Sorrel

Low FODMAP

Serving sizes

Sorrel changes rating with portion size. Its rating is estimated from what it is made of, so the servings are described rather than weighed.

Small serving Low
Large serving Moderate

Sorrel is Low FODMAP, a tart leafy herb with little in the way of fermentable carbohydrate to worry about.

As a leafy herb, sorrel stays low at a small culinary serving, with the overall FODMAP load only climbing to moderate at a large leafy serving.
Most of the time sorrel turns up in modest amounts, brightening sauces, soups, and salads, so it sits comfortably on the low side; a heaping bowl of leaves is where it starts to add up.

Use sorrel the way you would any punchy herb, a handful stirred through at the end of cooking, and you will keep things gentle.

Why sorrel is rated low

Sorrel is low FODMAP overall. That rating is estimated from what the leaf is made of, not from a measured serving. At a Small serving it reads LOW, which matches how most people use it: torn into a salad, blended into a green sauce or stirred through a soup just before serving. At a Large serving the overall load climbs to MODERATE. So sorrel used as a sharp, lemony accent stays on the low side, but a dish where sorrel is the main green rather than a seasoning no longer counts as low.

What changes your risk

Serving size The ladder goes from LOW at a Small serving to MODERATE at a Large serving, so the question is whether sorrel is seasoning the dish or making up most of it.
Wilting down Sorrel collapses quickly in heat, so a modest-looking amount of cooked purée can hold far more leaves than it seems to. Cooking shrinks the volume but does not remove FODMAPs.
Soup bases Classic sorrel soup starts with onion or leek bulb and stock. Those bring their own FODMAP load, and in a soup anything that leaches into the liquid stays in the bowl you eat.
Creamy sauces The French sorrel sauce served with fish is usually finished with cream, which is not low FODMAP, so the sauce can be a problem even when the sorrel itself stays at a Small serving.
The whole meal A Small serving of sorrel next to other moderate foods in the same meal adds to the total, so judge the whole plate and not just the herb.

What else works

Other greens and herbs that sit comfortably low include baby spinach, chives and the green tops of spring onions, so sorrel can share the pot with them instead of filling it alone. The real lookalikes to watch are the dishes rather than the leaf. Sorrel soup made with onion or leek bulb and sorrel sauce finished with cream are not low FODMAP, however little sorrel goes in. For a green soup base, potato and zucchini with baby spinach give body without the onion, and lactose-free yoghurt can replace cream in a sorrel sauce.

How to keep it low

Buy sorrel in bunches, wrap it in a damp towel and keep it in the fridge, because it wilts fast and turns olive green once heated. Add it at the end of cooking and keep it as one green among several rather than most of the pot. Build soups on garlic-infused oil, the green tops of spring onions and an onion-free, garlic-free stock instead of onion and leek bulb. For a quick sauce with fish, blend raw sorrel with garlic-infused oil and lactose-free yoghurt.

Common questions

is sorrel low fodmap

Yes. Sorrel is rated low FODMAP overall, estimated from what it is made of. It reads LOW at a Small serving and climbs to MODERATE at a Large serving.

how much sorrel can i eat on a low fodmap diet

A Small serving reads LOW, which covers using sorrel as a herb or accent green. A Large serving, such as a soup where sorrel is the main vegetable, reaches MODERATE.

is sorrel soup low fodmap

Usually not as traditionally written, because most recipes start with onion or leek bulb and stock. Use garlic-infused oil, green spring onion tops and an onion-free stock instead, and keep the sorrel to a Small serving.

can i eat sorrel during the elimination phase

Yes, at a Small serving, where it reads LOW. Use it as a seasoning green rather than the main vegetable on the plate.

Learn more

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

Sorrel 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.