thin wheat filo brings Fructans through every layer, and the syrup poured over it, especially when honey is part of it, brings Excess Fructose that soaks into the whole tray. The rating is estimated from what baklava is made of rather than from a measured serving, and its ladder has a single rung: "Any typical portion" reads HIGH. No smaller serving on the ladder comes in lower.

What changes your risk

The syrup soaks in Baklava is made to absorb its syrup, so the sweetener cannot be scraped off or drained away once it has set into the pastry.
Honey in the syrup Recipes that use honey rather than a plain sugar syrup add more Excess Fructose, and many bakery versions do not say which they use.
The filo, not the nut layer Walnuts are not what drives the rating; the many layers of wheat filo are where the Fructans come from.
Stacking with other sweets Eating baklava alongside other wheat pastries, dried figs or dates, or a honey-sweetened drink piles more Fructans and Excess Fructose into the same sitting.

Swaps

The honey-nut-crunch combination can be rebuilt with lower FODMAP parts. Toss walnuts, pecans or macadamias with cinnamon and maple syrup or rice malt syrup, then bake them into an oat crumble or press them over a gluten free pastry base. Candied walnuts or pecans in maple syrup scratch the same itch with no pastry at all. Swapping the honey for agave does not help, since agave is high in the same kind of sugar.

How to lower the load

Bakery, deli and restaurant baklava is nearly always made with wheat filo and often with honey, so there is no safer version to order out. When making a homestyle substitute, use a gluten free pastry and a syrup of table sugar, water and lemon juice, or maple syrup, flavoured with cinnamon, cardamom or orange zest. Check the ingredients list on any bought syrup or nut mix for honey, high fructose corn syrup or inulin, and stick to walnuts, pecans or macadamias for the filling.

Common questions

is baklava low fodmap

No. Baklava rates high FODMAP, estimated from what it is made of, and "Any typical portion" reads HIGH.

is baklava high in fructans

Yes. The wheat filo layers carry Fructans, and the syrup, especially if honey is used, adds Excess Fructose, so both push the rating up.

is baklava without honey low fodmap

Swapping honey for a sugar syrup removes some of the Excess Fructose, but the wheat filo still brings Fructans, so ordinary baklava is still treated as high.

what is a low fodmap alternative to baklava

Walnuts or pecans baked with cinnamon and maple syrup, either on their own or over a gluten free pastry base, give a similar sweet, nutty crunch.

Learn more

Informational only, not medical advice. Individual tolerance varies. Talk to a healthcare professional or a dietitian for personal guidance.

Baklava is an estimated rating: it is inferred from the food's ingredients and composition and cross-checked, not measured directly in the papers below. The low, moderate and high cutoffs are still those of Varney et al. (2017).

References

Fructan and free fructose content of common Australian vegetables and fruit. Muir et al. (2007), J. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 55(16):6619-6627.
Measurement of short-chain carbohydrates in common Australian vegetables and fruits by HPLC. Muir et al. (2009), J. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 57(2):554-565.
Quantification of fructans, galacto-oligosaccharides and other short-chain carbohydrates in processed grains and cereals. Biesiekierski et al. (2011), J. Human Nutrition and Dietetics 24(2):154-176.
Dietary sorbitol and mannitol: food content and distinct absorption patterns. Yao et al. (2014), J. Human Nutrition and Dietetics 27(Suppl 2):263-275.
FODMAPs: food composition, defining cutoff values and international application. Varney et al. (2017), J. Gastroenterology and Hepatology 32(Suppl 1):53-61. Supplies the low, moderate and high cutoffs used on this page.