My Vegetarian and Corn Allergy Friendly Chipotle Order

I found out about two months ago that I have a moderate allergy to corn, and with that, all corn products. Obviously no more corn on the cob, corn chips, popcorn, or corn oil. But did you know that corn is in almost every other product on the market? Salad dressings, gravys, ice creams, sodas, vegetable oils, even baking powder, and sweet and sour mixes contain some kind of corn derivative (I know, sad day for margaritas for me).

Now corn won't kill me or send me to the hospital, but it still makes my stomach hurt and puts me out of commission for about an hour, if not longer. It is a common allergy, but not recognized as one of the most common, so avoiding it in restaurants and buying corn free groceries is almost impossible since ingredient labels never warn about corn contents or disguise it under names such as starch, xanthan gum, and citric acid.

Going out to restaurants and avoiding corn products is definitely a challenge. One place that I've found to be easy to navigate around corn has been Chipotle. I know what you might be thinking, "what about their chips?", because that's my favorite thing there. I could just eat their chips for the rest of my life, but no, that's the main thing I have to avoid there. Trust me, it's a hard decision to not get them, but my non-allergy suffering boyfriend has the same chip addiction as I do, so I live vicariously through him.

I start by getting a salad or bowl. Today, I went a little crazy and got a burrito bowl topped with salad and confused the heck out of the girl making my food, but it was so worth it. I figured if I can't have the corn chips, I'll make do with ripping off chunks of tortilla as I ate my salad. I top my salad greens off with some cilantro-lime white rice and black beans (other corn free/vegetarian options include brown rice and pinto beans). Though I'm not vegetarian, I'm not a fan of any of Chipotle's meat options (they're just too spicy for me), but their grilled veggies are AMAZING - plus, when you order the veggies, they include guac... it's not even extra! Their Sofritas are both corn and meat product free, but that's one 'meat' that'll stay a mystery to me. No tofu on my salad, thanks!

My salad bowl lined with a flour tortilla and soon to be topped with a corn free dressing! As good as it can get!

I top my bowl off with some sour cream, a load of Monterey Jack Cheese, and my favorite, their Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette (corn allergy sufferers rejoice! This vinaigrette contains red wine vinegar instead of corn containing distilled vinegar! It's the little things...). I get two vinaigrette containers, as sometimes they under fill them, or once when I ordered a meat on my salad, I used three. Most of their salsas are corn allergy friendly so load up to your heart's content! My order also usually looks better when I eat it in the restaurant, not the melted cheese and droopy sour cream seen here, but we had a stop to make on the way home (it was Target, obviously).

I do have to admit, I snuck a few (okay, a lot) of chips from Andrew (I had to buy him some since I gave him my included guacamole), and my stomach felt awful within minutes, but some things are worth it. I paired my meal with some Kombucha just in case, but also, yum, Kombucha!

Nearly finished it off in one sitting - but don't forget the Kombucha!

I hope you enjoy my vegetarian and corn allergy friendly Chipotle meal as much as I do, and if you're not corn sensitive, eat a whole bag of chips for me!

**Corn sensitive people should avoid certain ingredients and products at Chipotle, including Chicken (contains distilled vinegar), Queso (contains distilled vinegar), Tomatillo Red Chili Salsa (contains distilled vinegar), Roasted Chili Corn Salsa (contains corn kernels), and beverages containing high fructose corn syrup, such as sodas. See Chipotle's Ingredients List for more information.**