A friend of mine who was just released from the hospital due to diabetes complications hit me up for low-carb snack recommendations. He’s determined to clean the carbs and sugar out of his diet and he knows I live that low-carb life.
I don’t snack often, but sometimes I’m on the run and I need something “just in case” so that I’m not stuck without food options. I’m partial to “salty crunchy” (which was a real challenge when I gave up tortilla chips!) so that’s the bulk of my low-carb snack list. But there are a couple of sweet snack/dessert options here as well. I hope it’s helpful!
- People’s Choice beef jerky. It’s important to get People’s Choice because virtually every brand I’ve seen on the market is preserved with sugar. This particular variety has zero sugar, zero carbs, and tastes great. I order mine from Amazon.
- Epic BAKED pork rinds. Again, it’s important to look for this variety; Epic has several, and they’re all good, but if you’re trying to keep your P:E ratio low, these have far less fat than traditional pork rinds. Zero sugar, zero carbs. Also at Amazon.
- Whisps Cheese Crisps (Parmesan). Whisps has several flavors, but the plain Parmesan has the best nutrition profile for me (zero sugar, one carb, 10g fat and 13g protein). The “everything” flavor is amazing, but they’re harder to find. I get mine at Costco. You can get large bags there, or get variety packs. Of course, you can get them at Amazon, too.
- Nuts. Nuts are a good transition food if you’re going low-carb, but you have to be careful because they’re incredibly high in energy (mostly fat) and because they’re addictive, it’s really easy to overdo them. You can pack on some weight by keeping nuts around the house! (Macadamias are my weakness). Pecans seem to have the best nutrition profile as far as fats/carbs/protein (P:E) ratio, but none of them are great in that regard.
- Dark chocolate and nut butter. I’m a huge chocolate fan, so giving it up to be low-carb simply wasn’t an option for me. As it turns out, dark chocolate has plenty of benefits. The higher the percentage, the better. And, the higher the percentage of chocolate, the lower the percentage of added sugar. I buy bars of 92% Ghiradelli chocolate at Kroger. One square of a bar is actually incredibly satiating. For a special treat I spread a bit of almond butter (just almonds, no added anything) and sprinkle a little coarse sea salt across the top. It’s a great sweet snack.
- Sardines. I’ll probably lose a few of you on this one, but once you get past the “ick factor” sardines are the closest thing to a perfect food and make an easy, quick, high-protein snack. Some folks eat them on crackers, with hot sauce, even with peanut butter. I eat them straight from a can with a fork. Brand matters. I think it was Tim Ferriss who put Wild Planet Sardines on my radar. They are by far my favorite brand. I’ve tried others but they’re either too dry or too fishy, and often their nutrition profile isn’t as good as Wild Planet. No surprise, I get mine at…Costco.
- Dessert bonus: chocolate pudding. I eat a lot of 0% fat, plain Greek yogurt. We buy 3 tubs each week at Costco. I also buy chocolate-flavored “Designer Whey” protein powder at Kroger (also available on Amazon) to add protein around the edges of my diet. Simply mix the recommended serving size of each in a bowl or “Magic Bullet” and blend well. You get instant chocolate pudding with 6 grams total sugar, 13g carbs, and 38g protein. Honestly, it’s really filling and most people I’ve met can’t eat a full serving in one sitting (though I can!)
These are my “go to” snacks. Most are easy to throw in your bag to take with you to work, on trips, etc. Snacking as it’s used in the Standard American Diet (SAD) isn’t a great habit. If you’re eating protein-rich meals you should stay fuller longer, relieving the need to eat between meals. But if you’re like me, running from place to place, never knowing when you might get stuck without a healthy food option, having a low-carb snack with you can fill the void until meal time.
Enjoy!