You may have noticed them on the supermarket shelves: more and more pasta is now made from legumes. What should we think ? Here is the point of view of our expert, Alexandra Murcier, dietician-nutritionist.
Made from lentils, coral lentils, split peas or chickpeas, pasta with legumes as its basic ingredient is everywhere. But what do you think of this alternative to classic pasta made from wheat or whole wheat? TipsForWomens asked Alexandra Murcier, dietitian-nutritionist.
The benefits of these legume-based pastas
For our expert, pasta made from legumes has an important advantage. “They allow you to keep the pleasure of a pasta dish, but with the nutritional advantages of legumes. To consume them in a balanced way, they must be combined with vegetables, in equivalent quantities. indicates Alexandra Murcier.
Another strong point: being based on legumes, they do not contain gluten. “For people suffering from gluten intolerance, celiac disease or for all people who want to reduce this intake in their diet, this provides an alternative” assures the dietitian.
Finally, this pasta represents a source of vegetable protein, because “thanks to legumes they have a lower glycemic index than wheat pasta“, underlines the expert. Finally, legumes are rich in fiber. “This is interesting if you pay attention to your weight or if you are diabetic, because this will cause less variation in blood sugar levels and it allows you to diversify your diet.“.
The disadvantages of this legume pasta
Alexandra Murcier also points out three negative points about this pasta. “There is the price: it is undeniable that they are a little more expensive than wheat pasta” notes the dietician. This can be compensated by the fact that this type of pasta “holds” more and we will consume less than classic pasta.
The second disadvantage is their cooking time, which is longer than that of wheat pasta.
Finally, they can be more difficult to digest for people who do not tolerate legumes well.
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