Product review: Slendier konjac pasta and rice
As its name implies, Slendier is a brand of food products designed to help with weight loss. Slendier konjac pasta and rice come in different styles to suit your culinary needs.
What is konjac?
The dictionary tells us konjac is “the swollen underground stem of a herb that grows in parts of Asia and is often used for adding fibre to food, or the herb itself.” (1)
Konjac is very low in carbohydrates and very high in a type of fibre called glucomannan, which is linked to several health benefits, including appetite control and digestive health.
Slendier konjac range
All Slendier konjac pasta and rice style products come in 2-serve packages. All of them are gluten-free, vegan, low in energy, FODMAPs and carbohydrates. They are pre-cooked and require very little preparation as we’ll see later.
The products in this range are spaghetti, rice, noodles, lasagne, fettuccine and angel hair, all suffixed by “style” to make it clear they are not real pasta, noodles or rice.
These products are available in the health food aisle of supermarkets, health food stores and online.
Ingredients
Slendier pasta and rice-style products are made with just 2 ingredients: purified water and konjac flour (5%).
Nutrition information
Below is the nutrition information for all the products in this range.
| Nutrient | Noodle Style Per serve (125g) | Noodle Style Per 100g |
| Energy (kJ) | 50 | 40 |
| Protein (g) | < 1 | < 1 |
| Fat, total (g) | < 1 | < 1 |
| – Saturated (g) | < 1 | < 1 |
| Carbohydrate, total (g) | < 1 | < 1 |
| – Sugars (g) | < 1 | < 1 |
| Sodium (mg) | < 5 | < 5 |
| Fibre (g) | 6.3 | 6.3 |
Taste test
These products are quite simple to prepare: you just need to open the pouch, drain the noodles or rice, soak in boiling water for a minute, drain again and they’re ready to eat. I use a strainer through the whole process to make things even easier.
Konjac smells a little fishy on its own. However, your meal won’t taste fishy after you have mixed the product with sauce, etc. In fact, I find the taste of the pasta and rice quite neutral.
Texture-wise, these products have a firm gelatinous consistency. They are also free of starch, meaning they won’t behave like regular pasta or rice. On one hand it’s impossible for them to go mushy, which is good. On the other hand, they won’t absorb sauces, so your dishes will turn out more watery than usual. I suggest reducing your sauces or using sauces that are naturally thick, such as pesto.
The thinner noodles (e.g. angel hair style or even the spaghetti) work great for salads in which you would normally use vermicelli.
Summary and recommendations
The Slendier konjac pasta and rice can be a great option for people who are looking to reduce carbs and/or calories in their diets. Don’t expect an identical substitute to rice and pasta, as these products do not have the same properties, taste or texture. Follow the recommendations above if you decide to give them a go.
More information
Head to Slendier’s website for more information about their products and/or to buy online.
You might also want to check out my previous review of their ready to eat meals.
References
- Cambridge University Press. konjac 2020 [30/01/2020]. Available from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/konjac.
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One Comment
Gleeson
Very helpful. Thanks. I’ll try it.