Guide to the symbols

The symbols on the recipes on our website are a guide to help you select suitable recipes.

However, this information should not replace specific dietary advice from your healthcare professional, especially if you are following a special diet due to a health condition. Where a recipe is not suitable, we recommend that you try to look for substitutes to make the recipe work for you.

This is what the symbols mean:

Gluten free

This means the recipe does not contain gluten – a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. It is often found in foods containing flour, such as some types of baking powder, batter, breadcrumbs, bread, cakes, couscous, meat products, pasta, pastry, sauces, soups and fresh foods that are dusted with flour. It is important for people with coeliac disease and other gluten-related disorders to avoid these foods.

If you are following a gluten-free diet, make sure that all your ingredients are completely gluten free and beware of possible cross-contamination in certain ingredients. For example, oats do not naturally contain gluten but are often contaminated with gluten so look out for uncontaminated oats that will be labelled gluten free.

Read more about coeliac disease and diabetes.

Nut free

This means that no nuts have been used in the cooking or preparation of this recipe. This includes tree nuts (eg cashew nuts, almonds hazelnuts etc) as well as peanuts, sometimes referred to as groundnuts.

Be aware that nuts may be found in bread, biscuits, crackers, nut powder (often used in Asian curries), stir fries, ice cream, marzipan (almond paste), nut oils and sauces. It is important to check the labels of the ingredients you buy and be aware of possible cross-contamination.

Dairy free

Refers to the absence of both milk and products derived from milk, such as butter, cream, yoghurt and cheese, in the recipe. Milk can also be found in some sauces so check the labels to be sure.

Vegan

A recipe marked vegan does not contain any ingredient from animal origins such as dairy products, eggs or any other animal product.

Vegetarian

A recipe marked vegetarian means it does not contain animal products apart from eggs and/or dairy products. 

Low sugar

Low fat

Freezable

You can freeze your leftovers for later if you see this symbol on a recipe, which is a great way to reduce food waste. The 'recipe tips' section may also include further advice on freezing that particular recipe.