Local chefs dish on substitutions for food allergies

Food and dining is a common experience all share. For some, the experience is hindered by serious allergies.

Food allergies affect 33 million Americans — 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 13 children. Eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, dairy, fish, shellfish, soy and sesame are the most common, but there are many forms of allergy or intolerance.

We asked local chefs what they would substitute to avoid common food allergies. Here’s what they suggested.

Tania C. Harris, founder, Azucar Skull: Fruit or vegetable puree instead of eggs

Harris is a James Beard semifinalist and classically trained pastry chef. Currently, she operates Azucar Skull, her private dinner and catering business, and teaches at Greenville Technical College.

“You don’t want an eggy flavor on your custard so that’s half the battle won,” she said. “But for texture and binding properties, I always love to substitute the egg for a velvety fruit or root vegetable puree. The most commonly used are normally banana, apple or carrot. But my favorite is sweet potato or more specifically purple ube. It’s so velvety and smooth, it melts in your mouth.”

Jimmy Nguyen, co-founder, Potluck GVL: Tamari or coconut amino instead of soy

Jimmy Nguyen and Tony Luu co-founded Potluck with a former associate in 2023. ecently, the business split to incorporate a Charleston arm.

“Tamari is a great choice for gluten-free in general, but they also make some soy-free (options) as well. (If) all else fails, coconut amino is pretty tasty but more subtle than the usual soy sauce,” Nguyen said.

Nico Abello, corporate chef, Table 301: Cashew, almond or coconut milks instead of dairy

Nico Abello is corporate chef for Table 301 with a planned but currently unnamed restaurant coming to downtown Greenville. Abello suggested three alternative ingredients for dairy allergies.

He recommended cashew or almond milk spread as a substitute for cheese, coconut milk rather than cow’s milk and coconut cream as a replacement for heavy whipping cream.

Meredith Myles, co-owner, Myles’ Pizza Pub: Substitutes for wheat, and gluten-free options

Myles operates the nearly half-century-old pizza pub with her dad, Chip. At one time, Meredith Myles was a pastry chef.

“Whole wheat has a nuttier profile than a traditional pizza dough, just like in bread,” she said. “If you are looking for a gluten-free pizza dough that offers the flavor profile of a whole wheat, you could blend in some millet or sorghum flour.”

Myles added that for a gluten-free dough, a blend of starches and gluten-free flours are required.

“All-purpose flour can be achieved by using rice flours, potato starch and tapioca starch,” she said. “The ratios will vary, and other additions like milk powder and phylum husk will also help. One thing people with wheat allergies need to be especially careful about nowadays is that ‘gluten-free’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘wheat-free’ anymore. I have been tricked at restaurants when ordering gluten-free, where the food is, in fact, gluten-free, but they’re using wheat starches.”

For those with tree nut allergies, she recommended substituting sunflower or pumpkin seeds into pesto, rather than traditional pine nuts.

Beau Owens, executive chef, Tavola: Rice or corn flour to avoid gluten

Owens is executive chef at Tavola in BridgeWay Station and will soon begin teaching pasta-making classes.

“I like to use rice flour or corn flour with water. You can add binders like xanthan or guar gum to enhance the texture. Some people like to add eggs, or other fats such as olive oil to increase flavor,” Owens said.

Carlos Baez, owner of Pride & Joy Provisions: Garlic options

Carlos Baez, a classically trained chef and owner of Pride & Joy Provisions, was formerly executive chef at Mr. Crisp.

Baez loves to use garlic and herbs in his cooking.

“If it’s specifically garlic, you can kind of explore the other members of the allium family,” he said. “If it’s alliums in general — like it’s an allium allergy — I feel sorry for them. I would start exploring different aromatics that that you find in food, whether it’s ginger, lemongrass and chilies.”

Baez suggested other aromatics to experiment with, such as dhana dal, aji dulce or tamarind.

Steve Seitz, chief operating officer and vice president, Table 301: Lemon and citrus substitution

Charleston native Steve Seitz grew up in South Florida. Later, he lived in the British Virgin Islands. He knows fish. A frequent accompaniment to most fish or seafood is a lemon wedge. Although uncommon, a citrus allergy could be pesky to those looking to enjoy the delicate protein.

“Regarding an alternate for lemon or any citrus for that matter, I’d recommend anything with high acidity, i.e. vinegar,” he said. “Specifically, I think a nice mignonette would make a good accompaniment for shrimp and fish the same way it works exceptionally well with raw oysters.”

The acidity in vinegar could also work to minimize the heat in a dish that’s too spicy.

Other substitutions

Peanuts: Cheryl Sapp, founder of Cheryl’s Kitchen Potato Boat, recommended almond butter as a replacement for peanuts in some recipes.

Sesame: For sesame allergies, Michael Izzard, owner of Muni Muni and LolaCeli, recommended cashew or flax-based substitutions.

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Don’t toss the tops

John Malik, restaurant consultant and contributor to the Greenville Journal, said carrot tops are an excellent substitution for basil.