ISO Shirataki Noodles

[Lily80]

Hello fellow Chowhounds!

My poor husband has been put on a low-carb diet by his doctor and on his allowable foods list are shirataki noodles. I haven't been very successful in my search for them so far - can anyone help? Also is there a specific brand I should be looking for?

Thanks!

[katana750]

Don't buy too much at first, if you buy old ones the taste of the plastic will be one the food. I used to use shirataki for nabe ( hot pot ) but now, I usually use dry harusame.

[lilith]

Harusame is good food item too, but a no-no if you, like the poster's husband, are on a low-carb diet. In 100grams of harusame you get:
342kcal energy, 0.1g protein, 0.2g fat, 84.2g carbohydrate, 40mg calcium, 2.2mg iron.
There is no dietary fibre in harusame either.

[czthemmnt]

I just wanted to confirm hungryabbey's suggestion for the Low Carb grocery store (on-line). I have used it several times and your husband may find the products very helpful.

[piccola]

Related question: is it really possible for the traditional shirataki noodles (not the tofu ones) to be calorie-free? It says so on the package, but I'm skeptical.

[lilith]

Shirataki is not a zero-calorie food, it does have about 5-7kcal per 100g.
Another nutritional fact to keep in mind is that because it is rich in fibre, if you eat too much of it it can impair nutrient absorption from other foods eaten with shirataki, such as protein.

[piccola]

Even those numbers seem ridiculously low. But hey, I'll take it.

[hungryabbey]

Companies are allowed to say things are "no calorie" if the calorie count is very low. Keep that in mind for all foods you see listed has having no calories- splenda (has 4 cal a packet), mustard, pickles, hot sauces etc.
With Shiritaki, I believe that their calories are not absorbed so much in the intestine though I could be wrong .. but if you're going to eat Shiritaki, go for the tofu ones, they are much more edible in my opinion.

[Zengarden]

I bought the block, thinking that I would find a good way of prepping these for a meal. Do you have any suggestions?

[lilith]

Western style recipes can be found at:
http://www.konjacfoods.com/recipe/index.htm
http://www.squidoo.com/shirataki
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/prod...

[canadianbeaver]

I find them at T&T, Whole Foods and at PAT (at Christie and Bloor). However, keep in mind that you will pay a lot more for them at Whole Foods. You will see that there are some that look more "Americanized", and say "Hungry Girl" recommended on the back. That's from the weight loss circles in the States. I have bought both those and the other types (the black kind, the green kind, the white kind) and there is no difference, except in price. The only thing is that the HungryGirl ones come in fettucine shape as well as spaghetti shape; it is my opinion that the fettucine shape is gross and the spaghetti shape is much better.

[Pincus]

Thanks for the tip about price. I agree that a wide shirataki noodle is too much to eat, the thinner noodles are much better.

[hungryabbey]

if you like the thinner noodles, the 'hungry girl' ones also come in angel hair. Its a new variety and I dont know who all carries it, but I know that the low carb grocery does

[halugii]

little tokyo on augusta in kensington market! they have fettucine, angel hair, and spaghetti as tofu shirataki, and in another fridge they have the more traditional kind? i'm not sure what you call them, but they're a different color.. and come in different shapes.. they're all around $2

[lilith]

Here's another thread on konjac:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/481657

Shirataki (aka ito-konnyaku or 'thread konnyaku) is the one that looks like noodles, and I think the 'traditional kind' you are referring to are the one in blocks. Popular shapes are blocks (ita konnyaku), balls (tama konnyaku) and noodles (ito konnyaku or shirataki). Also, recently Japanese have come up with rice-grain shaped konnyaku which you can mix with regular rice at 1:2 or 1:1 ratio and cook like regular rice for people on low-carb diet.

The difference in colour (assuming you saw greyish ones) comes from adding seaweed.

The fish like smell of konnyaku or shirataki is due to the coagulant, and it can be reduced by pre-cooking the konnyaku in boiling water for a couple of minutes and straining. Some people will rub in salt before the boiling process. Also, when cooking konnyaku, you should tear konnyaku into desired size by hand (instead of cutting them with a knife) to increase surface area so that the broth seeps in well. If you are using them for stir-fry, then you should fry shirataki or konnyaku first to reduce water content, so that the finished stir-fry does not become watery and soggy.

[piccola]

I'd check Whole Foods.

[CuriousCat]

Whole Foods in Yorkville doesn't have it. (At least, they didn't last year.)

[Minnow]

They do have it this year, though--a few different varieties. Look in the case right beside the hot prepared food deli counter.

[CuriousCat]

That's great news, Whole Foods is a bit more convenient for me. Thanks!

[Pincus]

I've been buying them there for months now.

[hungryabbey]

go to the low carb grocery store at young and lawrence..
www.thelowcarbgrocery.com, they have all the varieties and alot of things that will help on your diet

[CuriousCat]

Hi Lily, check out this thread:

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/358410

I have definitely found them at PAT Central (on Bloor & Clinton), and have seen them at T&T in other Canadian cities. I'm afraid I can't remember which brand I bought... it was probably one of the mid-priced ones, good stuff.

Good luck to your husband on his diet!

[professor plum]

They definitely sell them at T&T. I have purchased some at both the Cherry Street and Warden locations in the past. They also sell them at Sanko on Queen West but they are usually slightly higher in price.

[Lily80]

Where in T&T at Cherry Street should I look? In the refrigerated section near the tofu perhaps?

Thanks!

[professor plum]

It is in the refrigerated section but I can't remember where. I think it was next to other Japanese imported foods. Checking where they put the tofu or fresh noodles would probably be a good idea.

[Mila]

Got them at T&T on Cherry Street this weekend. 3 packs for $3.98. There was a lady doing samples by the dim sum counter. They are not refrigerated so I'd think they are probably in the noodle section usually.

They only had the spaghetti kind. The lady looked at me like I was a bit nuts when I asked if they came in any other shapes.

[Lily80]

Just an update on my end: I went to T&T on Cherry St on Saturday and found them - thanks everyone! Ended up buying the angel hair, spaghetti and fettuccine ones.

If anyone's looking for them, they're in aisle #1, about 3/4 of the way down the aisle heading towards the fresh fish counter.

[mazy]

Thanks for the details! I just heard about these noodles today and now I have a map to the nearest source. :)

[canadianbeaver]

I saw them yesterday at Sanko on Queen Street for $0.79 a pack. Incredibly good price!