Probiotics are live microorganisms that, when consumed on a regular basis, can really affect our organisms in a positive way. Food rich in probiotics can have an extremely positive effect on our health and digestive systems, helping our metabolism stay in good shape. That’s why we should all look for ways that allow us to incorporate more probiotic-friendly foods into our diet.

However, the problem lies in the fact that aside from the most famous probiotic-friendly food – yoghurt, people don’t actually know much about other such foods. With that in mind, here are some other foods rich in probiotics as well as some amazing dishes you definitely need to check out.

Enrich your breakfast with oats

Oats are an incredible breakfast option rich with various nutrients and packed with probiotics. And since the best time to take probiotics is either with a meal or 30 minutes before you eat, having a breakfast filled with probiotics is the best way to start your day. You can use oat flour to make baked goods if you’re more of a savoury fan or make overnight oats if you enjoy something sweet for breakfast. Mix your oats with any type of milk, add a dash of protein powder and some cinnamon to make them super delicious. Pour your oats in a lidded container and let them rest in the fridge overnight. In the morning enjoy your serving of oats with some fresh fruit. You can even add cocoa powder to the mix and enjoy a chocolate-tasting healthy breakfast.

Add more spice with leafy greens

Leafy greens, such as arugula, dandelion and basil are also full of probiotics. You can eat these leafy greens fresh in a salad or you can take it a step further and make a pesto sauce. For that you will need: 

1 cup fresh arugula

1 cup of leeks (only the green part)

¼ of a cup fresh basil

½ cup of nuts (walnut or even sunflower seeds)

2 medium garlic cloves

6oz of extra virgin olive oil

1 lemon zest

By mixing all the ingredients in a food processor you will turn them into a delicious pesto that not only tastes amazing but is quite healthy as well. And since garlic is another probiotic-rich food you absolutely won’t go wrong with this one. On top of everything, you can even add some grated parmesan to the mix and make it even more delicious.

More versatility with yoghurt

As mentioned earlier, yoghurt is filled with probiotics. No matter if you’re into Greek yoghurt or some other alternative, you simply can’t go wrong with adding more of it to your diet. You can mix a cup of yoghurt with some oats and fruit to make a delicious dessert-like dish. Or you can add yoghurt as a salad dressing to your favourite salad and improve your already healthy meal. The best thing about yoghurt is its versatility which means you can use it in both sweet and savoury dishes.

Banana time

Bananas are not only rich in potassium but they’re also probiotic food. You can eat them raw with nothing added or you can choose to add them to some of your favourite meals. Oats taste great when enhanced with a banana. Fruit smoothies can greatly benefit from adding a banana and a cup of yoghurt to them. You can even choose to make your own banana ice cream, or use oat flour and fresh, ripe bananas to make banana bread.

As you can see, adding more probiotic-friendly foods to your diet is actually super easy when you know which foods you should focus on. These are just some of the recipe ideas you should try out but, of course, feel free to play around and even come up with your own.

Author's Bio: Nemanja Marinkoff is the editor-in-chief at a couple of websites. He’s interested in all things related to basketball. He also loves marzipan. You can find him on Twitter.