So how a lot fiber does whole-wheat bread include, precisely? Effectively, one slice packs round two grams of fiber, so a full sandwich will provide a complete of 4 grams at baseline—not dangerous.
2. Brown rice
When you’ve been consuming brown rice as an alternative of white for years because of its supposed fiber advantages, we now have dangerous information. Sure, the previous packs extra of the nutrient, however that’s actually not saying a lot: A half-cup of cooked brown rice solely nets you round 1.5 grams of fiber (in comparison with lower than 0.5 grams for white rice). General, the fiber hole isn’t actually sufficiently big to justify overriding your private style, “so for those who choose your white rice, go for it,” Nielsen says. Fortunately, making additions to spice up the fiber ought to come fairly simply. In any case, we hardly ever eat rice by itself anyway, Tsui says. So sautéing your rice with high-fiber veggies like broccoli and peas for a stir-fry is only a pure combo.
If you wish to swap up the grain itself, you even have choices. Quinoa—a complete grain—is a chance, at round 5 grams of fiber per one cup cooked, and is simply as versatile as rice, as these 33 recipes show. You may as well strive kamut, an historical type of wheat that boasts 4 grams of fiber per half-cup cooked, in response to Meals Community. Lastly, there’s a rice variant: Korean multigrain rice, a dish that consists of rice stretched out by beans and grains.
3. Some breakfast cereals
To be clear, there are some varieties which might be positively brimming with fiber (hi there, Kellogg’s Unique Frosted Mini-Wheats and Walmart’s Nice Worth raisin bran!), however it will be a mistake to imagine that’s true throughout the board. In actual fact, cereals made with rice typically include little or no of it, in response to the Mayo Clinic. A cup and a half of Rice Krispies, for example, is available in at lower than a half a gram of fiber.
Aside from that, how do you differentiate between high-fiber and low-fiber cereals? Per Nielsen, choices which might be whole-wheat-based, like Wheat Chex (round eight grams of fiber per cup), or include added quantities of a pure fiber known as psyllium, like Kellogg’s All-Bran Buds (round 13 grams of fiber per one-third of a cup), usually tend to pack a considerable quantity.
4. Cabbage
“There’s an assumption that every one greens are excessive in fiber,” Tsui says. However that’s not precisely the case. Take cabbage, for instance: One boiled cup solely packs round three grams, considerably lower than different cruciferous veggies, together with Brussels sprouts (round six grams cooked) and broccoli (round 5 grams cooked). So if fiber content material is an enormous precedence, you may wish to attempt to swap in a type of cousins as an alternative—or add it to the combo. Broccoli may complement cabbage properly in a stir-fry or soup, for instance, in response to Tsui. “You do not want to take out the cabbage,” Tsui says—it boasts loads of different helpful vitamins, like folate and nutritional vitamins C and Ok—“however just be sure you’re including in issues” to make up for its relative lack of fiber.
5. Cucumbers
Whereas we’re with regards to low-fiber greens, cucumber additionally ranks—solely round 1.5 grams per uncooked cuke. Relying on the way you’re crunching, you may make a couple of substitutions or additions to spice up the general fiber content material. Dipping a cucumber slice or stick in a bowl of ranch dressing at a cookout? Contemplate swapping the ranch for a higher-fiber condiment like hummus (which owes its spectacular fiber stats to the chickpea base), in response to Tsui. Tossing cucumber slices with different greens for a refreshing summer season salad? Complement with some high-fiber beans or a high-fiber complete grain like quinoa for a extra sturdy meal.
6. Tomatoes
One more instance of a veggie that’s not all that top in fiber regardless of the class’s basic popularity. One complete tomato additionally solely comprises round 1.5 grams of fiber. Nonetheless, like the opposite non-fiber-rich veggies on this record, they’ll provide tons of different important nutritional vitamins and vitamins, together with potassium and nutritional vitamins A, C, and Ok, so that they undoubtedly deserve a spot in your plate. Simply think about including one other fiber supply to spice up your meal’s ranges—suppose “sturdier veggies and cooked greens,” Nielsen says. Kale, spinach, and collards may all work.
7. Carrots
Like a tomato, one complete carrot comprises lower than 1.5 grams of fiber, boiled or uncooked, so for those who’re utilizing carrots as a aspect dish, you may wish to think about one other cooked different. Like we talked about, one cup of cooked broccoli or cooked collard greens will provide round 5 grams of fiber, so both of these would make a wise substitute. Then once more, possibly your carrots are half of a bigger dish, like a salad. In that case, inexperienced peas (9 grams of fiber per one cup cooked) may make a great (and attractive!) high-fiber pairing.
8. Uncooked spinach
Two cups of uncooked spinach solely include round one gram of fiber, so that you’d need to eat a ton of the stuff to even method a midway respectable slice of your complete RDA. Fortunately, there’s a straightforward method to enhance the fiber content material immediately: cooking. Whether or not your methodology of alternative is boiling, sautéing, or one thing fully totally different, the spinach will invariably lose a ton of quantity through the course of (it’s 91% water, in spite of everything), making it a lot simpler to eat extra (and rising the per capita fiber content material in consequence). When boiled, for instance, one cup of spinach soars from round 0.5 grams of fiber to greater than 4 grams. When you’re going uncooked for a motive—like with a salad—use avocado to flesh out the fiber content material. Cube up a half of 1, and also you’ll enhance your fiber by almost seven grams.
9. Lettuce
Talking of salads, the traditional lettuce mattress is disappointingly low in fiber—so low, in reality, that it’s most likely a contender for the highest spot on this record. One cup of uncooked lettuce solely comprises round 0.5 grams. So reasonably than specializing in the bottom of your salad as your main fiber supply—the greens—focus on dressing it up with fiber-rich add-ins like artichoke hearts and legumes as an alternative.
10. Mango
On the whole, “fruit is a big fiber win,” with many types having extra fiber than greens, Nielsen says. As an illustration, raspberries pack a whopping 10 grams of fiber per cup. Nevertheless, there are exceptions to each rule, and on this one sense, mango—nicknamed the “king of fruits” for its candy, juicy flesh—doesn’t deserve the moniker. One mango half comprises lower than two grams of fiber, across the identical quantity as a complete tomato or complete carrot. For a tropical fruit that’s a tad extra fiber-rich (9 grams per cup, to be particular), go along with guava as an alternative.
11. Watermelon
Like mango, watermelon is an instance of a fruit that doesn’t precisely pile on the fiber, in response to Nielsen. Not solely that, but it surely provides even much less per serving—fewer than one gram per cup. (That stated, consuming watermelon is a wonderful method to soak up extra H20 because it’s 92% water!)
Fortunately, loads of different forms of fruit are standing on the able to fill that fiber void—with out skimping on that watermelon-like crunch both. As an illustration, think about a medium-sized apple (round 4 grams) or a medium-sized pear (round six grams), in response to Nielsen. You may even toss pears on the grill simply as you’d a watermelon slice for a summer-friendly dessert that’ll supply a particular sweet-smoky taste!
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