Do you really need a separate toaster if you have coeliac disease? What about pans, chopping boards, air fryers and even your plates? If you've recently been diagnosed with coeliac disease, your kitchen can suddenly feel like a place full of potential gluten traps.
The good news is that you don't need a completely separate kitchen to follow a gluten free diet safely. With just a few simple adjustments you can still prepare safely. 12 years in and a house with two coeliacs, a none coeliac fussy adult and a none coeliac crumby toddler, I have still managed to navigate life without glutening myself in my own kitchen and it is far from being fully gluten free.
Some kitchen items are best kept separate because they can trap crumbs or are difficult to clean properly. Others can be shared perfectly well as long as they are properly cleaned with hot, soapy water.
Let's look at what you really need to keep separate in a gluten free kitchen and what you really don't need to buy twice.
Following a gluten free diet isn't just about choosing food that doesn't contain gluten. You also need to avoid cross contamination, where gluten from another food ends up on your gluten free food.
It doesn't take a huge amount of gluten to be a problem for someone with coeliac disease, so those seemingly innocent crumbs really can matter.
The good news is that gluten isn't permanently stuck to your plates, pans and cutlery. Proper washing (hot soapy water, not just a rinse) removes gluten from these kitchen items, which is why you don't need a second set of everything in your kitchen. Coeliac UK recommends cleaning surfaces, pots, pans and utensils with hot soapy water, and says standard washing-up liquid or a dishwasher will remove gluten affectively. The trick is knowing which things are easy to clean and which aren't.
Let's start with the big one! Yes, a separate toaster for gluten free bread is the easiest option but you don't necessarily NEED separate toasters.
A normal toaster is basically a crumb trap. Toast crumbs fall down inside it and can end up sitting around the heating elements and the bottom of the toaster. You can't exactly give the inside of your toaster a good scrub with hot soapy water, can you?
If someone has been putting ordinary wheat bread into the toaster, it's therefore best to have a dedicated gluten free toaster for your gluten free bread. However, not everyone has room for two so toaster bags are great for gluten free bread and being able to stay with one toaster, they create a barrier between your bread and the toaster.
I use toaster bags on holiday to, I don't want to be carting around a toaster so I chunk some of those in my bag or buy from supermarket - beware they like to hide them in the oddest places, look on the little hanging racks you find down the aisles, not necessarily with bread though, they could be in any aisle, I have found the with cans before or with homeware as well as in the bakery aisle.
For more on Toastabags by Planit Products as well as some other fab kitchen products they do check out this blog from 2021.
A chopping board is another item where having a dedicated gluten free one can make life much easier. Especially if you're using wooden chopping boards.
Wooden boards can develop cuts, grooves and scratches over time, and food can become lodged in those little marks. They're much harder to clean thoroughly than a smooth, non-porous surface.
If you've been chopping ordinary bread, cakes or other gluten-containing foods on an old wooden board, I'd be inclined to keep a separate board specifically for gluten free food. And make it obvious which is which!
A brightly coloured board or one labelled GLUTEN FREE can save you having to explain it every time someone heads towards the kitchen. One of my gluten free stickers in the corner works great too!
Colanders and sieves are another one I'd consider keeping separate, especially if you use both gluten pasta and flour as well as gluten free. In my house everyone just has the same gluten free pasta and I only ever cook with gluten free flour, so I only have the one but if you do use both, definitely look at having separate.
Think about draining ordinary wheat pasta. Tiny pieces can get caught around the holes and edges of a colander, and pasta residue can be surprisingly fiddly to remove. The same with sieves, flour can easily get trapped in the mesh.
If your colander can be thoroughly cleaned, you may be happy sharing it. But if you're regularly cooking both ordinary and gluten free pasta, a dedicated gluten free colander is a relatively inexpensive way to make life simpler.
A cheese grater might not immediately scream cross contamination risk, but it's another kitchen item worth thinking about.
If you've grated cheese onto ordinary pasta, lasagne or another gluten-containing dish, small food particles can remain caught around the grater if you have had it to close - might be a bit of a long shot if your like me and grate it from about 3 foot above.
You don't necessarily need a separate grater, but make sure it can be properly cleaned before using it for gluten free food.
This is one of the easiest ways to accidentally contaminate a gluten free product.
Imagine this: Someone makes ordinary toast. They put their knife into the butter. They spread it on their toast. Their knife now has breadcrumbs on it. Then they put the knife back into the butter!.
Congratulations. You've just turned your previously gluten free butter into a potential cross-contamination problem.
Don't double dip! Pure nightmare for any coeliac.
Having separate butter, jam, peanut butter, chocolate spread and other condiments for gluten free use is the easiest. I label mine with gluten free stickers so we know who's is whose.
And if you live with people who are prone to thinking “it's only a few crumbs”, separate tubs can make life considerably less stressful.
If it's an emergency situation, aka you are on holiday and refused to pay £10 for two tubs of butter my husband will scoop some into a dish before use so he doesn't contaminate AND we then only need one. Obviously, this can only be done with someone trustworthy and isn't likely to try to poison you for the sake of it.
Because sometimes the easiest solution is simply: "KEEP YOUR CRUMMY KNIFE OUT OF MY BUTTER.”
Yes! You don't need a separate dinner service because you have coeliac disease.
Your normal plates, bowls, glasses, mugs and cutlery can generally be shared as long as they are properly washed before being used for gluten free food. And by washed, I mean washed. A quick rinse under the tap isn't enough if there is food residue stuck to the plate or cutlery.
Use hot, soapy water and properly clean the item. Alternatively, a dishwasher with suitable detergent can be used.
Coeliac UK confirms that washing-up liquid or a dishwasher will remove gluten.
So no, you don't need to buy two sets of plates and cutlery.
Again, not necessarily. Most washable pans can be shared between gluten-containing and gluten free cooking as long as they are properly cleaned.
Stainless steel saucepans, frying pans and other smooth cookware are generally straightforward to clean.
The things I'd be more cautious about are pans that are:
- Heavily scratched
- Damaged
- Covered in baked-on food
- Difficult to clean around the edges or joins
If you can't get something properly clean, it isn't a good choice for preparing gluten free food.
Wooden spoons and utensils can be another grey area.
Like wooden chopping boards, they can become scratched and can absorb or trap food residue.
If you've got an old wooden spoon that's been used for everything from ordinary pasta sauce to gluten free soup and it's covered in years of scratches, replacing it with a dedicated gluten free utensil may be the easiest option.
It's not about wood being magically full of gluten forever. It's about how easily you can clean the particular item.
Air fryers have become a bit of a staple in many kitchens, so naturally this is a question I get asked a lot.
You don't automatically need a completely separate air fryer, but you do need to consider where crumbs and food residue can collect.
If you're cooking gluten-containing foods such as breaded chicken, nuggets or other coated foods in it, make sure the basket and any removable parts are thoroughly cleaned before preparing gluten free food.
Have a dual-drawer air fryer? This can make things much easier.
If you have a dual air fryer, you could use one drawer for gluten-containing food and one dedicated to gluten free food. Just remember that the drawers aren't the only thing to think about. Clean the surrounding parts of the appliance too, particularly if crumbs have escaped into the main unit.
No, you don't need to buy a second oven just because someone in your household has coeliac disease. A normal oven can be shared, provided you are careful about cross contamination and clean up food residue.
Are Fan Ovens Safe for Coeliacs? This is something that gets discussed a lot.
People sometimes worry that a fan oven could blow crumbs or flour around the oven and onto gluten free food. Rather than getting into a panic about whether you can ever use a fan oven again, the sensible approach is to prevent gluten-containing crumbs or food from getting onto your gluten free food in the first place.
If you're cooking gluten-containing and gluten free food at the same time, put the gluten free food on a higher shelf than the gluten-containing food and if it is something than can blow around consider covering with tin foil and adding some air holes to prevent it free flying.
Coeliac UK guidance specifically recommends cooking gluten free items above gluten-containing items when they are being cooked at the same time. And don't put gluten free food directly onto an oven shelf or a surface that has had gluten-containing food on it. Use a clean baking tray or dish.
Yes, provided they're properly cleaned. A baking tray that has been used for ordinary food can be used for gluten free food after thorough washing. However, if you've got a baking tray with a layer of burnt-on food from approximately 2007 that no amount of scrubbing will remove, perhaps don't use that one for your gluten free dinner!
If you can't clean it properly, don't use it for gluten free food.
Coeliac UK says separate cloths and sponges aren't necessary, provided food residue is properly rinsed away.
But, again, common sense applies. If your sponge is currently covered in bread crumbs and you're about to wipe down your clean gluten free worktop with it, rinse it first.
This is one where sharing is not okay.
Oil that has already been used to cook food containing gluten should not then be used to cook your gluten free food.
This is particularly important when eating chips from a takeaway or fish and chip shop.
And unfortunately, we've all heard the classic line:
“Don't worry, the heat kills the gluten.” No. It doesn't.
If a chip shop has cooked battered fish or other gluten-containing food in the same oil, you cannot make it safe for someone with coeliac disease simply by cooking your gluten free chips in that oil afterwards. Same applies at home.
Use fresh oil or a dedicated fryer for gluten free food.
My UK Gluten Free Where to Eat Guide can help you find places offering gluten free food, and don't be afraid to ask the restaurant or takeaway exactly how they prevent cross contamination.
I also have an old blog about the myth of heat killing gluten.
No, but they need to be clean. Kitchen worktops are easy to share because they can be wiped down properly.
If you or someone else has just made ordinary sandwiches, baked with wheat flour or prepared gluten-containing food, clean the surface with hot, soapy water before preparing your gluten free food.
Pay particular attention to crumbs. You don't want to prepare your gluten free sandwich directly on a surface covered in yesterday's bread crumbs!
If you're setting up a gluten free kitchen from scratch, don't panic and start putting everything in your online shopping basket.
I'd prioritise the things that are difficult to clean or particularly prone to crumbs.
I'd strongly consider keeping these separate:
- Toaster
- Toaster bags if you're sharing a toaster
- Chopping board, particularly if wooden or heavily scratched
- Colander
- Possibly a grater
- Wooden utensils that are old, scratched or difficult to clean
- Butter, jam and other spreads, or use dedicated clean utensils
- Cooking oil
- Air fryer drawer if you're using a dual-drawer model and want one side dedicated to gluten free
These can generally be shared after proper cleaning:
- Plates
- Bowls
- Glasses
- Mugs
- Cutlery
- Stainless steel pans
- Sauce pans
- Frying pans
- Baking trays
- Oven dishes
- Kitchen worktops
- Dishwasher
- Sponges and cloths
The important thing isn't having a kitchen full of matching gluten free equipment. It's preventing gluten from getting onto your food.
One of the biggest things we want people to take away from this is that living gluten free doesn't mean your kitchen has to become a laboratory. You don't need a second oven. You don't need two sets of plates. You don't need to throw away every pan you've ever owned.
And you definitely don't need to stand guard over your kitchen shouting "WHO PUT THE GLUTEN KNIFE IN MY BUTTER?!"...but I would advise doing that if you know it's happening.
A few simple changes - particularly around toasters, chopping boards, crumbs, shared spreads and frying oil - can make a huge difference.
For everything else, clean it properly before preparing gluten free food. Hot, soapy water. Not a quick rinse. Not a wipe with your hand. Not “it looks clean enough”. Properly clean it.
Because when you're living with coeliac disease, avoiding cross contamination is just as important as choosing gluten free ingredients in the first place.
