Part 8: Latasha’s Kitchen products and sugar

17 October 2018 By

Many ingredients contribute to the sugar total on the Nutrition Information Panel (NIP) in Latasha’s Kitchen products. This includes tomatoes, onions, other vegetables, garlic, ginger, yoghurt powder, milk powder, cashews, even chilli and lemon juice. While some products have added sugar and/or palm sugar.


Latasha’s Kitchen products and sugar

Listed by category, I have identified added/free sugar for each of Latasha’s Kitchen products, along with other whole food sugar contributors and then I show how this is reflected in the NIP.

Latasha’s Concentrated Pastes (Indian and Southeast Asian Ranges) come in 180 g jars. Using 2 heaped tablespoons (60 g) of these pastes is recommended in dishes when feeding four people. While just 1 heaped tablespoon (30 g) per dish works well for two/three people. Depending on how the other products are used in adding flavour to our food affects how much is needed each time.

Indian Concentrated Curry Pastes – added/free sugar

Nine products in this range contain NO added sugar ingredients –

Two products in the range have added sugar (shown from least to most) –

  • Tikka Masala Paste – 16th ingredient on the list indicates a very small amount.
  • Vindaloo Masala Paste – 3rd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 5.8 g per 30 g of paste which includes sugar from onions, garlic, ginger, tamarind as well as added sugar.

Southeast Asian Concentrated Curry Pastes – added/free sugar

There are seven products in this range and one has NO added/free sugar –

Six products in the range have some added sugar or palm sugar, a traditional ingredient in Southeast Asian pastes. We’ll review each one using the method described in my nutrition blog Part 7: Sugar and You – Estimating free/added sugar in a product. Lets look at the ingredient list numbering for each product and the NIP information.

  • Indonesian Turmeric Kari Paste – 15th ingredient indicates a very small amount.
  • Thai Massaman Curry Paste – 12th ingredient indicates a very small amount.
  • Rendang Terlagi Lagi Paste – 8th ingredient. NIP shows ⅔ teaspoon per 30 g of paste which includes all sugars from onion, ginger, chilli, tamarind and as well as added sugar.
  • Malaysian Satay Paste – 8th ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 5.7 g per 30 g of paste which includes all sugars from peanuts, chilli, lemon juice and as well as palm sugar.
  • Thai Green Curry Paste – 7th ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 4.2 g per 30 g of paste which includes sugars from onion, chilli, garlic, tamarind and as well as palm sugar.
  • Thai Red Curry Paste – 7th ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 4.4 g per 30 g of paste which includes sugars from onion, chilli, garlic, tamarind and as well as palm sugar.

Low FODMAP Simmer Sauces – no added/free sugar


Chutneys – all have added sugar (shown from least to most)

  • Green Chimichurri Sauce/Marinade  – 11th ingredient indicates a very small amount.
  • Eggplant Kasaundi – 10th ingredient indicates a very small amount.
  • Green Coriander Sauce – 9th ingredient indicates a very small amount.
  • Zingy Tomato – 3rd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 5.0 g per 30 g which includes sugars from tomatoes, raisins, chilli, ginger and garlic as well as added sugar.
  • Date & Tamarind – 3rd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 7.4 g per 30 g which includes sugars from dates, chilli and tamarind as well as added sugar.

Dressings and oils – added/free sugar

  • Chilli Oil – NO added sugar.
  • Caramelised Balsamic – 2nd of 2 ingredients. NIP shows all sugars 14 g per 25 ml from the vinegar and the added sugar.
  • Caramelised Apple Cider – 2nd of 2 ingredients. NIP shows all sugars 20.8 g per 25 ml from the vinegar and the added sugar.

NOTE: These two caramelised products have significant added sugar to enable the caramelisation process. But, drizzling a tablespoon over a dish feeding four people means the individual amount of sugar consumed per person, is only around 1 teaspoon.


Relishes – all have added sugar (shown from least to most)

  • Orange Chimichurri & Jalapeno – 5th ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 3.3 g per 28 g of the relish which includes sugar from orange juice, vinegar, wine, chilli, capsicum, vinegar, garlic, onion and horseradish as well as sugar.
  • Jalapeno Onion – 2nd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 9.7 g per 32 g of the relish which includes sugar from onion, chilli, capsicum, vinegar and lemon juice as well as added sugar.
  • Red Chilli Onion – 2nd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 15.7 g per 34 g of the relish which includes sugar from onion, chilli, capsicum, vinegar and lemon juice as well as added sugar.
  • Beetroot & Horseradish – 2nd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars 8.4 g per 32 g of the relish which includes sugar from beetroot, onion, chilli, capsicum, vinegar, garlic and horseradish as well as added sugar.

Desserts – added/free sugar

  • Cherry Chocolate Sauce – 2nd ingredient. NIP shows all sugars providing 18 g per 34 g serve which includes sugars from cherries, cocoa, pectin and sugar.

Other sauces – added/free sugar

New Buttery Spicy Satay Sauce with Peanuts

Read about managing added sugar and energy needs in my nutrition blog Part 7: Sugar and You