Learning to manage your consumption of carbohydrates means looking at the things you eat in a new light, balancing their carbohydrate content against their overall nutritional value. Beets offer a prime example of this calculation: They’re high in sugars, which are generally thought of as “bad” carbs, but they’re nutritious enough to still form a valuable part of your diet. Beets are relatively high in carbohydrates for a non-starchy vegetable. A half-cup portion of sliced beets has 8. Fiber is a “good” carb, because it helps maintain healthy digestion and has numerous other health benefits.
Veggies should be the foundation of any healthy eating plan, including keto! But some vegetables are keto-friendlier than others of course. To refresh your memory on the basics of the mega-popular diet, the keto diet replaces carbs with fat. Restricting carbs to a minimal amount sends your body into ketosis—a state in which your body burns fat for energy instead of carbs. That comes to 25 to 50 grams of net carbs per day. To calculate net carbs per serving of a particular food, subtract the grams of fiber from the grams of total carbohydrates. While most vegetables are calorie-poor and nutrient-rich packed with fiber, essential vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, carby choices—like potatoes, corn, carrots, beets and squash—should be limited on the keto diet. Non-starchy veggies, however, can be enjoyed in large quantities. Here are 10 vegetables you should definitely add to your keto grocery shopping list.
If you buy something through a link on this page, we may earn a small commission. How this works. Some high-carb foods obviously need to be avoided, such as sugar-sweetened beverages, cake, and candy. Yet, figuring out which staple foods to limit is more challenging. Some of these foods are even relatively healthy — just unsuitable for a low-carb diet due to their high number of carbs.