Low-Carb Replacement for Your Favorite Dishes

Low-Carb Replacements to Your Favorite Foods

by Kaitlyn Lee

Ah, carbs. We love them, we love to eat them, and we love to hate them. With the rise of the ketogenic diet in the past few years, carbohydrates and how many or few we consume have become a central topic in the health and wellness community. Carbs, or carbohydrates, pack a satiety-filled punch and provide a quick source of energy to our bodies when consumed, but some diets call for more or less of these throughout the day based on a variety of goals. Whether you’re tracking calories and macros, trying to hit a state of ketosis, or just trying to make your body feel its best, you shouldn’t have to skimp on taste. That’s why we’ve reviewed the most popular low-carb replacements to your favorite carb-filled foods so that you don’t have to and rated how they stack up in nutrition, taste and texture, and price range compared to the real thing.

First, we have to define which foods can be considered “low-carb” foods. While some foods may be naturally low in carbohydrates, others are widely considered “low-carb” because the total of net carbs appears to be low. Net carbs are considered the total carbohydrates left over after subtracting those that are non-digestible or have a minimal effect on spiking blood sugar and thus are not absorbed fully into the body. This usually includes fiber and sugar alcohols. The amount of carbs subtracted from the total to obtain the number of net carbs is debated and some say that only a half of the carbs from fiber should be subtracted while others attest that the full amount can be subtracted. For our purposes, we are going to subtract the full number of grams of fiber and grams of sugar alcohols present in the food from the total amount of carbohydrates present to achieve our net carbs, but keep in mind that this number can range and this is just a general idea of how many carbs your are absorbing.

(Image Source: MyFitnessPal Blog)

Veggies:

We’ll start our comparison first with veggie-based recreations of your favorite pasta, potatoes, and noodles. These are the carb-alternatives that mimic the real thing by being formed into a similar shape. The most common forms of these low-carb replacements that we’ve seen on Pinterest and TikTok these days are zucchini noodles and riced cauliflower but carrot and cucumber noodles and riced broccoli and cabbage have popped up all over the Internet as well. We’ve even seen some variations of mashed potatoes made out of cauliflower and we’ve got to give it to the veggies on this one, they win in the category of most versatile!

We’ve found through testing these, that generally the veggie-based options are the least similar in texture to the original dish in question, but do replicate the texture more closely when cooked rather than served raw. Most veggie replacements still look and taste a little like veggies but with the right seasonings and sauces, this replacement is definitely still a win. They are, however, probably the most easily accessible and usually the lowest replacement option when comparing price.

(Image Source: Dowshiftology)

Now the price range of these veggies as a low-carb replacement varies greatly depending on which vegetable is used and if you are looking to buy it already spiralized, riced, or prepared for your replacement dish. Zucchini, for instance, can be purchased for as low as $0.05 per ounce at Walmart and Kroger when listed for sale and up to $0.12 per ounce when not on sale or depending on region based on the 2021 U.S. Marketing Services data. These prices are for the zucchini in its whole state though, not prepared or shaped into pasta, and the prices for pre-spiralized or cut “zoodles” as they are often referred to are more comparable to their counterparts listed below at $0.27 per ounce to $0.36 per ounce generally.

Roughly the same goes for the cruciferous veggies with whole cauliflower prices ranging from $0.10 to $0.15 and whole broccoli prices from $0.07 to $0.22 (when organic and cut in specific ways), but increasing in price when pre-prepared with riced cauliflower ranging from $0.16 per ounce (thanks Walmart!) to $0.29 per ounce regularly. So, if you’re ok with putting in a little extra elbow grease to prepare these noodles or rice varieties, this option takes the cake in the category of lowest price and can pack a punch for keeping you full on a budget.

Bonus Tip: If you’re looking for a veggie replacement that takes minimal work to prepare, spaghetti squash is for you! All it takes to make this dish is a quick cut down the center and baking this squash in the oven or microwave. Though it does still have a vegetable taste and texture, the preparation is much simpler than some other types of veggies and this squash can range from $0.08 to $0.12 per ounce depending on the season.

Shirataki:

Rice and pasta replacements made from konjac glucomannan fiber, frequently called “shirataki” are the next commonly seen replacement. The popularity of these Japanese noodle and rice replacements within Western culture has grown in recent years and has been referred to as the “Miracle Noodle” because of the shockingly low levels of carbs and calories they contain. Because konjac is a soluble dietary fiber, it won’t spike your blood sugar like the ingestion of carbohydrates will, and most brands of these foods contain between zero to two grams of net carbs in total.

(Image Source: Verywell Fit)

The main physical difference between shirataki pasta or rice and traditional forms of rice or pasta is the texture. Shirataki noodles are chewier than their traditional counterparts and are usually a clear or brown spotted color because of the ingredient that they are made from. Most people suggest rinsing the noodles ahead of time or soaking them in water before preparing and we found that sautéeing them after rinsing gave them the closest texture to traditional pasta and took away the lingering odor that can sometimes be associated with the konjac root ingredient and the liquid they are stored in that allows them to stay shelf-stable.

The rice versions of the konjac replacement range from $0.27 per ounce to $0.45 per ounce at its most expensive while the noodle variations can be found from $0.26 to $0.57 for some fancier varieties that include spinach shirataki pasta. The noodles also come in a range of shapes such as angel hair, linguine, fettuccine, and regular spaghetti so you can be sure to get that authentic feel when you’re recreating your favorite Italian pasta recipe.

Bonus Tip: Shirataki is fairly easily found in grocery store chains like Walmart and Target and online, but if it’s accessible to you, visit Asian supermarkets and grocery stores to score even better deals on these noodles! Sometimes they can be found for even lower prices at these locations and many of these stores carry konjac cakes that can be cut into whatever shape you want!

Hearts of Palm:

The third form of low-carb pasta or rice replacement that seems to be most popular is made out of the vegetable hearts of palm. Though technically this does fit into the using-veggies-to-recreate-a-dish category that we talked about earlier, this food is less commonly known and eaten in a regular Western diet and is often specifically used as a food substitute because of its slightly chewier texture. While zoodles and cauliflower rice resemble their traditional counterparts but still mostly look and taste like vegetables, these recreations from hearts of palm have a pretty similar appearance and texture to traditional pasta, especially when prepared correctly. Just like the konjac variety, the rice and these noodles taste their best after being rinsed and then sautéed before seasoning or consuming as this helps to remove the taste of the liquid that they are preserved in and also come in spaghetti, linguine, and angel hair shapes as well as lasagna noodles, rice, and a mashed version listed on the Palmini website.

Hearts of palm pasta can be found at your regular chain grocery store and online in both plastic pouches and cans, and this easy access makes the substitute a great pantry staple. The texture is comparable to traditional pasta, with less of a crunch than vegetable replacements but less chew and bounce than konjac varieties and this form of carb-replacement also has between zero and two grams of net carbohydrates present per serving. This replacement type has a wider price range depending on where it’s purchased, getting as high as $0.78 per ounce, but the brand Palmini can be found in both the cans and pouches at Walmart stores and online and usually ranges from $0.28 to $0.30 per ounce, making this the most reasonably priced brand to purchase from and definitely the one we recommend starting with if you want to give this type of low-carb replacement a try.

(Image Source: Palmini via Facebook)

All three of the substitutes listed above are vegan and gluten-free as long as these dietary restrictions are maintained during preparation and all of these options are fairly easy to find in your normal grocery store or online, with vegetables like zucchini and cauliflower being the most accessible. None of these low-carb replacement options provide much additional nutrition, apart from veggies which have extra nutrients that can be beneficial to health, but none have many nutritional downsides either, with konjac pasta and rice having 0-15 mg of sodium per serving and hearts of palm pasta and rice having a slightly higher but still manageable 0-150 mg per serving depending on the brand purchased.

Bonus Tip: If you’re looking for a lower-carb replacement that does prove additional nutrition, many homemade options can be created from a mixture of egg and melted cheese and these contain higher amounts of protein than traditional pasta or any of our other pasta-replacement options. These options are fairly cost-effective, using only cheese and eggs, but do have higher amounts of fat to accompany this increase in protein. Many homemade options are also made from ingredients like psyllium husk, a fiber supplement that lowers the net carb amount once added, or almond flour, which contains a lower amount of carbs than traditional bleached flour or other varieties. These ingredients tend to be more expensive and still contain more carbohydrates than the other varieties listed above but they do taste very similar to traditional pasta and let you get the authentic, pasta-making experience. If you have the time to do it, try egg and cheese pasta or psyllium husk and almond flour pasta!

All three varieties are comparable in cooking time, though if you are spiralizing zucchini or ricing cauliflower yourself from its original form, this preparation will add a few minutes to your overall time, and both the konjac noodles and rice and its hearts of palm counterpart are considered shelf-stable in their original packaging, beating the produce in that department. In terms of price, the pre-cut alternatives are all within the same general price range, and having so many affordable options gives you added freedom in your low-carb meal-prep and cooking! At the end of the day, nothing is going to beat the texture and taste of a huge bowl of al-dente spaghetti or Chinese fried rice but all of these options make a great replacement for the health-conscious carb-lover on occasion and provide variety in your meals! Which is your favorite?