Food Review: Anthony's Nutritional Yeast Flakes

Nutritional yeast is one of those things I used to buy, use once, forget about then shove to the back of the pantry and find when it's expired.  I've seen the error of my old ways.  First off, what the heck is nutritional yeast?  Nutritional yeast is similar to the yeast that people use to bake, but it undergoes a heating and drying process that makes it inactive.  Nutritional yeast is dairy-free and typically gluten-free.  It can be a supplement for people with food allergies, and those on restricted diets.  It's also low in fat and contains no soy or sugar.  

After a bit of research, I chose this one...

Here's the nutritional information.  Note the protein and fiber and all of those awesome B vitamins ...score!  (See note at the bottom regarding dosing)

I've gotta say, it's nice to have a company with a sense of humor too.

Here's what it looks like in case you've never seen it before.  It almost looks like potato flakes.

But how does it taste and how the heck do you use it?

Nutritional yeast tastes like a healthier version of cheese puff dust for lack of a better description.  I use it to toss on plain fresh popped popcorn to make it taste like cheddar which the Mr loved.  I sprinkle it on rice or quinoa for a cheesy taste.  You can toss some in with almond flour or panko breadcrumbs to make a nice breading for chicken or zucchini fries.  There are tons of great recipes out there like here and here.

There are a ton of benefits from the B12 boosting your energy, it supports your immune system, may improve glucose sensitivity, promotes healthy nails, skin, and hair and supports a healthy pregnancy with the folic acid.  So you can see it's a nutritional powerhouse.  However, it may not suitable for everyone.

It is recommended that people with IBD, glaucoma, those with higher risks of gout and hypertension avoid using nutritional yeast because it could worsen their symptoms.  Obviously, people with a yeast sensitivity or allergies shouldn't use it. A note about the serving size for my personal needs.  Obviously, the amounts are on the excessive side looking at the percentages.  I use 1/4 of the serving size if I see I'm low on B vitamins on a particular day after planning my meals for the week.  It barely adds anything to my calories but gives me a boost that gets me acceptable levels of the vitamins I'm looking for as these are all well over what's required.  Should you decide to give your B's a boost, look at requirements and decide what dose is best for you.   Consult your doctor before using if you have any concerns.

Have you used nutritional yeast?  What's your favorite way to use it?

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