The standard keto diet consists of low carb and high fat foods. Low in carbs vegetables are essential for this custom meal plan.
This carb restricted diet plan restricts daily net carb intake to 30 grams. But are carrots keto? Well, carrots are moderately high in carbs and a controlled intake of carrots is ok for keto.
How Many Carbs in Carrots?
Carrots are a little bit higher in carbs compared to another keto friendly green vegetables. A single piece of small-sized carrot weighs 50 grams and contains 4.79 grams of total carbs.
But what about the net carbs of carrots? The net carb of a small carrot becomes 3.69 grams after deduction of the 1.4 grams of dietary fiber from total carbs of 4.79 grams.
However, the net carbs of medium and large sized carrots are a little bit higher i.e 4.13 grams and 4.9 grams respectively.
So, are carrots low carbs? As all three different variations of carrots contain more than 3.5 grams of net carbs, carrots can not be considered as perfectly low carbs.
How Many Carrots Can I Eat on Keto?
The Keto diet allows no more than 30 grams of net carbs per day. As keto meals provide almost 25 grams of net carbs you can eat additional low carb foods to fill up the remaining 5 grams gap.
The good news is that all of the carrot sizes do not cross the limit of 5 grams. So, you can eat any sized single piece of carrots to stay in ketosis.
it’s a better choice to eat no more than one piece of a small carrot.
However, medium and large carrot pieces also do not cross the limit of 5 grams of net carbs.
Are Carrots Bad For Keto?
A controlled intake of carrots is good for keto. More than one piece of carrot consumption may kick you out of ketosis.
Furthermore, the rich nutrient profile of carrots provides several benefits. It contains protein, calcium, fiber, magnesium, zinc, copper, etc.
Moreover, ketogenic carrots are one of the great keto foods high in potassium. High consumption of potassium provides health benefits over renal disease, high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, etc (1).
Because of these benefits carrots can be added to keto recipes for high blood pressure.
Carrot Alternatives
There are several alternatives that can replace keto. You can consume these veggies instead of carrots to maintain the carbs and nutrition balance.
The most common ones are
Bok choy: Contains only 1.18 grams of net carbs against 100 grams serving (2).
Asparagus: A 100-gram serving provides 1.78 grams of net carbs (3).
Kale: You will get only 0.3 grams of net carbs from 100 grams of serving (4).
Celery: Contains 1.37 grams of net carbs against 100 grams of serving (5).
Arugula: A 100-gram serving size provides 2.05 grams of net carbs (6)
Carrots Nutrition
Carrots are a rich source of healthy nutrients. It contains almost every essential vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant. A 100 gram serving of raw carrots provide (7)
- Calories: 41
- Protein: 0.93 g
- Fat: 0.24 g
- Carbs: 9.58 g
- Fiber: 2.8 g
- Sugar: 4.74 g
On the other hand, small-sized(50 grams) carrots have:
- Calories: 20.5
- Protein: 0.46 g
- Fat: 0.12 g
- Carbs: 4.79 g
- Fiber: 1.4 g
- Sugar: 2.37 g
Medium-sized carrot(61 grams) provides:
- Calories: 25
- Protein: 0.56 g
- Fat: 0.14 g
- Carbs: 5.84 g
- Fiber: 1.71 g
- Sugar: 2.89 g
A large piece of carrot(72 grams) contains:
- Calories: 29.5
- Protein: 0.67 g
- Fat: 0.17 g
- Carbs: 6.9 g
- Fiber: 2.02 g
- Sugar: 3.841 g
How to Store Carrots?
Carrots can last for more than one week at normal room temperature. However, proper refrigeration can increase the life span by up to one month.
To store carrots properly you need to wrap them well with a paper towel and place them in an airtight bag. Now carrots are ready to store in the freezer.
How to Eat Carrots?
Carrots can be eaten both raw and cooked. Raw carrots are normally used in salads and soups. Some popular carrot recipes are
Low carb carrot salad: This salad contains carrot, spinach, tomato and is topped with black pepper. All of these ingredients are low in carbs and help you to stay in ketosis.
Ketogenic carrot smoothie: This delicious smoothie can be a great addition to your afternoon snack on keto. This smoothie is a mix of keto friendly avocado, blueberries, and a tiny amount of carrots. Additionally, you can add low carb garlic salt with it for more flavor.
Raw carrot mix: It is an unbaked recipe that contains raw carrots with ketogenic almonds. Lile other carrot dishes this is healthy and keto approved.
