10 Best Biscuits in India 2021 - Buying Guide Reviewed By Food Blogger/Reviewer

Arsh is a professional food blogger and is currently pursuing a master's in Hospitality and Catering Technology. He holds a bachelor's degree in Hotel Management and Catering Technology and has worked with ITC Windsor Bengaluru in the front office department. You can also check out his amazing work on his Instagram account or website.

If you are ready to make some healthy choices, go through our list below. You may find that some are on the expensive side, but they will not cause any kind of long term adverse effects on your health. You can choose them depending on your lifestyle, diet choices, and nutritional benefits.

We all know how to choose biscuits, but it may be difficult with lots of unhealthy choices from top companies in the market. Read through to find out how to choose the best one for yourself and your family, depending on the flavors you love, fillings, number of calories, and many more.

Some biscuits taste even better when dipped in milk. They usually have milk, chocolate, or both as the main ingredients. Some examples are Cadbury Oreo, Britannia Milk Bikis, and Parle-G. If you are looking to pair some with chai, your best options are Britannia Good Day, Parle Krack Jack, and Sunfeast Marie Light.

But the problem with these biscuits is that they are loaded with refined flour, sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil, artificial flavors, and preservatives, which is not healthy. If you only have them occasionally, they may not pose any major issues to your health. But these ingredients are known to cause sudden spikes in blood sugar levels, increased cholesterol, and toxic metal build-up.

To avoid these, check the ingredients list before you buy. You can also go for alternatives made from ingredients like whole wheat flour, ragi (also known as nachni or finger millet), and amaranth. Both ragi and amaranth are gluten-free and help in maintaining blood sugar levels, cholesterol, and weight gain.

Go for biscuits that use jaggery instead of refined sugar since it takes more time for the sugar to get absorbed into the bloodstream. If you like dunking cookies in milk, the ones with almonds and milk as the main ingredients will taste better.

Have you noticed that cookies from almost all brands taste similar unless they have flavors like chocolate, pistachio, orange, or lemon in them? That's because the basic ingredients in them are almost the same and harmful—maida, hydrogenated vegetable oil, raising agents (baking soda & baking powder), sugar, and invert sugar syrup. Even the cream will have artificial colors and flavors added to them.

Check the package to ensure that all ingredients are natural. For example, chocolate-flavored biscuits will have cacao powder as an ingredient that gives them the chocolate flavor, vanilla-flavored biscuits will have vanilla, and orange-flavored may have orange oil. Some companies even use artificial flavors of milk and vanilla in their cookies, so watch out for them too.

Cookies with nuts and berries as fillings will have a natural taste to them as they don't contain any artificial flavors. You will get essential nutrients from them too. But you must check the ingredients list to find out the quantity of these fillings in each cookie. Most of the popular ones in the market will only have a tiny amount, and as a result, the nutrition provided by them is negligible.

The healthy ones will make up at least 15% of the total ingredients. You can find cookies with almonds, cashews, peanuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and dried fruits like cranberries and raisins. The ones with enough of these fillings provide beneficial nutrients like calcium, protein, vitamins, iron, and fiber.

If you only eat cookies occasionally, you may not worry about the adverse effects of maida present in it. Maida not only raises blood sugar levels quickly but also causes constipation. If you get cravings for cookies, try to stack your snack box with digestive biscuits. Fiber from these cookies usually comes from ingredients like wheat, jowar, ragi, or oats.

The recommended daily intake of fiber is 25 to 30 grams per day. Since you may get fiber from other foods you eat throughout the day, try to go for biscuits that offer an average of 6 to 8 grams of fiber per 100 grams. To try different tastes, you can choose oatmeal, ragi, or wheat cookies or ones that combine various fiber-rich sources. 

For example, Sunfeast Farmlite 5 Grain Digestive has wheat, corn, oats, jowar, and ragi, while UNIBIC Daily Digestive has wheat flour and rolled oats as the main ingredients.

The truth about biscuits, no matter how healthy, is that they have a lot of calories. It's not just the sugar present in it that is responsible, but every ingredient. If you are trying to stay healthy or lose weight, check the package, so you can adjust your other meals accordingly to stay within your desired calorie range.

The problem with refined wheat flour, sugar, and invert sugar syrup is that your blood sugar levels will spike quickly. This will cause your body to release insulin, which moves the sugar in your blood to cells where it's converted to fat and stored. Now your blood glucose levels are depleted, and you will start getting hunger pangs again, which will give you cravings for more food.

So the healthier option is to go for whole wheat flour and jaggery as they don't digest quickly as refined wheat flour and sugar, making you hungry again. Check your fasting blood sugar levels to ensure that the values are between 70 mg/dL (3.9 mmol/L) and 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L); anything more needs lifestyle changes.

There are a few more ingredients to watch out for besides the ones already mentioned above. Maltodextrin is an additive that can improve the flavor, thickness, and shelf life of foods. For biscuits, the average shelf life is 6 months. 

But it causes sudden blood glucose spikes, weight gain, gas, and flatulence. Raising agents or leavening agents refer to baking soda or baking powder, which can cause gas and stomach bloating. It shouldn't be a concern if you eat cookies in moderation. But people on a low-sodium diet should stay away since baking powder and baking soda has sodium in them. 

Emulsifiers are used to combine ingredients that usually don't mix well. But studies conducted show that even the permitted levels affect bowel and metabolic health by damaging intestinal walls and the gut microbiome.

Finally, if you see raw sugar and brown sugar as ingredients, don't think that they are better than refined sugar in any way. It is a marketing gimmick by companies. All three are similar in terms of calories and nutritional value. Raw and brown contain minuscule amounts of minerals, but the health benefits from them are negligible.

Stack your snack box with varieties so you won't get bored eating the same kind. Whether you want to crunch on some while watching a movie or curb your cravings during the evenings, the below articles will help you choose the best ones you can buy online. 

Click on the links below to read the buying guides for the best namkeen, banana chips, and popcorn in India. Each article also has a top 10 list to help you choose only the best ones available to buy online.

Whether you want to curb your carb cravings or want some snacks to compliment your evening chai with family, biscuits are the best option. With lots of cheap ingredients like refined wheat flour, maltodextrin, and invert sugar being used, cookies have become contributors to many health issues like obesity, cholesterol, and diabetes. Always check the package and confirm that the ingredients are natural and provide real health benefits to you.

Author - Arun F Xaviour