Have you incorporated flaxseed into your diet? Flax has long been grown as both a food and fiber crop. The plant’s fibers are used to make linen and even paper products, while the seeds are edible and can be incorporated into baked goods, oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt, and more.
Flaxseed also comes with its share of health benefits. Most notably, it’s high in fiber and omega-3 essential fatty acids, which may improve cholesterol levels and promote heart health. It also contains phytochemicals called lignans, which have antioxidant properties. Research also may suggest that flaxseed could help prevent cancer, may reduce blood sugar, and may reduce inflammation. It might even help with hot flashes.
Aldi sells instant oatmeal that contains flaxseed, and it’s quite good, if a bit high in sugar like most instant oatmeal.
You can also purchase flaxseed on its own from Aldi, either in whole seed form or milled/ground. This way, you can add flaxseed to whatever foods or recipes you want to. Health experts recommend ground or milled flaxseed over whole flaxseed because it’s easier for the body to digest. Whole flaxseed may simply pass undigested through the body. For that reason, I purchased the milled flaxseed to maximize nutritional benefits. You can, however, grind whole flaxseeds yourself using a food processor, and whole flaxseeds have a longer shelf life than ground ones.
Simply Nature Milled Flax Seeds cost $3.39 for a 16-ounce package at the time of publication. That comes out to about 21 cents per ounce.
For comparison, Walmart sells 32-ounce bags of ground flaxseed for the same price of about 21 cents per ounce at the time of writing, or you can get a 16-ounce bag at Walmart for about 22 cents per ounce. That makes the Aldi flaxseed competitively priced.
This is a product of the U.S. and of Canada. It is a Regular Buy, which means Aldi sells it year round. Aldi stocks this in the baking supplies aisle with flour, sugar, spices, cake mixes, and similar products.
Simply Nature is the private label Aldi uses for healthy or healthy-ish foods such as almond butter filled pretzels, soft baked vegan chocolate chip cookies, unsweetened applesauce, and more.
The only ingredient is milled brown flax seed.
If you’re looking out for allergens, this may contain tree nuts, wheat, soy, eggs, or milk.
This should be stored in a cool, dark, and dry place. Refrigerate after opening.
Some people actually recommend storing ground flaxseed in the freezer to make it last longer. The Aldi flaxseed comes in a fairly large bag, so I don’t know if we’ll get through it all before it potentially goes bad, and that might be an argument for dividing it into smaller portions and freezing those, so I can thaw and use flaxseed as needed. The bag I bought in February of 2023 has a date of August of 2024 on the back. I’ve read that ground flaxseed can last anywhere from three to four months or up to a year when stored in the fridge, so we’ll see.
Nutrition information and ingredients. (Click to enlarge.)
One bag contains 15 four-tablespoon servings. One serving has 170 calories, 12 grams of total fat (15% DV), 1 gram of saturated fat (5% DV), 10 grams of total carbohydrates (4% DV), 7 grams of dietary fiber (25% DV), 1 gram of total sugars, no added sugars, and 6 grams of protein.
So far, we’ve mostly been eating this flaxseed in instant oatmeal, but we have plans to try it in other foods such as smoothies and yogurt. The idea is that it blends almost seamlessly into whatever food you add it to, so you hardly notice it’s there. Some people describe flaxseed as having a mild, nutty, or earthy flavor, or it might taste similar to sesame seeds. If your flaxseed has a bitter or fishy type of smell, then it’s probably gone bad and it’s time to toss it (you can put rancid flaxseed in your compost bin).
As mentioned above, you can add milled/ground flaxseed to a variety of foods you might already eat. Examples include:
- oatmeal
- smoothies
- soup or chili
- yogurt
- baked goods such as quick breads, muffins, pancakes, waffles, etc.
You can also find plenty of recipes online that incorporate flaxseed. For several years now, my family has enjoyed no-bake energy bites that feature oats, coconut, peanut butter, flaxseed, chocolate chips, honey, chia seeds, and vanilla. They make a great snack or breakfast food, and we even like to take them camping. We have yet to make that energy bite recipe using the Aldi flaxseed, but I expect them to taste as good as they always do.
The Verdict:
Simply Nature Milled Flax Seeds are a good source of fiber and may help promote heart health and better cholesterol levels. These ground seeds can be sprinkled into oatmeal, yogurt, smoothies, soups, and more. They’re also great incorporated into baked goods such as muffins, bread, rolls, quick breads, pancakes, waffles, and more. We especially like flaxseed in homemade energy bites (see recipe link in post above).
