What You Can Eat on a Low-Carb Diet

One of the most difficult parts of switching to a low-carb diet is understanding which foods you can and can’t eat. But once you’ve eliminated the bad carbs from your diet, the next step is determining and remembering how many carbs are in the foods you can eat.

This low-carb food list will give you a quick peek into how many carbs are in the foods you’ll be eating on a low-carb diet, and how many carbs are in a typical serving of each.

You can use this list to prepare your meals and shopping list. It will dramatically cut down on the amount of time it takes to plan.

Want to have this list in a printable PDF format so you can have it on hand to plan your shopping list?

» You might be interested in The Best Almond Flour Substitutes.

MEAT, FISH AND POULTRY

All of these foods contain zero carbs:

All Red Meat
Chicken
Turkey
Pork
Veal
Lamb
Fowl (duck, goose, hen, quail)
Game Meats (ostrich, venison, caribou, bison, and elk)
Exotic Meats (such as ostrich and emu)
Cold Cuts And Ham (read label some have added sugar)
Bacon
All Fish
Organ Meats (tongue, brains, liver, heart, and kidneys)

SEAFOOD

Shrimp – 0 Carbs
Crawfish – 0 Carbs
Crab – 0 Carbs
Lobster – 2 grams per 6 ounces
Mussels – 8.4 per 6 ounces
Oysters – 12.4 per 6 ounces
Scallops – 3.9 per 6 ounces
Clams – 8.7 grams per 6 ounces
Squid – 7 grams per 6 ounces

FATS AND DRESSINGS

Butter – 0 Carbs
Mayonnaise – 0 Carbs
Avocados – 4.8 grams each
Blue Cheese Dressing (2 tbsp) – 2.3 grams
Italian Dressing (2 tbsp) – 3 grams
Cesar Dressing (2 tbsp) – .5 grams
Ranch Dressing (2 tbsp) – 1.4 grams
100 Island Dressing (2 tbsp) – 4.8 grams
Oils – 0 Carbs (olive, avocado, and coconut oils for general use)
Pure Unrefined Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Coconut Oil – 0 Carbs (contains medium chain triglycerides fatty acids, metabolized by the body to be used as immediate energy and not stored as fat)

Note: Check labels on all commercial dressings for carb counts

SOY VEGAN PROTEIN

Soybeans – 6.2 grams per 1/2 cup
Soy Milk – 1.2 grams per cup
Firm Tofu – 2.2 grams per 4 ounces
Silken Tofu – 3.2 grams per 4 ounces
Tempeh – 16 grams per cup
Soy Nuts – 2 grams per ½ ounce

HERBS AND SPICES

All herbs and spices have only trace amounts of carbs, but be sure to check the label for any herb blends or rubs, as they often contain added sugar.

VEGETABLES

Alfalfa Sprouts – .4 grams per cup
Daikon – 1 gram per ½ cup
Endive – >1 gram per ounce
Escarole – >1 gram per ounce
Arugula – .2 grams per ½ cup
Bok Choy – .8 grams per 1 cup/raw
Celery – .8 grams per 1 stalk
Chicory Greens – .6 grams per ½ cup
Green Onions – .1 per 1 tablespoon
Cucumber – 1 gram per ½ cup sliced
Fennel – 3.6 grams per 1 cup
Iceberg Lettuce – .1 grams per 1/2 cup
Jicama – 2.5 grams per ½ cup
Parsley – >1 gram per ounce
Bell Peppers – 2.3 grams per ½ cup
Radicchio – .7 grams per ½ cup
Radishes – .9 grams per 10 pieces
Romaine Lettuce – .2 grams per ½ cup
Artichoke (1/4 Steamed) – 4 grams
Artichoke Hearts In Water – 2 grams per 1 heart
Asparagus – 2.4 grams per 6 spears
Bamboo Shoots – 1.1 grams per 1 cup
Broccoli – 1 gram per 1/2 cup
Brussels sprouts – 2.4 grams per ¼ cup
Cabbage – 2 grams per ½ cup
Cauliflower – 2 grams per 1 cup
Chard – 1.8 grams per ½ cup
Collard Greens – 4.2 grams per 1/2 cup
Eggplant – 1.8 grams per ½ cup
Hearts of Palm – .7 grams per 1 heart
Kale – 2.4 grams per ½ cup
Kohlrabi – 4.6 grams per ½ cup
Leeks – 1.7 grams per ¼ cup
Mushrooms – 1 gram per ½ cup
Okra – 2.4 grams per ½ cup
Black Olives (10 small, 5 large, or 3 jumbo olives) – 1 gram
Onions – 2.8 grams per ¼ cup
Pumpkin – 2.4 grams per ¼ cup
Sauerkraut (canned and drained) – 1.2 grams per ½ cup
Spinach – .2 grams per ½ cup
Summer Squash – 2 grams per ½ cup
Tomato (1 medium) – 4 grams
Cherry Tomatoes – 4 grams per cup
Turnips – 2.2 grams per ½ cup

FRUITS

Limes – 2 grams per 1 ounce
Lemons – 2 grams per 1 ounce
Rhubarb – 1.7 grams per ½ cup
Apricots – 5 grams per fruit
Strawberries – 11 grams per cup
Blackberries – 7 grams per cup
Raspberries – 5 grams per cup
Red Grapefruit – 9 grams per 1/2 fruit

DAIRY

Egg White – .3 grams
Egg Yolk – .3 grams
Whole Egg – .6 grams
Heavy Whipping Cream – .5 to .7 grams per tablespoon
Half-and-Half – .5 to 1 grams per tablespoon
Plain Full Fat Greek Yogurt – 9 grams per cup
Full Fat Sour Cream – 1.2 grams per 2 tablespoons
Unsweetened Almond Milk – Less than 1 gram per cup

Cheeses

Gruyère Cheese – .1 grams per ounce
Cheddar – .5 gram per ounce
Fontina – .4 grams per ounce
Havarti – .7 grams per ounce
Parmesan – .9 grams per ounce
Gouda – .6 grams per ounce
Mozzarella – .6 grams per ounce
Ricotta – .8 grams per ounce
Blue Cheese – 1 gram per ounce
Edam – .4 grams per ounce
Monterey – .1 grams per ounce
Muenster – .3 grams per ounce
Provolone – .6 grams per ounce
Neufchatel – .1 to .8 grams per ounce

NUTS & SEEDS

Almonds (2 tbsp) – 1.4 grams
Peanuts (2 tbsp.) – 1.8 grams
Hazelnuts (2 tbsp.) – 1.2 gram
Macadamia Nuts (2 tbsp.) -.9 grams
Pecans (2 tbsp. chopped) – .6 grams
Pine Nuts (2 tbsp.) – 1.7 grams
Pistachio Nuts (2 tbsp.) – 3.1 grams
Walnuts (2 tbsp. halves) – .9 grams
Pumpkin Seeds – 5 grams per ounce
Sunflower Seeds – 4 grams per ounce
Almond Butter – 3 grams per tablespoon
Peanut Butter – 2.4 grams per tablespoon

ZERO CARB DRINKS

Water
Unsweetened Tea
Unsweetened Coffee
Club Soda
Diet Soda (be cautious as artificial sweeteners can affect low carb weight loss)
Sugar Free Sparkling Water
No-Calorie Flavored Seltzers
Herbal Tea (without added barley or fruit sugars)