21 of the best keto vegetables and fruits

Do keto vegetables and fruits exist? Surely not, vegetables = carbs and carbs on keto are a big no-no, right? Wrong! You can and should include some fresh fruit and veggies in your keto diet – your body needs the nutrients from plants to stay nice and healthy. Although keto diets are based around lots of healthy fats and protein with very little carbs, you still need the vitamins and minerals from good old fruits and veggies. It’s just a matter of choosing keto-friendly vegetables and fruits that won’t kick your body out of the ketosis you worked so hard to get into. Let’s tuck in!

While a fluffy baked potato may be off the menu (sorry!) there are plenty of low carb vegetables you can have your fill of – and for good reason. The keto veggies listed below can taste amazing if you know how to prepare or cook them right and are super good for you and, with the following health benefits in common:

Carbs in fresh courgette per 100g: ¹ As you can see, courgette is very low in carbs, packed full of fibre, vitamin C, and potassium, and perfect for keto. Get inspired:

Carbs in fresh kale per 100g: 10g ² (that’s a whole lot of kale, remember!) Like most leafy greens, kale is a great source of fibre and vitamins K, C, E and B vitamins. Get inspired:

Carbs in spinach per 100g: 3.6g ³ Another great leafy green perfect for keto and full of iron and B vitamins is spinach. Get inspired:

Carbs in cucumber per 100g: 2.2g ⁴ Super low carb and a refreshing snack all in one, you can always trust in cucumber on keto. Get inspired:

Carbs in sweet red bell pepper per 100g: 6g ⁵ Deliciously sweet and low-carb, you can’t go wrong with a little bell pepper while you’re following a keto diet. Stick to green and red peppers though, as they contain less sugar than yellow ones. Get inspired:

Carbs in broccoli per 100g: 6.6g ⁶ Broccoli is super good for you, with tons of vitamin C, K and folic acid – and very keto friendly. Get inspired:

Carbs in butternut squash per 100g: 10.5g ⁷ While butternut squash is higher in carbohydrates than most vegetables, you can still include it in your keto diet – you just have to be smart about it! Get inspired:

Carbs in celery per 100g: 3.0g ⁸ Celery is very underrated, is mostly water (no carbs in water!) and can be absolutely delicious. Get inspired:

Carbs in cauliflower per 100g: 5.0g ⁹ The humble cauliflower is a stand-out star in the keto world due to its amazing ability to replicate the carbs we know and love. Get inspired:

Carbs in asparagus per 100g: 3.9g ¹⁰ A truly tasty spring veggie, asparagus is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin B9 and copper. Get inspired:

Carbs in cabbage per 100g: 5.8g ¹¹ Like most leafy greens, cabbage is a great choice to serve among proteins and fats on a keto diet. Get inspired:

Carbs in mushrooms per 100g: 3.3g ¹² You either love ‘em or you hate ‘em, but vitamin D- and selenium-rich mushrooms are very welcome in the keto world. Get inspired:

Carbs in olives per 100g: 6.1g ¹³ Olives are a great keto snack packed with healthy fats, vitamins and minerals, making them perfect for keto. Get inspired:

Carrots are pretty high in carbs and sugars, so it’s best to eat very little or avoid them completely on a keto diet.

9 of the best keto diet fruits

Now we can get onto the fruits. As most fruits are very high in sugar (we’re looking at you, bananas!) it can seem tricky to get some fruit into your keto diet, but it is possible. See the list below for fruits that are fine to eat on keto in moderation.

Technically, they are fruits, but they sometimes get lumped into the veggie category. Either way, they’re great for keto.

Carbs in avocado per 100g: 8.5g The hero of all keto diets! Avocados are packed with healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that help keep your heart healthy and put you into that all-important ketosis. Get inspired:

Most typical keto diets recommend that only 5-10% of your daily food intake should come from carbohydrates, or less than 50g a day. To put this into perspective, a person eating following a 2000 kcal diet would be aiming for around 40g of carbohydrates with 165g of fat and 75g of protein. ¹⁴