Garden Cress

Why garden cress is rated low

Garden cress is low FODMAP. The rating is estimated from what it is made of rather than a measured serving: a peppery leafy green with no FODMAP subgroups recorded, so it reads LOW at Any typical portion. It is usually eaten as a garnish or sandwich filling, which sits well within a typical portion. The ladder has just that one rung, so the rating speaks for a normal helping and nothing beyond it, and it covers the cress alone, not the bread, mayonnaise or soup it ends up in.

What changes your risk

• Portion The LOW rating covers Any typical portion. A cress-heavy dish eaten in a far bigger amount than usual sits outside what the estimate covers.
• The bread underneath Egg and cress sandwiches are usually made on ordinary wheat bread, which is not low FODMAP at ordinary servings. The cress is low, but the sandwich may not be.
• Soups and sauces Cress soup is commonly built on onion or the white of leek plus a stock cube, which carries onion too. The green colour comes from the cress, but the FODMAP load comes from the base.
• Pestos and dips Blended cress pestos and green dips often contain garlic and sometimes cashews, and neither is low FODMAP.
• The whole meal Stacking is about the total FODMAP load of the meal. A low garnish does not offset a high main dish served under it.

What else works

Garden cress pairs naturally with other low FODMAP foods such as eggs, cucumber, carrot and baby spinach. For the classic egg and cress sandwich, use gluten free bread or traditional sourdough spelt or wheat bread instead of ordinary wheat bread, and season the egg with chives rather than onion. The lookalikes that are not low are the dishes cress decorates: cress soups built on onion or leek bulb, garlic-heavy green pestos, and dips made with cashews.

How to keep it low

Cress is usually sold growing in a punnet or as cut sprouts. Keep a growing punnet on a bright windowsill, water it lightly, and snip with scissors just before eating, since cut cress wilts within a day or two. Rinse it well, as seed husks and grit cling to the stems. It also grows easily at home on damp paper towel for a steady supply. Add it at the end, off the heat, because its peppery bite fades once cooked, and check any mayonnaise you mix it with for garlic or onion.

Common questions

is garden cress low fodmap

Yes. Garden cress is rated low FODMAP, estimated from what it is made of, and it reads LOW at Any typical portion.

is egg and cress sandwich low fodmap

The egg and the cress are low, but ordinary wheat bread is not low FODMAP at ordinary servings. Use gluten free bread or traditional sourdough spelt or wheat bread, and check the mayonnaise for garlic or onion.

can i eat cress on the elimination phase

Yes. It reads LOW at Any typical portion. Watch what it is served with, such as onion-based soups or garlic pestos.

how much cress can i have on low fodmap

The rating covers Any typical portion, which comfortably includes cress used as a garnish or sandwich filling. Amounts far beyond a typical portion are not covered by the estimate.