5 Low Carb & Keto Rice Substitutes [Best Rice Alternatives]
A number of the most scrumptious dishes function rice as a key ingredient. Risotto, fried rice, paella, and sushi, for instance, all depend on this starch-filled grain, however are there any rice varieties that gained’t pack on the carbs?
Sadly, the reply isn’t any. Should you’re on a non-keto low-carb or customary ketogenic weight-reduction plan, it is best to keep away from rice for optimum outcomes.
That being stated, you may nonetheless get your rice repair by utilizing low-carb substitutes and keto recipes. Let’s start our journey via the world of rice and its keto alternate options by exploring the next matters:
Why Rice isn’t Good for Low Carb and Keto Diets
Every grain of rice is actually starch that’s packaged in a fibrous protein capsule. From a dietary perspective, rice is sort of a bean however with extra starch and fewer protein and fiber.
Although several types of rice will fluctuate of their carb content material, even the bottom carb selection isn’t low sufficient to suit right into a low-carb weight-reduction plan. In truth, it will likely be practically not possible to discover a rice selection that’s composed of lower than 75% web carbs.
To present you a greater concept of what I imply, we’ve included a chart with the carb content material of the preferred rice varieties under. On this case, we’ll focus totally on the “more healthy” rice choices (which aren’t as low in carbs as you may suppose).
Is Wild Rice, Black Rice, or Brown Rice Low Carb?
Although brown rice, wild rice, and black rice are all richer in micronutrients, fiber, and protein than white rice, they’re nonetheless full of too many carbs to suit right into a low-carb weight-reduction plan.
As you may see, wild rice is the bottom carb rice. Nevertheless, with ~32 grams of web carbs in every half-cup, it’ll be difficult to suit it right into a low-carb or keto weight-reduction plan with out chopping out different nutritious keto-friendly meals.
What About Rice Noodles: Are They Low Carb?
Rice noodles will be considered lengthy strips of web carbs (much like conventional flour-based pasta).
Extra particularly, one cup of rice noodles comes full of 44 g of complete carbs and 42.2 g of web carbs (which is nearly similar to the carbs in white rice).
Reasonably than skipping noodles altogether, there are many keto-friendly alternate options you may strive. We’ll study extra about them after we uncover the reality about rice desserts.
Are Rice Truffles Low Carb?
Since they’re produced from puffed rice, rice desserts can be decrease in carbs than cooked rice. Nevertheless, earlier than we’re tricked by their low carb content material, we should additionally contemplate what rice desserts lack.
Since they’re virtually 100% web carbs, rice desserts will improve your each day carb rely with out including any wholesome fat, protein, fiber, or micronutrients to your weight-reduction plan. In different phrases, even the bottom carb rice cake merchandise aren’t choice for keto since they add empty carbs to your weight-reduction plan and nothing else.
| Rice Cake Product | Complete Carbs (per rice cake) | Internet Carbs (per rice cake) |
| White rice cake | 7 | 7 |
| Brown rice cake | 14 | 13 |
| Kim’s Magic Pop Rice Truffles | 2 | 2 |
That being stated, In case you are craving a rice cake, go for the bottom carb choice and ensure to have some high-fat keto meals with it. For instance, strive spreading keto Nutella on prime or make it into a fast keto pizza.
The 5 Finest Low Carb Rice Substitutes for Keto
Should you can’t eat rice, what are you able to eat on a low-carb weight-reduction plan as an appropriate different? Listed below are the perfect low-carb substitutes for rice which can be each wholesome and keto-friendly:
- Riced cauliflower
- Miracle rice (shirataki rice)
- Cabbage rice
- Hemp seeds
- Mushroom rice
1. Riced Cauliflower
That is the preferred low-carb rice different since it’s comparatively low cost, low in carbs, and full of health-boosting nutritional vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
Usually, ½ cup (85 g) of ready cauliflower rice has 4 grams of complete carbs and a couple of grams of web carbs, which makes it straightforward to suit right into a strict keto weight-reduction plan in addition to non-keto low-carb diets.
Riced cauliflower is on the market at your native grocery retailer pre-packaged, however it may be made simply as straightforward at house in case you have a cheese grater or meals processor.
Easy methods to Use It:
Riced cauliflower makes a nice keto pizza crust, the proper rice substitute for fried rice, and a tasty low-carb different for sushi rice. Scroll under for extra keto cauliflower rice recipes.
2. Miracle Rice — The Lowest Carb Keto Rice, No Cauliflower Mandatory
Made out of konjac root, miracle rice (and shirataki noodles) solely comprise hint quantities of web carbs and are full of health-promoting fiber. Extra particularly, a 3 oz. serving (85 g) of miracle rice comes with 10 energy, 3 g of fiber, and fewer than 0.5 g of web carbs.
Miracle rice is on the market in most well being meals shops or on-line. You might also see it known as “shirataki rice,” “slim rice,” or “konjac rice” as nicely. There are some which have higher consistencies than others, so store round and take a look at just a few totally different manufacturers to see which suit your tastes extra.
So long as the product is listed as having zero web carbs per serving, it’ll be the proper rice different for keto.
Easy methods to Use It:
Strive utilizing miracle rice as a rice different in a stir-fry, pilaf, or cauliflower rice recipe. It might additionally work nicely as a rice or barley alternative in a soups and stews.
3. Cabbage Rice
One other nice keto rice substitute is cabbage rice. You may put together cabbage rice as you’ll cauliflower rice: in a meals processor or with a cheese grater.
Each crimson and inexperienced cabbage are keto-friendly choices, with inexperienced cabbage having a barely decrease web carb rely:
- Purple cabbage — 1 cup,chopped (89 g) has 6.2 grams of complete carbs and three.9g of web carbs
- Inexperienced cabbage — 1 cup, chopped (89 g) has 4.9g of complete carbs and three.2g of web carbs
Easy methods to Use It:
Riced cabbage is nice in stews, as a substitute for fried rice, or because the function vegetable in a keto bowl. It’s going to pair exceptionally nicely with spices generally utilized in Indian meals, akin to garam masala, cumin, and turmeric.
4. Hemp Seeds
Shelled hemp seeds are nice for mimicking the style and texture of untamed rice and different heartier grains.
They’re additionally full of wholesome fats, plant-based protein, and fiber, making them the perfect rice substitute for anybody trying up their consumption of those vitamins whereas holding carbs low.
Total, every ½ cup of shelled hemp seeds (also called hemp hearts) supplies us with:
- 442 energy
- 39 g of fats
- 25 g of protein
- 6.9 g of complete carbs
- 3.7g of web carbs
Since that is the best fats rice substitute, make sure that to not overdo it. The fats energy can add up surprisingly quick and sluggish weight reduction.
Easy methods to Use It:
Use as a wild rice substitute for wild rice pilaf, or add it to your keto meals to imitate the mouthfeel of couscous or wild rice.
5. Mushroom Rice
With their earthy umami taste, mushrooms are a scrumptious keto-friendly substitute for rice as nicely. Simply make sure that to maintain the carb counts in thoughts as a result of they are going to fluctuate relying on the mushroom selection.
Listed below are the carbs in essentially the most generally consumed mushrooms (in each cup, sliced):
| Mushroom sort | Complete carbs (g) | Internet carbs (g) |
| Portobella | 5.9 | 3.2 |
| Shiitake | 7.4 | 3.9 |
| White button | 4.4 | 2.5 |
| Cremini | 3.0 | 2.6 |
Easy methods to Use It:
To arrange mushroom-based keto rice, finely chop a cup or two of mushrooms and saute with some butter and salt. It’s also possible to mix mushroom rice with the opposite low carb rice alternate options to change up the flavour and texture of your meals.
Different Much less Widespread Keto Rice Alternate options You Can Strive
Should you’re trying to match extra greens into your keto meal plan, these two wholesome low carb alternate options to rice are value a strive a nicely:
Hearts of Palm Rice
Manufacturers like Palmini who initially launched a pasta produced from hearts of palm have additionally delved into ricing their product to make a keto-friendly rice different. It is available in a can so that you merely want to empty, rise, and cook dinner to your most popular consistency. Usually it doesn’t take lengthy to cook dinner and can fulfill the craving you’ve gotten for rice.
The vitamin details for 100g of cooked coronary heart of palm are as follows:
- 28 energy
- 0.6 g fats
- 4.6 g complete carbs
- 2.4 g dietary fiber
- 2.2 g web carbs
- 2.5 g protein
It may be an incredible vegetable rice different due to its texture, decrease carb counts, and when cooked al dente actually matches the invoice in a meal.
Broccoli Rice
Riced broccoli makes an incredible grain different for anybody on a paleo, low carb, or keto weight-reduction plan. Since you should utilize the stems, it’s going to make it easier to minimize down in your meals waste as nicely.
Primarily, you’ll comply with the identical steps as you’ll to show a head of cauliflower into rice. Simply be sure to shave off the knobs from the broccoli stem earlier than processing.
Sauté for about 2 to three minutes till tender in additional virgin olive oil, coconut oil, or your most popular cooking oil/fats. Toss in some soy sauce for fast and straightforward keto facet dishes (which can be additionally dairy free)!
That stated, you will need to double-check the vitamin details and be sure to’re staying inside your ketosis carb restrict. Right here’s what you’ll get in each 100 grams of riced broccoli:
- 35 energy
- 0.4 grams of fats
- 7.2 grams of complete carbohydrates
- 3.3 grams of dietary fiber
- 3.9 grams of web carbs
- 2.4 grams of protein
Rutabaga Rice
It’s also possible to course of rutabaga, as you’ll with broccoli or cauliflower, to make one other gluten free low carb different for rice. The one draw back to this feature is that it’ll be a bit greater in web carbs than the opposite keto rice substitutes.
The vitamin details for 100 g of cooked rutabaga are as follows:
- 37 energy
- 0.2 g fats
- 8.6 g complete carbs
- 2.3 g dietary fiber
- 6.3 g web carbs
- 1.1 g protein
Due to its greater web carb content material, we advocate solely making rutabaga rice as an occasional facet dish to accompany a few of your low carb meals.
Low Carb, Keto-friendly Rice Recipes: Fried Rice, Sushi, Rice Balls, and Extra
Should you’d favor to comply with step-by-step directions, we’ve included a round-up of our favourite rice-based keto recipes under:
Low Carb Cauliflower Fried Rice
This keto recipe is full of all the flavors and textures we crave in restaurant-style fried rice. Nevertheless, there may be one factor lacking: the starch.
Fortuitously, with the combo of riced cauliflower and bacon, you’ll overlook all about it. (Should you’re in search of a good easier keto fried rice, give our 4-ingredient crispy cauliflower rice a strive.)
Spicy Cauliflower Rice & Salmon Medley
A scrumptious keto dinner that includes low-carb fried rice, with all of the steps you could cook dinner the fish, put together the keto rice, and mix them right into a satisfying meal. Be happy to switch the salmon along with your fish/meat of alternative everytime you need to throw collectively a fast dish that you already know will come out scrumptious.
For extra keto-friendly rice-based dinner concepts, take a look at these recipes as nicely:
Jalapeno Cauliflower Rice Balls
These crispy, spicy, and tacky rice balls are the proper approach to make use of up leftover cauliflower rice. Serve with sugar-free tomato sauce for keto-friendly arancini — or hold it easy and have as is. The within is sort of a jalapeno popper, and the skin has a splendidly crunchy texture due to the pork rind and Parmesan coating.
Keto Hen and Rice Casserole
Hen and rice casserole is far more healthy and extra satisfying with low-carb components. In truth, this is without doubt one of the finest methods to sneak a keto-friendly dish right into a household dinner with out anybody noticing. It makes use of a few of my favourite low-carb comfort meals to save lots of on prep time like pre-riced cauliflower and rotisserie rooster. I virtually at all times seize a rotisserie rooster on the grocery retailer. It’s fast, straightforward and can be utilized for one million totally different dishes. Pre-riced cauliflower will be discovered within the produce part of most shops and is a superb low carb staple and substitute for rice.
Keto Sushi (with a Low-carb Sushi Rice Various)
At first, changing sushi rice with riced cauliflower could seem ridiculous. I assumed the thought was loopy earlier than I truly gave keto sushi a strive — and I used to be pleasantly stunned. It mounted my yearning for carb-ridden sushi, and now I’ve a dependable keto recipe to make each time the craving hits.
Cauliflower Rice Congee
This keto Congee is an Asian-inspired porridge that’s nice for chilly climate or as a zesty dinner appetizer. The components akin to cauliflower rice and rooster inventory will be produced from scratch or store-bought to scale back time. Optionally available toppings for congee embody hard-boiled eggs, sliced scallions, and fried garlic. With this recipe, you’ll additionally learn to incorporate low-carb cauliflower rice into your favourite keto soups.
Cauliflower-free Low Carb Rice Recipe Choices (No Cauliflower Mandatory)
You could have already observed that the majority low-carb rice recipes function cauliflower as the first rice different. Whether or not you wish to change it up otherwise you’re simply not a fan of cauliflower, listed here are three go-to choices for making low carb rice with out the cauliflower:
1. Keto Mushroom Wild Rice Pilaf
This facet dish is the proper keto-friendly different for cauliflower rice (and it’s 100% gluten free). Step-by-step, you’ll learn to make it cauliflower-free by utilizing hempseeds and mushrooms because the low-carb rice substitute.
Altogether, this recipe will mimic the style and texture of untamed rice pilaf with out the surplus carbs. Be happy so as to add meat to it for a whole keto meal — or use it as a alternative for cauliflower fried rice.
2. Exchange the cauliflower with one other low-carb rice different.
Decide your most popular choice(s) from the listing under:
- Miracle rice
- Cabbage
- Hempseeds
- Mushrooms
- Broccoli
These will work splendidly in most keto stir-fry and fried rice recipes. You may even strive mixing a number of alternate options collectively.
Simply be sure to are aware of the distinction in your rice substitute’s carb, protein, and fats content material in comparison with cauliflower. Use our macro calculator for those who need assistance becoming it into your meal plan.
3. Skip the low-carb rice.
Although your meal gained’t be as filling with out the low-carb rice, this can be the best choice for sure keto recipes.
When making keto sushi, for instance, the opposite low-carb rice alternate options gained’t work nicely. On this case, the best choice is to make it with out the rice or strive one other recipe with comparable flavors and textures (like our keto poke bowl recipe).
Secondarily, you may take a step in a very totally different path by making keto bread. Although it doesn’t match the feel of rice, it might probably nonetheless assist fulfill that yearning for starchy goodness.
Are There Keto-friendly Rice Noodle Alternate options as Nicely?
As with low-carb rice substitutes, there are a number of keto-friendly rice noodle alternate options made out of konjac root and keto greens.
Of all of the totally different and distinctive takes on noodles, listed here are a few of finest keto-friendly substitutes for rice noodles:
- Spiralized greens. Whereas zucchini is the commonest in keto recipes, you too can spiralize daikon radish, cucumbers, bell pepper, turnips, kohlrabi, onion, and even broccoli stems.
- Eggplant pasta. Lower eggplant into strips and cook dinner as a penne-style pasta, or slice into skinny sheets and use as a layering noodle in lasagna or pasta roll-up recipes.
- Thinly sliced cabbage can work very well as a noodle, however you too can use entire cabbage leaves as a layer in lasagna and even use it as a wrapper for eggroll sort recipes.
- Miracle noodles. Also called konjac or shirataki noodles, these fibrous noodles are produced from the identical components as Miracle rice.
- Tofu noodles. Much like shirataki noodles, these are sometimes a mixture of tofu and glucomannan (the fiber present in konjac root). This yields a way more nice, much less crunchy low-carb noodle.
- Selfmade noodles. Utilizing psyllium husk, almond flour, or a mixture of low-carb flours, you may create keto noodles at house. These are usually essentially the most life like in texture and taste however can add a major quantity of energy to the dish, so it’s important to be aware of your noodle parts.
To study extra about every noodle different and their keto recipes, take a look at our complete information to keto-friendly noodles and pasta.
Key Takeaways: Low Carb Rice Alternate options and Recipes for Keto
Rice will not be appropriate for low-carb and keto consuming, whatever the selection you’ve gotten
Nevertheless, there are many low-carb rice substitutes which you could make to fulfill your yearning for the starch-filled grain. These embody:
- Riced cauliflower
- Miracle rice or shirataki rice
- Cabbage
- Hemp Seeds
- Mushrooms
With the assistance of those keto-friendly choices, you may make just about any of your favourite rice-based dishes, together with:
In case you are additionally in search of appropriate substitutes for cauliflower-based rice, listed here are the three finest choices:
That being stated, even in case you have the bottom carb rice substitute, it’s nonetheless essential to be aware of how a lot fats, protein, and carbs you could obtain the outcomes you need.
The best solution to be sure to are heading in the right direction is by utilizing our keto meal planning app. It’s going to offer you an infinite consuming plan personalised to your objectives and preferences, so all you’ll need to do is store for the components, make your meals, and revel in them.
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