After hearing for the 300th time about how restrictive the keto diet is, I decided to compile a list of several keto sides to show my friends how many options they have. The ketogenic diet, more commonly referred to as keto, has swept across the nation over the last few years.
Best Keto Sides (Low-Carb & Delicious)
It’s popular because it’s so effective, but people often complain they feel limited in their options. After all, the diet cuts out breads, grains, starches, pasta, and even some fruits and veggies! As a result, people get bored trying to stick to it, and they quit. Hopefully, this list of 30 keto side dishes can add some welcome variety to your meals. These recipes are so good, even carb lovers will eat them up!
1. Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
Mac and cheese is an American classic! Unfortunately, pasta is a big no-no on the keto diet. However, you can make a side dish that’s just as cheesy and just as yummy by substituting cauliflower for the macaroni. Be sure to use heavy cream; that gives it its smooth, gooey texture. Top it off with salt, pepper, and a dash of chili powder if you enjoy a little heat. Then you’re all set!
2. Garlic and Cheese Roasted Asparagus
I’m a big fan of asparagus any way you can cook it, but roasted asparagus topped with mozzarella cheese and smothered in garlic? That’s nearly unbeatable. Best of all, it takes only 5 minutes to prepare and 15 to cook.
3. Creamy Garlic Mushrooms with Bacon
These creamy garlic mushrooms are another tasty side dish ready in 20 minutes or less. The mushrooms soak up the flavors of the bacon, garlic, chili powder, paprika, and other spices. The broth is rich, creamy, and almost as flavorful as the mushrooms themselves. These taste great when eaten as a side item, but they also make an excellent topping for a thick steak or baked chicken breast.
4. “Better than Potatoes” Cheesy Cauliflower Puree
One thing you’ll quickly learn about cooking for keto is that cauliflower is one of the most versatile veggies on the face of the earth. You can use it to make macaroni, rice, pizza crust, and more. For this recipe, you’ll use it to make mashed potatoes. They’re smooth, buttery, and fluffy, like real mashed potatoes, but the taste is slightly different. Even so, with the right seasonings, not only will they taste as good as mashed potatoes, they may even taste better.
5. Keto Gravy
There’s no use making cauliflower mashed potatoes unless you plan to make some keto gravy go with them. You can whip this up in about 5 minutes with broths, bouillon cubes, or meat drippings, and it only has a single carb per serving.
6. Cheesy Bacon Spinach Dip
Some of the hardest things for me to give up anytime I diet are dips. French onion dip, spinach dip, cheese dip, crab dip – I love them all. Luckily, with keto, there are plenty of dips you can still have, as long as you’re dipping them with the right things. This cheesy bacon spinach dip is excellent. It has bacon, three types of cheese, Worcestershire sauce, and spinach. It’s rich and creamy, and it pairs well with most veggies, fried cheese crisps, and keto chips.
7. Bacon Brussels Sprouts Salad
You can prepare this healthy, hearty salad in about 20 minutes. All you’ll need is bacon, Brussels sprouts, parmesan cheese, and almonds for the salad. The dressing takes the most time, but you can always make extra and refrigerate it for later use.
8. Broccoli Casserole with Bacon
Traditionally, you make broccoli casserole with rice, but try adding in some bacon instead. That, along with the garlic, broccoli, and multiple cheeses, will ensure you don’t even miss the rice! It takes about 10 minutes to pull together and 45 to bake.
9. Cheesy Bacon Keto Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole
This casserole is very similar to the broccoli casserole listed above, but you’ll add cauliflower to this one to make it even more filling and nutritious. In addition to being keto-friendly, it’s also gluten-free.
10. Keto Cauliflower Bites
Cauliflower comes to the rescue again, this time in bite-sized, deep-fried (or baked) morsels. To make it keto-friendly, you’ll need to make the breading using the exact ingredients listed here. You’ll also want to cook it in one of the many keto-friendly oils.
11. Spaghetti Squash Pizza Nests
You’ve probably never had a stranger-looking pizza than these pizza nests. They’re called nests because that’s precisely what they are, thanks to the base of spaghetti squash noodles used instead of dough. The funny way they look doesn’t detract from the bold pizza flavor, though. I prefer them to real pizza because they’re fresher and less greasy.
12. Keto Jalapeno Bacon Cheese Bread
Surprise! You can have bread on the keto diet. It just has to be made from the right ingredients, such as flaxseed, coconut flour, and lots of cheese. It takes about 50 minutes to bake, but only 15 to prepare. The spicy jalapeno flavor meshes perfectly with the bacon’s saltiness and the richness of the various cheeses.
13. Keto Green Bean Casserole
This delicious green bean casserole isn’t only keto-friendly; it’s also gluten-free, and every bite packs a powerful punch of cheesy, herby awesomeness. The ingredients list seems a little long at first, but most of those are the ingredients for your cheese sauce, which holds most of your flavor. The whole casserole takes less than an hour to make, and although it’s a side dish, it’s hearty enough for a complete meal.
14. Keto Oven Roasted Vegetables
Although there are some vegetables you should only eat in moderation on the keto diet, this recipe is perfectly portioned. Thanks to the garlic, balsamic vinegar, and Italian seasoning, each vegetable is well seasoned, and the whole thing takes less than an hour to cook.
15. Brussels Sprouts with Bacon
Some people don’t know how to cook Brussels sprouts. Whoever came up with this recipe, though, was on it. All you’ll need to make them are the sprouts, some bacon, a little olive oil, and various seasonings. In about half an hour, you’ll have a delicious low-carb and low-calorie side dish to complement any protein.
16. Keto Garlic Bread
Keto garlic bread may not be as thick and doughy as other garlic bread you’ve eaten, but it’s just as garlicky, just as herby, and even cheesier than most. It takes 5 minutes to prepare, 30 minutes to cook, and 0.2 seconds to devour. I suggest making two loaves.
17. Cauliflower “Potato” Salad
This mock potato salad is one dish you’ll want to add to your family gathering staples list because it fits almost every type of diet. It’s paleo- and keto-friendly, whole-30 compliant, low-carb, and gluten-free. If you want to leave out the eggs and use vegan mayo, you can make it vegan-friendly, as well.
18. Keto Broccoli Salad
If you enjoy recipes that only require you to mix things, this is an excellent option for you. You’ll have to cook the bacon – microwavable bacon is another option – but everything else requires you only to combine ingredients. You can even leave out the bacon for a no-cook, vegetarian-friendly dish. I also like to add a little feta cheese to mine.
19. Keto Onion Rings
If you’re looking for something crunchy and yummy to serve with your keto burgers this summer, give keto onion rings a try. They take half an hour to make, and since they’re baked, they’re healthier and less greasy than conventional onion rings.
20. Parmesan Zucchini Fries
If you’re more traditional in your burger side choices, try these fantastic parmesan zucchini fries instead. All you’ll need to make them is zucchini, parmesan cheese, garlic, black pepper, an egg, and 30 minutes. Serve them with a cup of marinara or Dijon mustard.
21. Cauliflower Rice
To make cauliflower rice, you’ll use cauliflower, butter, and salt. You can prepare it in 20 minutes, and you can serve it with literally anything sweet, salty, or savory.
22. Broccoli Cheese Soup
Broccoli cheese soup is a wonderful dish, especially in the cooler months. However, if you order it in restaurants or buy it pre-made, it often has too many carbs. You can remedy that problem by making it yourself. It only takes five ingredients, and you can make it in about 20 minutes. Best of all, it’s easy to freeze and keeps for several months.
23. Zucchini Fritters
These savory zucchini fritters are so good. I recommend that everyone try them, whether they’re on the keto diet or not. The explosion of flavors in these fritters is intense, and I never can tell which specific ingredient’s flavor I’m enjoying the most. The outsides are satisfyingly crispy, and the insides are full of warm, tasty goodness.
24. Cauliflower Tots
One of the easiest meals for most people on keto is breakfast. It’s simple to whip up something with tons of protein thanks to bacon, eggs, sausage, cheese, and all the other breakfast staples. However, one thing a lot of people miss is tater tots. If that sounds like you, try making these cauliflower tots instead. They’re just as crunchy and delicious. The only problem I have is that I love dipping them in honey mustard, which isn’t keto-friendly. Still, these are great with or without dipping sauce.
25. Roasted Zucchini and Mushrooms
This simple dish is pretty, healthy, and tasty. It has many colors in it, which always makes me happy. There are only four ingredients aside from those needed for the marinade. Be sure to let your veggies marinate long enough to soak in all the zesty flavors. That’s what makes the dish so good.
26. Zucchini Noodles with Garlic, Butter, and Parmesan
If you’re serious about going keto, my best advice to you is to buy a spiralizer. You can do so much with this one appliance, including turning zucchini into all kinds of noodles! This light, slightly spicy “pasta” is 100% keto-friendly and will quickly become one of your all-time favorite keto side dishes. *Note: If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can also use a julienne peeler to make the noodles.
27. Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
If you’re looking for a low-calorie, low-carb dish that’s easy to make and tastes terrific, start with spaghetti squash. You can do so many wonderful, healthy things with it. Stuffed with broccoli and cheese, you can make this one in no time. You can cook it on the stovetop or in the oven. Either way, you’ll be surprised by just how delicious it is.
28. Parmesan Green Beans
Green beans are naturally keto-friendly, but they can get a little boring sometimes. Spice your green beans up by covering them in parmesan and garlic and serving them with the homemade sweet mustard dipping sauce. You’ll never look at green beans the same way again.
29. Keto Creamed Spinach with Cheese
Creamed spinach is another dish you can jazz up with just a few extra ingredients. Cook it as you usually would, but throw in some bacon and shredded gouda to take it to the next level of yumminess. In addition to being keto-friendly, this recipe is also a great way to entice kids into eating more spinach. If you want, you can even bake the mixture for about 20 minutes for a more casserole-like feel.
30. Keto Cranberry Sauce
You may assume you’ll have to say goodbye to your cranberry sauce forever once you jump aboard the keto train. That’s not true at all. You’ll simply need to learn to make your own. This incredible sauce is sweet, fresh, and so much better than canned cranberry sauce. It’s made with cranberries, natural sweeteners, water, and orange zest. You can even add a dash of cinnamon and a pinch of salt to spice it up a little. Click on a star to rate it!
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