Grain products provide a wealth of nutrients, including carbohydrates, dietary fibre, vitamins and minerals. Several fad diets claim that grain products like bread, pasta and rice promote weight gain, but the scientific evidence tells a different story. Eating grain products every day – and especially whole grains – will promote good health and greatly improve your chances of achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight.

Choose Whole-Grain Products
Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide says that at least half of the grain products you eat should be whole grains. Whole-grain products such as brown rice and oatmeal, as well as whole-grain bread and pasta, contain all three parts of the kernel of grain: the bran, the endosperm and the germ. Each of these parts contains a wealth of different nutrients, including fibre, magnesium and B vitamins. Whole grains are also naturally low in fat, and they taste great!

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Refined grain products have the germ removed, or the bran, or both. These products, which include white rice, white flour and cream of wheat cereal, are less nutritious than whole-grain products.

Try Something New!
Wheat, rice, oats and corn, the staples of the Canadian diet for generations, are all very nutritious, especially if you choose the whole-grain versions. But if you plan to increase the amount of grain products in your diet, consider adding variety to your menus by using some of the many other types of grains available.

Quinoa (Kenn-Wah), an extremely versatile South American grain product, is rich in protein, carbohydrate, iron and fibre. This interesting alternative to rice, pasta or couscous is prepared like rice. It has a fluffy texture and nutty flavour. Quinoa is typically made as a savoury side dish which cooks quickly.  Use 1 cup of dry quinoa to 2 cups of liquid and cook for 15 minutes.    It can also be made as a sweet breakfast cereal by adding cinnamon, spices, milk or honey.

Amaranth is new to many Canadians but is enjoyed daily in other parts of the world. Like quinoa, amaranth is a good source of protein, carbohydrate and fibre. Amaranth can be cooked as a cereal, or you can use amaranth flour to add a new flavour to muffins or quick breads. Typically 1 cup of amaranth is cooked with 2 ½ cups of liquid for 20 minutes to yield about 2 ½ cups of cooked amaranth.  It should be served promptly as it becomes glutinous on sitting.  Tomatoes and chilies are great seasonings for amaranth.

Brown rice, a nutritious alternative to white rice or pasta, is a good source of fibre. It has a nut-like flavour and a chewy texture, and you can cook it and put portions in the freezer for later use.  Brown rice requires 2 1/2 cups of liquid for every cup of rice.  Liquid can be water, stock, or coconut milk depending on the desired taste and will yield about 3 cups of cooked rice.

Irish or steel cut oats are high in fibre and have a unique, chewy texture. Unlike conventional oats that are rolled into flat disks, Irish oats resemble pieces of rice. Try cooking Irish oats in a slow cooker overnight so you can wake up to a hearty, delicious breakfast.  Steel cut oats require 3 cups of water or milk to 1 cup oats cooked over low heat for 30 minutes.

Barley is usually thought of in beer making but it is a delicious grain with a lovely chewy texture.  It is a rich source of beta – glucan, a solube fibre which helps to prevent heart disease.  Barley is NOT gluten free.  Barley is available as hulled barley, hull-less barley, barley grits (also known as barley couscous) barley flour and a quick cooking variety is now available in Alberta.  As a breakfast food, barley can be sweetened with honey, cinnamon and applesauce.  As a side dish, it is delicious cooked in chicken broth with onions and mushrooms.  To cook barley, use one cup to 2 ½ cups of liquid for a yield of 3 cups of cooked barley.  Cooking time is 50-105 minutes.

Buckwheat is not technically a grain but because it shares the characteristics of wheat it is used much like a whole grain.   It is gluten free and has the health benefit of helping to keep blood sugars in check.  It typically comes in the form of buckwheat grouts (or Kasha) or as buckwheat flour from which buckwheat pancakes or blinis are made.  To make a kasha, the eastern European dish, buckwheat is toasted in a dry skillet and for every 1 cup used, 2 ½ cups of liquid are added and simmered for about 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.  The traditional way of cooking coats the grains in egg before adding the liquid, but either way will work.

Millet looks just like mustard seeds both in size and color.  Teff is a variety of millet that is much smaller and darker in colour and is best known as the main ingredient to the injera, an Ethiopian flatbread. To bring out millet’s full flavor it is toasted in a dry pan before adding the liquid.  It can be eaten as a breakfast cereal like oatmeal, or with the addition of savory spices, can be substituted for other grains.  To prepare, use 1 cup of millet or teff and add 2 ½ cups of liquid and simmer for 25 minutes.  Fluff with a fork to separate the grains.

Oats are a commonly eaten grain in North America.  Owing to a natural preservative in oats, refining oats has not been necessary to extend the shelf life so when we eat oats we are already eating a whole grain product.  Oats come in various forms including oat groats, which is the whole kernel that hasn’t been flattened,  steel cut oats which make a chewy breakfast cereal, rolled oats, which have been steamed and hence are softer and oat flour which can be used in combination with other flours.  The volume of liquid and time required to cook oats depends on the form the oats comes in – with oat groats requiring 4 cups of water to every cup of oats and 50 minutes to cook. Rolled oats require only 2 cups of liquid and 10 minutes.  The stove top, the microwave and the slow cooker are all useful for cooking oats.

Rye is best known as the feedstock for rye whiskey and for rye bread, which tends to be much heavier and darker than wheat flour based breads.  Rye flour is usually mixed with wheat flour in making rye bread because rye flour contains less gluten than wheat flour so a bread made only from rye is very heavy and dense.  In addition to being available as flour, rye can also be found as rye flakes from which a hot cereal like oatmeal can be made and rye berries, which can be used as a whole grain savory dish.  To cook, use 1 cup of rye berries with 2 ½ cups of liquid and cook for an hour until soft.

Sorgum is a North African tropical plant which is yellow in colour and looks like a bigger version of millet.  It is drought resistant and hence is a valuable source of food in arid areas of the world.  Sorghum flour is used to make an unleavened bread called bhakri, as well as a liquor called maotai which is like a gluten free beer, and sorghum stalks make a sweet syrup.  Sorghum is difficult to find in North America but is available in Africa and Asia as sorghum grain or sorghum flour.

Wheat, the most common grain used in North America, comes in many forms, the most basic of which is wheat berries, which are the whole kernels.  Other forms include bulgur, which is steamed hulled wheat berries that have been dried and cracked; couscous, a type of pasta which looks like small round balls; emmer, spelt or faro, ancient forms of wheat;  kamut, which is related to durum wheat; and triticale, a hybrid of wheat and rye.  Wheat is NOT gluten free and must be avoided by folks with celiac disease.  Wheat berries take close to an hour to cook over simmering heat but soaking can reduce cooking time slightly.  Use 1 cup wheat berries to 2 ½ cups water. 

Spelt, an ancient grain that is related to wheat, is high in fibre and has a nuttier, slightly sweeter flavour than wheat. Use spelt to replace some of the wheat flour in muffins or quick breads, or look for this grain on the ingredients list of whole-grain pasta and cereal.

Wild rice is technically the seed of an aquatic grass but it is used like a grain.  Wild rice has been harvested by Native peoples of North America from wetlands of the northern Midwest.  It is gluten free and is typically fermented a bit to extend its shelf life.  Wild rice should be rinsed and drained before cooking.  The amount of liquid required to cook depends on the size of the grains, the longer ones requiring more water than the shorter ones.  To cook, 1 cup of wild rice requires anywhere from 2 – 3 cups of liquid and a cooking time of 45 – 65 minutes.  Wild rice, because of expense, is often mixed with other rice for a more interesting blend of textures and flavors.

Watch the Toppings
Although grain products are naturally low in fat and calories, they are often served with flavourful toppings and sauces made of  high-calorie ingredients such as butter, margarine, cream and full fat cheese.  Cooked cereal such as oatmeal is traditionally served with spoonfuls of sugar.

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Try these ways of adding flavour to your grain dishes without adding calories: 

• Limit the amount of butter or margarine or oil you use on foods like rice or pasta. Try using salsa instead.
• Cook rice or pasta in low-salt broth.
• Avoid high-calorie pasta sauces like alfredo, which is made with cream, butter and high-fat cheese. Toss pasta with steamed vegetables and herbs, or serve it with a fresh-tasting tomato sauce. 
• Use low-calorie condiments like cranberry sauce, mustard, relish or even salsa to add flavour to sandwiches. 
• Sweeten your morning cereal without sugar. Top oatmeal with raisins, dried cranberries or fresh fruits like peaches. Or use spices like cinnamon or nutmeg to provide a flavour bonus.

Grain products are rich in nutrients and an important part of a healthy diet. Make the most of your grain product choices by eating whole grains, experimenting with unusual grains and limiting the amount of fat you add to them. Satisfy your hunger for healthy eating by choosing grain products every day!

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Learn More
Tips for Grain Products (Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide)
Eating Well with Canada's Food Guide offers tips about grain products.

Cooking with Whole Grains (EatRight Ontario)
EatRight Ontario answers frequently asked questions about whole grains.

Fibre, Whole Grains and Carbohydrates (Heart and Stroke Foundation)
The Heart and Stroke Foundation explains fibre, whole grains and carbohydrates.