Staple Foods Diet

Staple foods are simple, nutritious foods that make up the backbone of a traditional diet. They comprise the bulk of a regular diet and provide most of the calories needed for energy, as well as most of the nutrients. Staple food diets are usually of vegetable origin, so they also are largely affordable. However, staple foods alone do not provide all nutrients. Add other foods to create a well-rounded diet.

Some people consider one characteristic of a staple food is its longevity--it can sit in your cupboard for months and not rot. By this definition, fruits and vegetables cannot be considered staple foods. Yet across the world, the most common staple foods are bread, rice, wheat, corn, millet, potatoes, yams, cassava, taro, roots, sorghum, porridge, oatmeal, and pasta and other noodles. Eating a staple diet means planning your meal around one of these staples so it makes up the majority of the meal. Complement it with other food. For instance, in Italy, pasta is a staple food that is served in hundreds of ways depending on what type of vegetable, meat or dairy product is added to it. In China and Japan, rice is a staple food. Again, there are hundreds of variations of a rice dish, depending on what cooks add to it. It could be as simple as a few stir-fried vegetables or fried egg. In fact, rice is a staple for more than half of the world's population. In many parts of the world, bread is the most common staple food. Bread takes several forms, including tortillas, naan and chapattis. These provide the basis for the meal along with supplemental foods. For instance, in Mexico, beans and cheese added to tortillas make a meal. In India, people frequently eat yogurt and naan together.