What Is Gluten-Free Chicken Stock?

Gluten-free chicken stock is chicken stock or chicken broth that does not include an ingredient called gluten. Gluten is a protein compound found in wheat and other grains like barley. This product, which can create texture in foods or simply add protein, is found in many kinds of processed foods.

Specific brands of chicken stock or broth that are labeled gluten-free are stocked in stores, partially as a result of a general movement among consumers to select natural broth or stock. The other motivation for these products is an allergy that many people have to gluten. Sill others just want to select chicken stock that does not have a lot of extra ingredients.

Along with choosing gluten-free chicken stock or broth, shoppers may select chicken broth that does not contain dairy products or soy compounds. A wide range of broth and stock products have many different ingredients. Some are considered natural or organic because they are composed of the essence of the original meat and not much else, or because each ingredient is held to a higher standard. Other processed chicken stock products can have quite a few extra ingredients added in.

In order to provide less perishable solutions, manufacturers make gluten-free chicken stock that can be stored in various forms. Like other kinds of more processed chicken broth or stock, it can come in cans, jars, or in sealed cardboard containers similar to those used for milk and other products. These chicken stock products can also come in the form of bouillon, a product that is named from the French word for “boil.” Bouillon is small, hard rectangular packets of de-hydrated meat broth or stock that get added to water as it boils. These have their own ingredients and nutritional values, which are often printed clearly on the packaging; bouillon can often be higher in sodium than natural chicken broth.

Although gluten-free chicken stock may be prominently labeled “gluten-free,” this does not always mean that shoppers don’t need to read the detailed list of ingredients that is printed, usually in very small letters, on the product container. Many shoppers who want the most natural products have started to read the ingredients of nearly everything that they by in order to pursue a “whole foods” strategy, and cut a lot of processed elements out of their diet. Choosing gluten-free products is just one way to do this.