Easy tips to boost your daily wholegrain intake

Experts agree that eating at least three servings of wholegrains a day is key to supporting your overall health, including heart health. The good news is, adding more wholegrains to your diet is easier than you think! Here you will our simple, practical tips to help you include more wholegrains in your meals every day, so you can enjoy their delicious flavours and health-boosting benefits.

Easy ways to three daily servings

• Always go for wholegrains, not refined. There is no official recommendation for how much to eat, but and choose wholegrain options whenever we have starchy foods.
• Choose wholegrain instead of refined varieties. For example, swap white bread for wholemeal bread or choose 50/50 bread; white rice for brown, red, black or wild rice; and white pasta for wholemeal pasta. Find ideas in the table below.
• Start with a mixture of refined and wholegrain. To start with, try a mixture such as white and wholewheat pasta together, and gradually switch to entirely wholegrain. 
• Choose a wholegrain breakfast. Start the day with a wholewheat cereal or oat-based muesli. Try mixing different cereals together, or go for unusual ones like buckwheat or spelt wheat flakes. 
• Go for wholegrain snacks, such as rye crackers with hummus, or plain popcorn.
• Upgrade your soup. if making your own: add quinoa, brown rice, brown pasta or barley when making. If using ready made soup: add any pre-cooked leftover wholegrains and always serve with a wholegrain bread roll or wholegrain crackers.
• Make a salad based on wholegrains. Try a Tabbouleh made with bulgur wheat, or a quinoa salad which is really filling, or make a rice salad using red, wild or black rice for a different texture and flavour.

• When you’re eating out, ask. Restaurants will often have wholemeal versions of pasta and bread so don’t be afraid to ask even if it’s not on the menu.
• Bake with wholemeal flour instead of white flour. Or use a mixture while you get used to the flavour.
• Elevate your meals with the flavours of ancient and uncommon grains. Ancient and less common grains are making a comeback, and for good reasons! They bring exciting flavours, textures, and nutrients to your meals while offering a tasty alternative to refined grains. Here are some easy ways to experiment with some of them:
  • Quinoa: Perfect in salads or as a substitute for rice in your favourite dishes.
  • Sorghum: Boil it like rice or use it to make a hearty porridge.
  • Rice: Swap out white rice for red or wild rice to enjoy new textures and rich, nutty flavours.
  • Millet: Versatile and trendy, millet works well as a replacement for quinoa or couscous in recipes, or cook it with extra water for a creamy porridge.
  • Barley: Wholegrain or pearl barley adds thickness and depth to soups and stews.
  • Amaranth: Try using amaranth flour to replace part of your usual flour in baking, or cook the grain as a substitute for oats or rice.

Ancient grains make it easy to add more wholegrains to your meals, get creative and enjoy the variety!

• Variety is key! Different wholegrains offer unique nutrients and phytonutrients, so keeping your choices varied helps you make the most of their health benefits. 
• Add some crunch to your cooking. Use oats to add a crunchy coating to baked fish or chicken, or add some to the crumble of an apple crumble. 

Wholegrain options are often the same price or cheaper than refined versions so they are budget-friendly. Some unusual grains imported in smaller amounts such as amaranth and sorghum tend to be more expensive.

What's one serving of wholegrains?

Find out more about wholegrains