The keto diet has increased in popularity as it has helped many people lose weight and improve their health. The diet plan is a very low-carb approach to eating.
People on the plan drastically reduce their carbohydrate intake and increase their fat consumption.
Lots of lunch dishes are high in carbohydrates, but this ultra low carb approach can make it hard to find keto-friendly lunches that taste good. If this sounds familiar, keep reading!
We’ve scoured the net to find 28 of the tastiest keto lunch recipes that are also easy to prepare.
There’s something for every taste, whether you prefer something filling to keep you going until dinner, or a lighter option that won’t be too hard to digest.
1. Keto Pizza Grilled Cheese
Being on keto doesn’t mean that you have to give up comfort food!
This recipe swaps your usual floury bread for the microwave keto version. This only takes 90 seconds to make in the microwave, so it’s great to make if you’re short on time or fancy something quick.
Enjoy the classic pizza flavors in this decadent grilled cheese, just make sure that you use sugar-free marinara sauce instead of the processed version.
2. Spicy Fish Fritters
If you fancy something different for lunch, try this Caribbean-inspired fish dish. These fritters are made without a batter, so they’re low carb, keto, and suitable for the Paleo diet too.
It’s best to use coconut flour to bind the eggs and fish together.
Almond flour is too crumbly and may leave you with a dry fish fritter. Pair these with a keto-friendly sauce, such as mayonnaise-based or low-carb mustard dips.
3. Easy Keto Egg Salad Recipe
Eggs are one of the main foods you’ll find yourself eating on keto, but thanks to all of the other delicious ingredients, you won’t get bored with this egg salad!
This recipe uses hard-boiled eggs as the base, along with a tasty blend of mustard, mayonnaise, onions, and lemon juice.
The salad is great when paired with some green vegetables, or served on top of some low-carb bread.
Egg salad can start to become runny if you leave it out for a while, but you can thicken it up again by adding another egg or refrigerating it until cool.
4. Easy Keto Tuna Salad Recipe
Here’s another salad recipe that’s very easy to make.
This salad uses a mix of tuna, mayonnaise, and dried onion to make an appetizing alternative to your usual salad.
The tuna and mayonnaise mix creates a smooth foundation, while the dried onion adds an appetizing crunch with every bite.
Try this salad on top of some lettuce leaves, or spoon it over some keto-friendly microwave bread.
5. Low Carb Keto Salmon Patties With Canned Meat
If you’ve ever made tuna fish cakes before, you need to try this salmon version.
Salmon is full of healthy fats that are great to include in a keto plan. This recipe also adds pork rinds and parmesan for a tasty flair without the carbs.
These fish cakes can be made in around 15 minutes, so they’re great to prepare if you need a quick lunch option that’s also super tasty.
6. BLT Stuffed Avocado
Just like eggs, avocados are another type of food you might find yourself eating a lot on keto. Try spicing your usual avocados up with this BLT recipe.
This stuffs avocado halves with savory, but completely keto-friendly ingredients. Bacon, tomato, and lettuce add a classic BLT flavor without any of the carbs!
Make sure you add a drizzle of fresh lime juice on top. This will make the dish taste great, but it will also stop the avocado from going brown.
7. Easy Keto PF Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps
PF Chang’s chicken may be tasty, but the flour and sauces it uses are full of carbs and calories. Try this keto-friendly version instead!
The recipe swaps hoisin sauce for a peanut butter and monk fruit sweetener mix to lower the carb count. It also uses lettuce to make the wraps, keeping the recipe low-carb and lower in calories.
Thicker lettuce leaves, like butter or Romaine, will work better as wraps compared to watery leaves, like iceberg.
8. Keto Broccoli Salad
This salad is full of filling ingredients that will keep you full for a few hours.
It uses a mix of broccoli, bacon, and cheese for a high-fat salad with lots of fiber. The salad also uses sunflower seeds which add a pleasant nutty flavor and a satisfying crunch with every bite.
Thanks to the hearty ingredients, this salad doesn’t taste like it’s low carb at all, especially when drizzled with the delicious apple cider and mayonnaise dressing!
9. Zucchini Noodles With Garlic, Butter, Parmesan
Zucchini noodles are a savior on low-carb diets. They have a light flavor that goes well with a range of ingredients, including this tasty butter, garlic, and Parmesan sauce!
These extra ingredients are so rich, that you won’t even notice the taste of the zucchini noodles.
Bear in mind that zucchini cooks quickly, so it won’t need to be cooked for as long as regular pasta.
Three to five minutes is more than enough, but keep taste testing as you go to prevent the noodles from turning soggy.
10. Portobello Mushroom Pizza Recipe
If you’re missing the taste of pizza, this recipe will soothe your cravings without adding to your carb count. It uses a large portobello mushroom as a pizza base instead, which drastically reduces the carb count overall!
The mushroom is then topped with lots of cheese, sugar-free marinara sauce, and pepperoni slices for a traditional pizza taste. If you’re not a fan of pepperoni, feel free to swap the slices for vegetables, pineapple, or shredded chicken.
11. Cheddar Bacon Biscuits
These biscuits are perfect for those that prefer light lunches. These are full of tasty fats that will keep you satisfied as you carry out your day.
Not only are they keto, but they’re also free from eggs, gluten, and dairy, and they’re suitable for those on Paleo diets too.
This recipe does use Bulletproof Brain Octane, but if you don’t have this, you can swap this for ghee or grass-fed butter instead.
12. Keto Cauliflower Potato Salad
This may be a ‘potato’ salad, but you can relax, as it’s completely keto friendly!
This recipe uses cauliflower as a potato substitute. It has a similar consistency and texture to potatoes, and as the taste is so light, the cauliflower won’t overpower any other ingredients in the salad.
If you want to increase the fat content, you can swap the yogurt for mayonnaise instead.
Serve the salad as a side next to some meat and vegetables, or try filling some lettuce wraps with the salad for a quick and tasty lunch option.
13. Keto Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
These meatballs have just one gram of net carbs in every serving. They swap regular flour for the almond version, which works well to cut down the carbs and calories.
However, the star ingredient in these meatballs is the hot sauce. These keep each piece flavorful and tasty, all without the carbs!
Just remember to check the label to ensure your sauce is low-carb, as some buffalo sauces can contain added sugars.
14. Keto Burrito Bowl
Burrito bowls are some of the simplest lunch options you can make, but they can often be high in carbs, thanks to the rice, beans, and chili add-ins.1
This keto version uses cauliflower rice and shredded lettuce as the base instead, which has much fewer carbs compared to your usual rice base.
Top your bowl with guacamole, salsa, beef, and shredded cheese for a classic Mexican flavor.
15. Low Carb Burgers
This recipe is great for meal planners, as you can prepare these mini burger bites in advance to eat throughout the week.
They are small, so they won’t take up that much room in your freezer, but each bite is still full of robust flavors.
These burgers call for minced meat, but you can use any type of meat, including pork, salmon, turkey, and chicken. You can also swap the almond flour for ground-up keto bread for a crispier finish.
16. Cheese Taco Shells
These taco shells are made out of melted cheese, creating a crisp shell that’s completely keto friendly!
You can use whatever kind of hard cheese that you want, but some tasty options are pepper jack, Colby, and Monterey Jack. Fill your cheese tacos with guacamole, beef, and salsa for a classic taco feel.
17. Keto Big Mac Cheeseburger Salad
This salad was inspired by McDonald’s well-known Big Mac. It’s great if you’re craving some junk food but need to stick to a keto diet (see also ‘28 Recipes That Follow The Noom Diet‘).
The salad is very easy to make, just top lettuce with spiced ground beef, tomato slices, and chopped capers. This recipe also involves making a Big Mac dressing which rounds the whole salad off well.
With just 2 grams of carbs per serving, there’s never been a healthier way of enjoying a Big Mac!
18. Bacon Wrapped Asparagus Recipe
This easy-to-make lunch option is perfect for bacon lovers. The recipe involves wrapping pieces of seasoned asparagus with crispy bacon.
The salty flavors within both ingredients will complement each other well. You’ll love biting into the crunchy bacon to reach the firm and tender asparagus within each piece.
Make sure that you use bacon with no sugar to keep it keto friendly.
19. Keto Oven Baked Chicken Legs
These scrumptious keto chicken legs are coated with a pork rind and sour cream crust. This keeps the carb content low while adding tasty flavors from the fatty pork.
Spices are also added, including cajun seasoning, garlic, and onion powder. These keep the chicken legs tasty without adding flour or sugar.
If you have one, use a meat thermometer to check whether the legs have cooked enough in the oven.
20. Keto Chicken Quesadilla
This quesadilla only needs six ingredients to make a delicious and filling lunch dish.
It uses a blend of cheddar and mozzarella to make the hard shell, then a mix of chicken and vegetables to create a tasty filling.
Cilantro and basil work well as herb toppings, but you can also use parsley and parmesan cheese if you prefer.
Serve each piece with guacamole, salsa, or sour cream for a traditional Mexican feel.
21. Keto Egg Roll In A Bowl
This one-pan lunch dish will save you time washing up! It can be made in just 15 minutes and is full of invigorating flavors.
You can use either ground beef or pork in this recipe, but pork will ensure the bowl has traditional egg roll flavors. Top with low-sodium soy sauce and some green onion slices for presentation.
22. Keto Bacon Cheeseburger Wraps
Here’s another fast food alternative to ease your cravings!
This recipe uses your usual cheeseburger fillings inside a lettuce wrap to lower the carb count. If you want to reduce the calories, you can swap the ground beef for turkey instead, or use a little less bacon.
Don’t use pre-made bacon in this recipe, as you’ll need to use bacon fat for sauteing the mushrooms.
23. Turkey Bacon Ranch Pinwheels
These fun appetizers will go down a treat at your next event! This recipe isn’t just low in carbs, it’s gluten, grain, and sugar-free, so they’re suitable for a range of different dietary needs.
These pinwheels are super simple to prepare. Just roll up some grated cheese and bacon crumbles inside cream-lined turkey slices.
Remember, fat is our friend on keto! This isn’t a time for low-fat cheese, so you can use your favorite cheddar brands without feeling guilty.
24. Keto Meatballs Without Breadcrumbs
Meatballs may be delicious, but they often contain carbs from the breadcrumbs and flour used to bind the meat together.
This recipe makes meatballs without breadcrumbs, which makes them completely keto-friendly. It also involves frying the meatballs in coconut oil, which adds a pleasant toasted flavor to the meat.
Serve yours with roasted vegetables or on top of zucchini noodles for a keto version of spaghetti and meatballs.
25. Keto Chicken Soup
Chicken soup is a very versatile dish. It’s perfect for sick days, hungover mornings, or when you fancy a lighter lunch option. Chicken soup often contains carb-laden noodles, but this version changes that.
This soup is filled with cauliflower rice to substitute for the noodles. It also uses ginger and garlic which will add refreshing flavors to the chicken broth.
This recipe is full of other tasty ingredients, including carrots, celery, pepper flakes, and of course, chicken.
Bear in mind that this soup is slightly higher in carbohydrates, but these are mainly from vegetables. If you’d like to increase the fat content, add a little more oil, or swap the chicken breasts for chicken thigh pieces.
26. Creamy Low Carb Taco Soup
This one-pot soup recipe isn’t just tasty, it leaves you less clean up too!
This soup is full of classic taco flavors, including tomatoes, avocados, ground beef, and cheese. It’s full of succulent flavors that will make it hard to put your spoon down!
You’ll only need eight ingredients and half an hour to put this soup together. Cream cheese is a star ingredient here, as it makes the soup thicker and adds more fat for those on keto.
Make sure that you use low-sodium beef broth instead of the regular version, or the soup might be too salty for your liking.
27. Keto Cauliflower Mac And Cheese
Cauliflower and cheese is a well-known dish in the keto world, but this recipe infuses the ingredients with mac and cheese flavors.
It’s great to have if you’re craving the real thing, as you can enjoy the mac and cheese taste without any of the carbs!
You’ll need sharp cheddar cheese, butter, and heavy cream to make the cheese sauce.
The cauliflower doesn’t need much preparation, just make sure that it is cut into small pieces and well roasted before adding the sauce.
Try baking crushed pork rinds on top for a crunchy crumb topping!
28. Keto Shrimp And Grits
Our last recipe on the list is a comfort food lunch dish, but if you have any leftovers, it works well as a dinner option too. This shrimp and grits recipe is full of cheesy and creamy flavors that are perfect for those on keto (see also ‘26 Amazing Keto Salad Recipes‘).
It also uses cauliflower as a keto substitute for grits. The cauliflower will soak up some of the chicken broth flavors and infuse every bite with a juicy finish.
The cajun seasoning gives the dish a nice spice, while the butter sauce subdues it so the spice isn’t overpowering.
Make sure that you cover the cauliflower grits while you prepare the shrimp, as this will prevent them from going cold.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is Dirty Keto?
Dirty keto is a variant of the keto diet, which involves eating more high-fat foods and fewer carbohydrates. Clean keto involves eating whole, nutritious foods and keeping to a traditional keto macronutrient ratio.
You would still stick to a keto macronutrient profile on dirty keto, but it doesn’t matter where your food is sourced from. People on dirty keto can still eat junk food as long as it fits their macros.
What Is A Keto Fat Bomb?
Fat bombs are a type of snack often eaten on the keto diet. They are usually made from a high-fat base, like coconut oil, avocados, or butter.
Other than being tasty, these help people on the diet plan increase their fat intake. Keto fat bombs can be sweet, as long as they aren’t made with sugar.
These fat bombs are usually sweetened with natural or zero-calorie sweeteners, like erythritol or monk fruit.
What Is Lazy Keto?
Keto plans usually involve lowering your carbohydrate intake to less than 5% of your daily calories, but lazy keto involves reducing this to under 10%, which is slightly higher.
People on lazy keto do not need to track their protein or fat intake as much as those on regular keto.
This may make the keto diet a little easier to follow, which, as long as they are in an energy deficit, may help some people lose weight.
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