16 Amazing Low-Carb Recipes You Need To Make Immediately

low-carb recipes
Image: iStock/RapidEye

Making the decision to change your diet and lifestyle isn’t easy! Maybe you’re hoping to shed a few pounds. Or maybe you just want to be a healthier version of yourself. We’ve all been down that road before. Your success can often depend on how easy your new lifestyle plan is to execute. But luckily, if you decide to ditch carbs for a while, there are so many delicious recipes out there to help you make it happen! Low-carb recipes don’t have to be short on flavors. In fact, some of these low-carb recipes look ever better than the originals, and that’s saying something! Maybe it’s because we’re older now, but we would take low-carb pizza over regular pizza almost every single time (you can have more if it’s low-carb, it’s a rule).

With 2019 off and running, so many people are making the resolution to overhaul the way they eat. And it’s a great lifestyle change – you’d be so surprised how much better you feel when you start to eat better! Rather than make a major change, starting small is easier to manage for a lot of people. Ditching sugar and going low-carb is a popular choice, but even that can be challenging when you don’t prepare. With this arsenal of low-carb recipes, you’ll never find yourself scrounging in the kitchen for something to make for dinner. And these are meals, snacks, and treats that the whole family will enjoy.

Some of the best low-carb recipes copy your favorite comfort foods, like this spaghetti squash and cheese casserole from Skinny Taste.

low-carb recipes
Image: Skinny Taste

Gooey, cheesy comfort food goodness? YES PLEASE. You can still get down with some mac ‘n’ cheese without sacrificing your low-carb commitment. We love spaghetti squash for its versatility and texture, and we use it in a lot of our meals. Now, we’re not saying that it’s exactly like pasta! But when you cover it with as much cheddar cheese as this Skinny Taste recipe, well, who cares that it’s not pasta. Plus, this one actually has spinach in it too, so it’s like doubly healthy! We promise, you serve this to your family and not only will they love it, they won’t even ask why the noodles feel weird.

Low-carb recipes can also be fancy (and easy!). Check out this lemon garlic butter shrimp with zoodles from @Keto.Challenge.For.You.

Image: Instagram/@keto.challenge.for.you

Honestly, I would eat that every single day, and I’m not even cutting carbs! Zucchini noodles are such a great pasta substitute, and much easier on your waistline. Plus shrimp? Yep. See, I don’t ever eat pasta with shrimp because I feel like the pasta is too heavy for it? This would be the perfect balance. This recipe from @keto.challenge.for.you calls for a pound of shrimp and about four medium zucchini, and I feel like that’s probably two large portions or four smaller portions. The sauce is butter, stock or white wine, garlic, lemon juice, and red pepper flakes. My mouth is watering.

Sometimes you just need a good burger. You know what makes a burger even better? A CHEESE BUN.

Image: Instagram/@cheeseisthenewbread

Christina at @Cheeseisthenewbread made an actual hamburger bun out of cheese. Just … cheese. I need this in my life in the worst way. Sure, it’s a bit more labor intensive then just opening a bag of hamburger buns (or going bun-less, which is my preferred method). The cheese buns are made from eggs, shredded mozzarella, and grated or shredded parmesan, and then baked. You could also do one larger bun to use as a pizza crust. The carb count on these is insane: 0.5g net carbs per bun, and 2b net carbs for a whole pizza crust. I would eat this every day.

Low-carb recipes have your snack attack covered, too. @Littlepinelowcarb has a recipe for cheese chips.

Image: Instagram/@littlepinelowcarb

OK, so I could possibly go low-carb for these babies. Bacon and sauteed onion cheese chips? Get in my face. The thing is, I don’t even like crackers! They’re not a snack I reach for and I probably wouldn’t miss them if I never ate them again. But I do love cheese, and I especially love crispy cheese. I also love bacon! This recipe from Little Pine Low Carb is easy peasy, and you can be shoving these into your mouth in under 30 minutes. You can also use a different cheese – the recipe calls for cheddar, but parmesan will work as well! But skip the bacon, there’s no point in eating them if they don’t have bacon.

Looking for something low-carb to satisfy your sweet tooth? @Fooddreamer has you covered.

Image: Instagram/@fooddreamer

Sure, the holidays just ended. But do we really need an excuse to make pecan pie? Anyway, there will be another holiday season in 10 short months, and you’ll want to be prepared with your low-carb recipes to get through it without a hitch. This low-carb maple pecan pie recipe from All Day I Dream About Food looks so much like the real deal, no one will know it’s sugar-free! The filling uses two kinds of sweetener, one of them a brown sugar substitute. And while the pie has a maple flavor, there’s no maple syrup in it – she uses maple extract instead! Plus all those yummy, crunchy pecans.

Stuffed peppers are always good, and they’re even better if they keep you under your daily carb count.

Image: Instagram/@personalized.nutrition

Now, I love me some rice, but I would absolutely demolish these low-carb stuffed peppers from Amy Mackenzie at @personalized.nutrition. She subs riced broccoli for the rice! You could also sub riced cauliflower, which in my opinion is more mild in flavor and holds up just as well. I love this recipe because there are so many tweaks you can make to suit your own tastes. This recipe uses ground beef, but you could easily use ground turkey or pork, steak, or even make a vegetarian version and leave out the meat. What I love most about is how packed with veggies these peppers are – spinach, mushrooms, carrots, onions, and the broccoli or cauliflower.

Now that it’s finally cooling down, you’re going to need some soup for those chilly nights. This cauliflower soup from @Delish will warm your soul.

Creamy? Check. Bacon? Check. Low-carb? CHECK! Soup is just plain good, and you don’t have to give it up once you go low-carb. In fact, soups are an easy way to fill your belly while staying on plan! Because you can turn pretty much anything into a soup, and you can tweak any recipe to make it suit your lifestyle and needs. Take this recipe from Delish, for example. Now, you’re probably used to potato soup. But what are potatoes loaded with? Yep, carbs. So swap out those taters and replace them with cauliflower, and what do you get? A creamy, rich, filling soup without all the carbs. Brilliant.

You can even enjoy some of your favorite international cuisines after going low-carb! Check out these enchiladas.

Yes, you heard that right: ENCHILADAS. Cheesy and spicy and just amazing. Make them immediately, and then make them again. This recipe from Delish, reposted by @ketomovement1, uses cabbage leaves instead of tortillas. Just boil each leaf for 30 seconds, allow it to dry, and use it like you would a tortilla in traditional enchiladas. You can use shredded chicken or beef, ground beef, even seafood would be great in this. Then add cheese, add some more cheese, maybe a little more cheese. Oh, and sauce! You need sauce. If you used a prepared sauce, make sure to check the label.

You going low-carb? You like pizza? Say no more, fam.

Who needs crust when you can have an entire pizza made of just cheese and your favorite toppings? Bread has no home here. We all know the best part about pizza is the cheese itself. So why not throw the bread out with the trash, and double and triple the amount of cheese you eat? That sounds like a plan we can absolutely live with. This recipe from @keto.tips calls for a cheese crust made of shredded mozzarella and grated parmesan. Add a sugar-free sauce, and your favorite toppings, and you have a pizza anyone would be happy to shove directly into their face.

Sometimes you need a little something sweet, I get it. How does a low-carb cupcake sound?

Image: Instagram/@baconistheketomyheart

These amazing protein cupcakes have just 1g net carbs per cupcake. So indulge that dessert craving without feeling guilty. For this recipe, @baconistheketomyheart used a premade keto cake mix and added dessert protein for the batter. The rest is pretty basic: eggs, water, butter, baking powder, the usual suspects. You can top these sweet treats with sugar-free buttercream or another low-carb frosting of your choice. You’ll definitely want to put these in your regular rotation of amazing keto-friendly desserts. We know it”s hard to resist ALL treats, especially if you have kids! But you can still be treat-smart, and makes desserts that keep you meeting your goals.

We love burritos. Luckily, there are low-carb recipes to keep us burrito rich.

Image: Delish

I’ll admit, I miss tortillas something awful when I’m riding that low-carb train. I don’t even eat them very often! But every once in a while, I catch a craving for tacos or a burrito and man, that’s hard to deal with. These zucchini burrito boats from Delish certainly help. It’s all the best parts of a burrito, without the carb guilt afterward. This recipe calls for ground beef, but again, you can totally use whatever protein you happen to like or have on hand. I bet these would be amazing with steak or shrimp! There are black beans and tomatoes and plenty of cheese and spices. Plus you can eat with a knife and fork and avoid that whole “my hands smell like onions” thing for days afterward.

This sounds delicious, looks cool, and cooks in a flash. Winner!

Image: SkinnyTaste

What a perfect summer recipe! When it heats up, using the oven or stove is out of the question. So we always fire up the grill a few nights a week during the summer. And while there are plenty of low-carb recipes that work on the grill, this one is so much fun. This recipe for grilled clams in foil from SkinnyTaste is super easy with very little clean up, so it’s already a winner in my book. Don’t be afraid of cooking with live clams – just make sure you buy them from a reputable grocer or fish market, and double check that all the clams are fully closed before cooking (throw out any that are open). White wine, butter, and garlic make the best sauce when mixed with the salty clam juices.

Another great dish for when the weather starts to heat up.

Image: Delish

Who says you have to completely give up sushi when you’re cutting carbs? Not this gal! You can totally make low-carb sushi (as long as you’re OK with sushi without the rice). These zucchini sushi rolls from Delish are like a delicious, low-carb California roll. This recipe calls for lump crab meat, which would be awesome. But you can also do shrimp or a fish like salmon or albacore. The cream cheese and sriracha dipping sauce adds a nice creamy element with a bit of heat. And just like traditional California rolls, these have carrots, avocado, and cucumbers inside, which add a nice crunch.

Need some low-carb recipes for a gathering or party? You can’t miss with these fancy pinwheels.

Image: SkinnyTaste

I’m not a big bagel eater, but I will absolutely demolish a bagel with lox and capers. Smoked salmon is just sooooooo good. But you can still get all the best parts of a bagel with lox and cream cheese, minus the bagel! These smoked salmon pinwheels from SkinnyTaste are pretty much the very best parts, all rolled up into a cute little package that you can pop right in your mouth. Perfect for a party or brunch! Make sure you use a good quality smoked salmon, since that’s really the star of this dish. The filling is cream cheese and cucumbers, but I’d probably throw some fresh dill in there too. Garnish with raw red onion and capers, and then try not to eat the whole roll.

Mmmmmm, meatballs.

Image: Delish

I’m a big fan of zoodles, but sometimes they need a little something extra. They need something like these garlic butter meatballs from Delish. This recipe is made with ground chicken, a healthy dose of grated parmesan cheese, and plenty of spices. The zoodles are cooked in a heaping pan of fresh garlic and butter, then toss it all together for a delicious but healthy feast. This meal is full of flavor, but won’t kick your carb count up for the day. And that meatball recipe will work for just about anything. It never hurts to have a great low-carb meatball recipe on standby, right?

Low-carb recipes you can make in the Instant Pot? Sign me up.

Image: SkinnyTaste

I seriously love my Instant Pot. It has made life easier and more delicious, and I’m constantly looking for new ways to use it. I also love roasted pork, but honestly, who has the time?! I certainly don’t, nor do I have the patience. I can’t sit around while my house fills with the smell of delicious roasted pork, knowing it’s still hours away from being able to enjoy it. So this Instant Pot garlicky Cuban pork from SkinnyTaste is perfect. The pork shoulder is marinated in a marinade of grapefruit juice, garlic, cumin, oregano, lime juice, and salt. According to the recipe, a 3lb shoulder will cook on high in about 80 minutes. Then shred it with a fork, and eat it on pretty much anything.

Low-carb recipes don’t have to be boring. And you don’t have to live on salads once you ditch those carbs. You can eat well, in more ways than one.

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