Nut butters are an excellent source of healthy fats and are great for helping people stick to their keto diets.
Nuts are full of protein which helps to build and repair tissue, such as new muscles from all your working out. It also, along with the excessive amount of healthy fats from nuts, gives you more energy to be able to burn off your consumed carbohydrates.
The keto diet is a vigorous one with set amounts of macro and micro nutrients allowed. The macro nutrients are divided into percentages, allowing the individuals 2000 calorie intake to be made up of around 60% fats, 30% protein and 10% carbohydrates.
Many people on the keto diet fail because they struggle to find foods to satisfy their sweet tooth, however nut butter is an excellent way to quell these cravings.
Having said this, many peanut butters found in supermarkets are loaded with carbohydrates so you’re going to want to look for one with a specifically low carb count.
This can be a long process and often put people off even buying any, which is why we’ve found the top five keto friendly nut butters for you to peruse and choose.
In a hurry?
We know keto diets can be difficult to stick to thanks to the potential cravings of sugary treats, so we’ll keep this short and sweet.
Our top pick for the best nut butter for keto diets is the BARNEY Almond Butter, in one of its many variations, because:
- BARNEY roasts and uses their nuts straight away to keep that roasted flavor fresh and present in the nut butter.
- The facility where the nut butter is made is completely peanut free so you don’t have to worry if you have a peanut allergy.
- Each serving only holds 2g of net carbs, which hardly touches your daily allowance.
Buyers Guide
Type of Nut
This is all up to personal preference as nut butters can pretty much be used with any nut imaginable. Walnuts, almonds, cashews - you name it, someone’s made it. Having said this, some nuts are higher in macros than others, including those dreaded carbohydrates. The lowest carb nuts include pecans, macadamia and brazil nuts (although the last technically isn’t a nut), whereas the highest include cashews, pistachios and pine nuts.
Let’s take a look at a few of the popular nut butters used in keto diets.
Almond butter
Almond butter is super versatile and can be used in almost any recipe to give it a nice added flavor. Two thirds of the serving is taken up by healthy fats and there’s more calcium from the nuts in this butter.
People love using almonds in their keto diets because it tastes great and doesn’t go overboard with the net carbohydrates.
Macadamia butter
This type of nut tends to have less net carbohydrates than others, so on paper butter made with them should be the healthiest. However, macadamia nuts tend to be quite bland and therefore need more ingredients added to make it into a tasty keto snack, therefore making the carb count pretty similar to other nut butters.
The best nut butters made from macadamia nuts actually use other low carb nuts as well such as pecans and almonds to give it more of a flavorsome taste.
Peanut butter
Peanut butter is the most readily available nut butter and you can get it from almost any food store. However, many of the cheaper versions include lots of carbohydrates thanks to unnecessary and processed ingredients such as artificial sweeteners and corn syrup.
Peanuts are a great source of protein and healthy fats to get your macros in, and they don’t hold too many carbohydrates. An organic peanut butter will aid your keto diet excellently, just make sure to read the label and make sure your brand is a keto friendly one.
Carbohydrates
Of course carbohydrates are one of the most important factors to people following the keto diet, so you’ll need to make sure your nut butter is low in net carbs. Although a nut butter says it only includes 8g net carbs and this doesn’t sound like much, that’s well over a third of your daily allowance gone on two tablespoons of nut butter.
Look for a nut butter that contains no more than 4g of net carbs to keep you on the right track with your keto diet. Otherwise you may find yourself having to halve your portions to keep your carbs down.
Flavors
Nut butter is an excellent snack or dessert option for people following the keto diet thanks to the sweet flavor. However, for some serious sweet tooths out there, natural nut butter just won’t subdue their cravings. This is why many brands are now creating different flavors for people who need a healthy, sweet fix.
Make sure you get a flavor that you’re going to enjoy and not make you reach for the biscuit tin. Imagine the disappointment you’d feel when your new sweet snack arrives in the post and you’ve accidentally ordered a classic nut butter with no sweet flavoring, or vice versa.
Added Extras
Some brands just love to incorporate additional ingredients into their nut butters that no one asked for. Artificial sweeteners, colors and unhealthy sugar sources are among the most common useless ingredients that you may find on the back of your nut butter label. These can increase the carbohydrate content and therefore affect your keto diet, so it’s important to read the label before committing to your nut butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
What nut butters are keto?
Here are a list of popular nuts and their net carbohydrates per one ounce (28g) serving:
| Nut | Net Carbs Per One Ounce Serving | | Pecan | 1 | | Almond | 3 | | Hazelnut | 2 | | Brazil | 1 | | Peanut | 4 | | Walnut | 2 | | Pine | 3 | | Macadamia | 2 |
The lower the net carb number, the more likely the nut butter is going to fit into your keto diet. Having said this, you can incorporate them all into your diet if you stick to portion sizes.
Another thing to remember is that no matter the nut net carb number, the manufacturer could include various different ingredients to make the nut butter not suitable for keto diets, so make sure you read the label and work out the net carbs of the butter for yourself.
The formula to work out the net carbohydrates is: Total Carbs - Fiber - ½ Carbs from Sugar Alcohols. Bear in mind that the keto diet calls for you to only consume 20 net carbs a day.
Is almond butter or peanut butter better for keto?
Both of these nuts actually contain higher amounts of carbohydrates than alternative nuts, but most people want either a peanut or almond butter because they taste the best. Ultimately, both of these nuts are fine for a keto diet as long as you keep it in moderation.
Peanut butter is slightly higher in carbs than almond butter, however this means that there’s also more protein which is a plus when you’re struggling with your macros. Having said this, almond butter has higher fiber content as well as a lot of your needed micronutrients.
This really depends on what you’re struggling with most on your keto diet. Macros? Try some peanut butter. Micros? How about getting some almond butter in. Not struggling with either? Go wild and choose whichever you want!
