When you think of fast food outlets, burgers, fries, and pizza come to mind. Fortunately, most of these establishments now offer tasty low carb options, and not just salads!
Low Carb Quick Meals: What Can You Eat?
Low-carb options generally tend to exclude bread, placing more emphasis on the “toppings”: meat, cheese, and vegetables, in most cases. Salads and bowls can also be great options.
Carbohydrate-free foods can be harder to find, and options can be very limited, as most fast food restaurant meals are made with ingredients that contain at least some carbohydrate.
Best Low Carb Quick Meals
If you’re on a low carb diet, here are some of the best low carb quick meal solutions to consider.
1. Low-carb side dishes
If you’re looking for low-carb sides, choose vegetables instead of the more popular fries or potatoes. Most restaurants will easily swap your fries for a salad or a bowl with mixed vegetables.
The method of preparation does not matter as long as they are not coated in breadcrumbs or batter and then fried.
2. Low Carb Fried Chicken
Chicken is often a great choice if you’re on a low carb diet, but what about fried chicken? Even though the breading or batter certainly adds carbs to the meal, it is still a low carb option.
3. Low Carb Salads
When you think low carb, salads are probably one of the first things that come to mind. And while they’re generally a great choice, if you’re trying to reduce your carb intake, you need to be careful about the vegetables you eat.
In general, vegetables that grow above ground like lettuces, asparagus, broccoli, and zucchini, to name a few examples, tend to be low in carbs. Vegetables that grow underground, such as beets and carrots, often contain more.
It is also advisable to avoid starchy vegetables such as potatoes and sweet potatoes. The other thing to consider is the type of dressing used. Many salad dressings are high in sugar (carbs), so it’s best to stick with a healthy salad dressing made with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
We also advise you to ask for the sauce to be presented on the side, which allows you to control the quantity you use.
4. Low Carb Breakfast at a Fast Food Restaurant
Many fast food restaurant breakfasts are high in carbohydrates simply because they contain bread. But if you take it out, you’ll get a low carb breakfast just about anywhere!
At breakfast, to turn a sandwich into a quick low-carb meal, ask for a lettuce wrap instead or enjoy it without bread. It is possible to find steaks or sausages, eggs and cheeses almost everywhere and their taste will not suffer from the absence of bread.
Smoothies are also ideal solutions, as long as they are made from low-carb fruits such as berries. To keep you full until lunch, try adding foods like coconut oil and hemp seeds to get a good boost of good fats and protein and not get hungry too quickly.
So is it possible to eat out and stick to your low carb diet? Sure. Even if you have to ask to replace a few foods here and there, most restaurants will be more than happy to do so.