Diets How to Order Gluten-Free in a Chinese Restaurant By Nancy Lapid Nancy Lapid Nancy Ehrlich Lapid is an expert on celiac disease and serves as the Editor-in-Charge at Reuters Health. Learn about our editorial process Updated on July 10, 2020 Fact checked Verywell Fit content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers. Fact checkers review articles for factual accuracy, relevance, and timeliness. We rely on the most current and reputable sources, which are cited in the text and listed at the bottom of each article. Content is fact checked after it has been edited and before publication. Learn more. by Cara Lustik Fact checked by Cara Lustik Cara Lustik is a fact-checker and copywriter with more than 15 years of experience crafting stories in the branding, licensing, and entertainment industries. Learn about our editorial process Print Ensuring a safe gluten-free meal in a Chinese restaurant is tricky: wheat-containing soy sauce is used in almost every dish on the menu (effectively placing those menu items off-limits for those with celiac disease and non-celiac gluten sensitivity). In addition, there may also be a language barrier in many Chinese eateries, which can make it difficult to communicate your dietary needs. Overview As gluten-free dietary needs become more and more common, many restaurants will include information about gluten and gluten-free dishes on their menus. It never hurts to ask, and like vegans, vegetarians and those with food allergies who dine out, those who need a gluten-free diet can usually find menu options that are suitable. If you aren't sure whether the Chinese restaurant you'll be visiting has gluten-free menu items, here are some suggestions to help you order safely from the menu. But remember, if you’re not sure whether or not food is gluten-free, don’t eat it. 1 Ask for a Server Who Speaks Your Language Betsie Van Der Meer/Getty Images Before you sit down in your chosen Chinese restaurant, make sure that someone who speaks your language fluently will be available to take your order and answer your questions. Once you've found someone with whom you can reliably communicate, be sure to ask about thickeners in the sauces and ingredients of marinades, as those are the riskiest parts of the meal for those avoiding gluten. 2 Use a Chinese Gluten-Free Restaurant Card diego_cervo/istockphoto Even if the language doesn't seem to be a barrier (and especially if it is), consider using a Chinese gluten-free restaurant card, which explains the diet and what's OK and not OK for you to eat. Gluten-free restaurant cards are available to download at Celiac Travel. Triumph Dining also offers detailed cards in Chinese and other languages, which you can order online. When ordering restaurant cards, remember that there are different dialects of Chinese spoken in different areas. Cantonese is spoken in Hong Kong and by many Chinese people living in the United States. Mandarin is spoken in Taiwan and in mainland China. In addition, a simplified form of the written language is used in mainland China, and the traditional form is used in Hong Kong and Taiwan. 3 Know Which Dishes Are Most Likely to Be Safe Maximilian Stock Ltd./Getty Images The best standby options in Chinese restaurants are chow fun (wide rice noodles) and mei fun (thin rice noodles) with vegetables or chicken, cooked with a white sauce. The rice noodles are safe as long as they’re actually pure rice (some contain wheat; check the ingredients, or have the manager check them for you), and are not cooked with soy sauce. Make sure the chef understands they must use a clean wok to prepare your dish. Are Rice Cakes Actually Nutritious? 4 Beware of Brown Chinese Sauces Westend61/Getty Images Unless you’re absolutely certain you’re being understood by the restaurant staff, avoid any brown sauces because they may include soy sauce. Instead, ask for a white sauce made with cornstarch. Many Asian restaurants will use gluten-free soy sauce to make your food if you request it. 5 Bring Your Own Soy Sauce Maximilian Stock Ltd./Getty Images When dining out in any Asian restaurant, it's not a bad idea to bring along some gluten-free soy sauce. This gives options for sushi, and occasionally a restaurant owner may be willing to use the gluten-free soy sauce to cook your dish. Duck Sauce Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits 6 Have a Backup Plan Ready kazoka30/istockphoto If you don’t have a restaurant card and no one on the staff is fluent in your language, you could consider ordering something from the menu that looks bland but safe, such as steamed vegetables or steamed chicken. Foolproof Ways to Make Vegetables Taste Good 7 Share Food Carefully With Friends and Family Sam Diephuis / Getty Images While it’s traditional to share dishes at a Chinese restaurant meal, you’ll need to make sure your friends don’t take their gluten-contaminated spoons to serve themselves food from your gluten-free dishes. There are several ways to deal with this problem: You can designate one serving spoon for your dish (but you'll wind up anxiously watching anyone who uses it).You can serve them first with a clean spoon.You can order everything gluten-free so there's no risk of gluten cross-contamination. 1 Source Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Saturni L, Ferretti G, Bacchetti T. The Gluten-Free Diet: Safety and Nutritional Quality. Nutrients. 2010;2(1):16-34. doi:10.3390/nu20100016 By Nancy Lapid Nancy Ehrlich Lapid is an expert on celiac disease and serves as the Editor-in-Charge at Reuters Health. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Review Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Helpful Report an Error Other Submit Advertiser Disclosure × The offers that appear in this table are from companies that partner with and compensate Verywell Fit for displaying their offer. These partnerships do not impact our editorial choices or otherwise influence our editorial content.