Do you follow a gluten-free diet and wonder if Doritos are gluten-free? This post will give you all the information you need to know to make an informed decision on whether to enjoy these or not if you’re gluten free.
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If you love Doritos and are trying to stick with a gluten-free diet, you may be looking for some answers as to whether you can still enjoy them on game days, gatherings, or as an easy snack option when you’re grabbing things off the store shelves.
Today, we’re going to dive deep into Doritos land and answer the question: are Doritos gluten-free?
We’ll talk about what Doritos are made from, what gluten is, and finally, since this blog is about being gluten-free AND dairy-free, we’ll also talk about if they are safe for a dairy-free diet too. Let’s get to it, shall we?
What are Doritos made from?
There are a number of flavors of Doritos available in grocery stores, but some of their most popular flavors are nacho cheese and cool ranch.
Let’s talk about their ingredients to get a better idea as to whether or not they are gluten-free.
According to the Doritos website, Doritos Nacho Cheese flavored tortilla chips are made with the following ingredients:
“Corn, Vegetable Oil (Corn, Canola, And/or Sunflower Oil), Maltodextrin (Made From Corn), Salt, Cheddar Cheese (Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Whey, Monosodium Glutamate, Buttermilk, Romano Cheese (Part-skim Cow’s Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Whey Protein Concentrate, Onion Powder, Corn Flour, Natural And Artificial Flavor, Dextrose, Tomato Powder, Lactose, Spices, Artificial Color (Yellow 6, Yellow 5, And Red 40), Lactic Acid, Citric Acid, Sugar, Garlic Powder, Skim Milk, Red And Green Bell Pepper Powder, Disodium Inosinate, And Disodium Guanylate.”
Read on: Is cheddar cheese gluten-free?
According to the Doritos website, Doritos Cool Ranch flavored tortilla chips are made with the following ingredients:
Corn, Vegetable Oil (Corn, Canola, And/or Sunflower Oil), Maltodextrin (Made From Corn), Salt, Tomato Powder, Lactose, Whey, Skim Milk, Onion Powder, Sugar, Garlic Powder, Monosodium Glutamate, Maltodextrin (Made From Corn), Cheddar Cheese (Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Dextrose, Malic Acid, Corn Syrup Solids, Buttermilk, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Sodium Acetate, Artificial Color (Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 5), Spice, Citric Acid, Disodium Inosinate, and Disodium Guanylate.
Read on: Is maltodextrin gluten-free?
Read on: Gluten-free Tortillas: Types, Gluten-free Options, and Brands
Read on: Is corn flour gluten-free?
Read on: Is corn syrup gluten-free?
What is gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in most wheat products, and acts as the “glue” that helps to hold wheat, barley, kamut, spelt, farro, durum, bulgur, rye, and semolina together to maintain their shape.
Gluten is naturally occurring, and therefore is impossible to strip away from the grain. If a grain naturally has gluten in it, there’s no way to make that food gluten-free.
Are Doritos gluten-free?
According to the Frito Lay website, Doritos’ parent company, many flavors of Doritos are made without gluten ingredients.
They specify that “The Frito-Lay products listed below do not contain wheat, rye, barley or oat ingredients (we include oats in this list as a precaution as oats are often commingled with gluten-containing grains).
Please note however, some of the products listed below may be manufactured on the same lines as products that contain gluten.
Although our lines are cleaned between production runs, Frito-Lay has not tested these products for gluten content and the ingredients in these products may have come into contact with gluten-containing products prior to manufacturing.
Individuals who are sensitive to gluten should take these factors into consideration in consuming these products.”
Here is a list of the Doritos products that do not contain gluten-containing ingredients (source):
- DORITOS® Cool Ranch® Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Dinamita® Chile Limón Flavored Rolled Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Flamas™ Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Flamin’ Hot® Limon Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Flamin’ Hot® Nacho Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Flavor Shots Fiery Habanero Triangles
- DORITOS® Nacho Cheese Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Poppin’ Jalapeño Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Salsa Verde Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Simply Organic Spicy White Cheddar Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Spicy Nacho Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Taco Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Tangy Pickle Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Tapatio® Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Twisted Lime Flavored Tortilla Chips
What does this mean for you if you follow a gluten-free diet?
This is a “proceed with caution” food. If you know that you can tolerate trace amounts of gluten, you may be able to eat Doritos without any issues.
However, since this brand does not test for gluten and uses the same lines in manufacturing, there could be potential for cross contamination from other products that do contain gluten.
Read on: Gluten-free chips
Read on: Gluten-free tortilla chips
Read on: Are Takis gluten-free?
Are Doritos dairy-free?
Most Doritos chips contain dairy, however there are few flavors that do not contain milk. According to the Frito Lay website, these are:
- DORITOS® Reduced Fat Spicy Sweet Chili Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Salsa Verde Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Spicy Sweet Chili Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Tangy Pickle Flavored Tortilla Chips
Like anything when you’re following a gluten-free or dairy-free diet, you can always do your research on a product by looking at the ingredients list on the package.
Many times there will be a “contains” note under the ingredient list which will tell you if the product has wheat or milk, making it easy for you to make a decision.
Read on: How To Read Ingredients Lists
Read on: Does ranch have dairy?
Read on: Is ranch gluten-free?
If it doesn’t have that note, you can look through the ingredient list and look for hidden sources of gluten or dairy to help you make a decision.
One of my little secrets is that I carry around a copy of my GFDF Take Along Cards so that I always have a point of reference when I can sneak a peek at the ingredient list of a food.
>> Get your copy of the GFDF Take-Along Cards to make this easy on you.
Gluten-free Dairy-free Doritos flavors
Since this blog is all about being gluten and dairy-free, let’s recap as to which Doritos flavors are safe for this diet. If you want to stay away from gluten and dairy and can tolerate small trace amounts of gluten, these are your best options:
- DORITOS® Salsa Verde Flavored Tortilla Chips
- DORITOS® Tangy Pickle Flavored Tortilla Chips
Are Nacho Cheese Doritos gluten-free?
Nacho Cheese Doritos are not considered gluten-free by the Frito-Lay Company.
Are Cool Ranch Doritos gluten-free?
Cool Ranch Doritos aren’t considered to be gluten-free by the manufacturer.
They aren’t on the list of safe gluten-free products for consumers with a gluten intolerance or Celiac disease.
Use caution when making a decision about whether or not to add these to your gluten-free diet.
Read on: Are Cool Ranch Doritos gluten-free?
Let’s take a minute to note that even if these chips are technically (sort of) gluten-free and dairy-free that they still aren’t considered health foods.
There are a lot of processed chemicals and preservatives that make these okay to enjoy once in a while, but are probably not going to be your best bet for regular consumption year round all the time.
To have a completely gluten and dairy-free flavored tortilla chip, you might be best suited to make your own with corn tortillas and seasonings at home.
You can use whatever flavors you like and be sure there aren’t a lot of additives that you can’t pronounce or know what they are.
Read on: Do corn tortillas have gluten?
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