29 Keto Asian Recipes Better Than Takeout
Updated
Rice and noodles are the two things standing between you and a full Asian menu on keto. Swap those out, rebuild the sauces without added sugar, and the rest of the cuisine is already pretty close to low carb. These 26 recipes cover stir fry, chicken, noodle soups, sushi, homemade sauces, and salads.
Stir Fry and Bowls
One pan, high heat, done in under 20 minutes. Stir fry is where I go when I need dinner on the table fast and still want something that actually tastes like a meal.
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The Best Keto Egg Roll in a Bowl
Ground pork, cabbage, sesame oil, ginger. That combination has been in my weekly rotation for three years now (maybe longer). Under six grams of net carbs and a 4.6 rating from more than 25 readers.
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Keto Beef and Broccoli
Six grams net carbs, 35g protein. The sauce on this beef and broccoli uses coconut aminos and a small hit of sesame, which is the part most takeout versions skip entirely.
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Chicken Stir Fry
Fifteen-minute stir fry. Chicken and vegetables, under four grams net carbs. More than 10 ratings at 4.6 stars, which tracks, because the sauce-to-protein ratio here is genuinely good.
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Low Carb Cashew Beef
This one runs higher than the rest of the stir fry section. Fourteen grams net carbs, mostly from the cashews. Worth knowing upfront. Thirty-nine grams of protein makes it filling enough that I am not reaching for anything else.
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Cauliflower Fried Rice
Cauliflower fried rice with egg, sesame oil, and vegetables. Riced cauliflower has a texture problem when it is steamed, but stir-fried in a hot wok it actually works. About seven grams net carbs.
Chicken
Katsu, butter chicken, bang bang, sesame. These are the chicken preparations I come back to when I want something with actual layers of flavor rather than just protein and vegetables.
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Keto Sesame Chicken
Sweet sesame glaze on chicken. About six grams net carbs, just under 30g protein. The sauce is what makes this, and it is a lot simpler to make than it looks.
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Keto Chicken Katsu
2.7g net carbs. Panko-style chicken cutlets coated without the carbs, served with a tangy dipping sauce. This is Japanese comfort food done right, and it holds 4.9 stars across more than 20 ratings.
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Keto Bang Bang Chicken
Bang bang sauce is both sweet and spicy, and the crunch holds up even after plating, which is honestly rare for anything coated in a sauce. Under four grams net carbs. Forty grams of protein.
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Keto Butter Chicken in the Instant Pot
This is what I make on a weeknight when I want something that tastes like effort but does not take effort. Instant Pot butter chicken, creamy tomato-based curry, 6.3g net carbs, fifteen minutes. A 4.8 star average from more than 15 ratings.
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Hunan Chicken
Hunan-style. Real heat from dried chilies and fresh peppers, not the background warmth you get from a sauce packet. Six grams net carbs, 20g protein.
Noodles and Soup
Shirataki noodles for ramen, zucchini or daikon for pho, cauliflower rice for fried rice. None of these are exact substitutes, but some of them are genuinely close.
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Keto Ramen
Rich pork broth, soft-boiled egg, shirataki noodles. This is what I make when it is cold and I want something that takes twenty minutes but tastes like it took three hours. 6.9g net carbs, a 4.5 rating from more than 10 readers.
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Keto Beef Pho
Keto pho. The broth is slow-simmered beef bone with star anise, cinnamon, and fish sauce. Under three grams net carbs. The noodle substitute works better than I expected the first time I tried it.
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Spicy Keto Thai Chicken Soup
The broth is the main event here, not the chicken. Coconut milk, lemongrass, galangal, fresh lime. Eight grams net carbs, about 30g protein. Tom kha gai, keto-friendly.
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Keto Shrimp Fried Rice
Most cauliflower fried rice comes out soggy. The fix is getting the cauliflower dry before it hits the pan, otherwise it steams instead of fries. Shrimp version. 6.4g net carbs, nearly 27g protein.
Salads and Sushi
The naruto roll showed me that cucumber can actually stand in for rice in a way that does not feel like a consolation prize. That surprised me.
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Sesame Chicken Salad
Grilled chicken, greens, sesame dressing. Nearly seven grams net carbs, 37.4g protein. More than 15 ratings at 4.8 stars. I make this more in summer but honestly it works year round.
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Thai Chicken Salad
13.1g net carbs, mostly from the peanut dressing. Thai-inspired, 35g protein, and the kind of salad that actually improves after sitting in the fridge overnight. Worth making a double batch.
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Naruto Roll
Thin cucumber slices rolled around tuna or salmon instead of rice. 5.4g net carbs. A 4.7 star average from more than 15 ratings. The sushi method I keep coming back to when I want something that actually feels like sushi.
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Asian Cucumber Salad
Sesame cucumber salad. Thinly sliced, tangy dressing, done in ten minutes. 4.2g net carbs. Simple. Good alongside almost anything else in this section.
Sauces and Marinades
Store-bought teriyaki and stir fry sauces are basically syrup. Making them from scratch takes ten minutes and the difference is noticeable immediately.
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Stir Fry Sauce
All-purpose stir fry sauce. Three grams net carbs per serving. I keep a jar in the fridge and use it on everything from chicken to vegetables to eggs. Rated 4.8 by more than 20 readers.
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Keto Teriyaki Sauce
What makes this teriyaki work is the balance between soy, sesame, and the sweetener. 1.8g net carbs. I have tried several bottled keto teriyaki sauces and none of them taste right, which is why I started making my own.
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Keto Teriyaki Chicken
Chicken glazed in the homemade teriyaki from above. 1.8g net carbs, about 20g protein. Twenty minutes start to finish. The glaze caramelizes properly without any actual sugar.
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Keto Sesame Ginger Asian Meatballs
Sesame ginger meatballs, twenty per batch, 0.6g net carbs each. Served with a dipping sauce. More than 15 ratings at 4.7 stars. The appetizer I bring to things when I do not want to explain keto to everyone.
