Pudding is just good, there are other foods to promote butyrate.

Pistachios, pomegranate, plums, kiwi, potato, artichoke, asparagus, broccoli, Savoy cabbage, snowpeas, rice, beans, grains, the onion family, garlic, raw produce, cooked and chilled starches,

Pistachios (1) and resistant starches, herbs and spices and zinc can help too. Fructans are included later and a brief discussion of meal planning or cooking for increased resistant starch content. Follow-up to the melatonin post: Why pudding makes us happy - the melatonin and endogenous opioid tangent.

And from a helpful article by Steven Root, Which Foods Produce Butyrate? - click through: kiwi, avocado, onions, bananas - under-ripe more than over-ripe, and resistant starches - includes potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, pasta and the whole grains and legumes which can be a lectin or oxalate problem for people with gut problems already.

Lentil pasta salad with fresh peas. Photo by Bakd&Raw by Karolin Baitinger on Unsplash

Increase resistant starch content by cooking the food and then chilling it - pasta salad, rice or potato salad, or reheat and heat. There will be more resistant starch content in the chilled food and the texture may seem a little moister and denser.

Raw produce or fruit has more resistant starch or flour made from raw banana or potato. There is some concern that green potato is not good in other ways for us though. Eating more salad and having an apple with the peel provides resistant starch, fiber and trace nutrients and polyphenols.

Fructans are another type of fiber that helps promote butyrate producing species. The pistachios are a source along with artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, garlic, onions, leeks, chicory, and bananas. (Which Foods Produce Butyrate? Click through for more info & reference links.) Extrapolate from those foods to include green onions, shallots, and plantain bananas.

Some people need to avoid fructans so there are helpful lists of foods high in fructans to help avoid it. The same list can also be used as a guide for people who want to find more fructan rich foods to add to their meals. It adds more detail to the list with: grapefruit, plum, pomegranate, cabbage, beets, snowpeas (eat the pod type peas), rye and barley, and others. See: Fructans and the Low FODMAP Diet. (alittlebityummy.com)

Disclaimer: Opinions are my own and the information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of fair use. While I am a Registered Dietitian this information is not intended to provide individual health guidance. Please see a health professional for individual health care purposes. 

Reference List

1. Ukhanova M, Wang X, Baer DJ, Novotny JA, Fredborg M, Mai V. Effects of almond and pistachio consumption on gut microbiota composition in a randomised cross-over human feeding study. Br J Nutr. 2014 Jun 28;111(12):2146-52. doi: 10.1017/S0007114514000385. Epub 2014 Mar 18. PMID: 24642201. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24642201/

2. Steven Root, Which Foods Produce Butyrate? Jan 20, 2022, stevenroot.co https://stevenroot.co/which-foods-produce-butyrate/

3. Alana Scott, Reviewed by Lee Martin (RD), Fructans and the Low FODMAP Diet. April 21, 2016, alittlebityummy.com, https://alittlebityummy.com/blog/fructans-the-low-fodmap-diet/