9 Keto Thai Foods (9 Tips For Weight Loss)
If you love Thai cuisine but ever wondered how you can stick to your Keto routine, then this is the perfect post for you.
Sticking to a Keto diet can be challenging, especially when you venture out to new restaurants and food destinations
A Keto diet comes with so many health benefits and can expedite weight loss and fitness goals.
However, there are many foods that are unavailable to the dedicated Keto enthusiast and can backtrack anyone who has their mind set on staying on track.
After eating at a ton of Thai restaurants and households, I conjured up a list of all the delicious Keto options that Thai food has to offer.
There are so many options that you can choose from but there is a limit to the Keto options that Thai Food has to offer.
In this article we will be discussing the nutritional value of each of these items and the calorie content that goes into each one
9. Yam Kaw Moo Yang (Grilled Pork Neck Salad)
If you know Thai food then you know how amazing Thai pork is.
The two things that Thai chefs do the best, in my humble opinion, are the pork and the salads.
You won’t find anything like these types of dishes in any other Asian cuisine which is why Thai has to be one of my favorite foods.
Although this dish is very delicious, let’s see what it’s nutritional facts are and if it fits into our Keto diets. Here are the nutrition facts down below.
The macronutrient ratio for a typical Pork Neck Salad is 27 grams of fats, 11 grams of carbs (4 coming from fibers), and 30 grams of protein.
This is a great meal for us to consume as you really only consume 7 grams of carbs per 30 grams of protein served.
Sure it has some carbs in it but what’s more important is to gauge your daily carb intake and be aware of how many grams you are consuming.
Our tip here is to make sure that you don’t eat this with any sticky rice and stick to the fibrous greens that you can find on the menu.
It can be tempting to eat this delicious Pork Salad with a substantial carb, but being on Keto means that you have to stick with it till the end.
Thai cuisine often has lettuce wraps that are served with every dish, so wrapping the individual pork pieces you find in this dish in lettuce is a delicious way to eat this dish.
8. Nam Tok Moo (Grilled Pork With Dressing)
Similar to the Pork Neck Salad, Nam Tok Moo is a Pork dish that has a sweet, savory, and acidic taste and is grilled with green onions and lime juice.
Unlike the salad, however, there aren’t that many greens in this dish as it is usually eaten with sticky rice.
The trick here is to make sure that you eat this dish with any of the lettuce wraps that you can order on the menu.
It takes the savory taste of the dish and combines it with a neutral flavored veggie wrap that compliments the dish perfectly.
Let’s take a closer look at it’s nutritional content and see what makes this dish so Keto-friendly.
The macronutrient ratio for Nam Tok Moo goes for 21 grams of fats, 12 grams of carbs (2 coming from fibers), and 31 grams of protein.
Since there are two grams of fiber here, we are consuming 10 grams of carbs for every 31 grams or protein consumed.
This is a great ratio for a Keto dish and can easily be fit into your fitness goals. High protein is key when dieting and there’s really no better way to get your protein in than to eat a dish filled with awesome flavors and textures.
7. Larb Moo (Minced Pork Salad)
Larb has to be one of the staple dishes of Thai cuisine.
You can find this in any Thai restaurant as it is such a popular dish worldwide.
Although this dish is filled with wonderful savory and acidic flavors it has a major issue in its design.
Larb is an extremely savory dish and is meant to be eaten with sticky rice bite for bite.
In order to stick to our goals we have to be able to take the sacrifice and eat this with a lettuce wrap or salad dish that we can find on the menu. It’s still delicious and offers amazing flavors, just be careful when you eat a bite as its flavor can be very overwhelming.
Let’s take a closer look at the calorie contents and see if we can fit this into our Keto diets.
The macronutrient ratio for Larb Moo runs for 18 grams of fats, 13 grams of carbs (with 2 net carbs), and 25 grams of protein.
Once again, this is great for Keto as you get a delicious pork dish without the guilt of too many carbs.
Since there are 2 grams of fiber, you consume 11 grams of carbs per 25 grams of protein eaten. Sounds great to me!
This dish requires some sacrifice to eat which is why it’s placed on the 7th spot instead of the 1st as many would assume it would be.
It requires sacrifice to eat but it’s still very delicious, so make sure to try it out if you’re on Keto and want some Thai food.
6. Pla Duk Yang (Grilled Catfish)
Pla Duk Yang is a spicy catfish dish that is marinated in chilis, lime, and cilantro. It’s an amazing choice if you’re craving fish and is a great option for any Keto enthusiasts who are keen on keeping their goals throughout the year.
Fish is a protein that usually has less fats than any other meat and is a great option for anyone looking to slim down and shed some fat. Let’s look at the nutritional value and calorie count of this dish.
For every 15 grams of fat, you consume 2 grams of carbs and 29 grams of protein.
This macronutrient ratio is great for any diet and should be eaten more often by healthy conscious individuals.
For every 2 grams of carbs, you receive 29 grams of protein.
This is really a great meal to be had and can easily be eaten on its own or with some veggies.
The tip here is to order Pla Duk Yang and to eat it with some stir fried veggies or, again, the lettuce wraps that they serve at most restaurants.
You can actually just eat this on it’s own or pair it with another low carb option that you can find on this list.
This dish is not as savory as the previous dishes mentioned above so eating it alone is totally fine as well. Eat this as much as you can!
5. Pla Kapung Neung Manao (Steamed Lime Fish)
If you’ve ever had Asian style fish that is steamed and served with a soy based sauce, then you know how delicious this dish can be. However, I truly believe that Thai people win at this dish as they go so in-depth with the flavors that they choose for all of their dishes. They love to go the extra mile to make things really stand out. Let’s look at the nutritional facts and calorie content.
For every 7 grams of fat, you consume 4 grams of carbs and 29 grams of protein.
Once again, these macronutrients are great and you can definitely add this into any type of diet, not just Keto.
This dish really offers some deep flavors and our tip here is to either eat it alone or enjoy it with some stir fried veggies.
I know these tips are getting repetitive but it's good to know what this goes well with.
Fish is always a good option when you’re at a restaurant because you know that it will have the least amount of fats compared to any other meat that is served there. Pla Kapung is a safe dish and is always welcomed into a fitness endeavor.
4. Som Tam (Thai Green Papaya Salad)
You can’t deny that Papaya Salad is the best type of salad ever created. It sure beats caesar salad or a cobb salad (of course this is my humble opinion).
Although this is delicious it does contain some carbs so make sure to eat this in moderation.
The reason why this is on the list is because it pairs well with other foods and is an amazing substitution for rice in many of the dishes.
Papaya salad is made by shredding green papayas and grounding the pieces into a dressing made from fish sauce, sugar, chili, lime and dried shrimp flakes.
I mentioned sugar in that list which is where most of the carbs are coming from in this dish so make sure that this is a secondary dish that is eaten with all the other main ones listed in this article.
Let’s take a look at its nutritional facts and calorie content.
For every 3 grams of fat consumed, you receive 25 grams of carbs (6 coming from fiber), and 6 grams of protein.
Not bad at all if you look at the Papaya Salad as a rice replacement.
Since there are 6 grams of fiber we can say that you receive 19 grams of carbs per 6 grams of protein consumed.
I know that number sounds high but something you have to take into account is that this is for the whole plate of food!
A whole plate of Papaya salad can run anywhere from 250-300 grams of salad. That’s a lot of food and it’s really hard to overeat on this dish.
Our tip here is to make sure that this dish is eaten in moderation and to not go overboard when pairing it with the different meats mentioned above.
3. Tom Yum Goong (Spicy Thai Soup w/ Shrimp)
Now, let’s get to our top 3 dishes that are probably the staple foods that I order whenever I go out to get Thai food.
Tom Yum Goong is a spicy, sour, and savory dish that contains either chicken or shrimp as its protein source.
Soup is always a good option when going out to eat since its very hard to overeat and provides a substantial amount of food with every serving.
The best part of Tom Yum Goong, however, is when you pair it with any of the different meats above or below this entry.
Since there’s so little carbs in this dish, you can treat yourself with two or three more of the items that are mentioned here. Let’s take a look at its nutritional content and calories.
For every 2.5 grams of fat, you consume 14 grams of carbs (4 coming from fiber) and 28 grams of protein.
Not bad at all since that’s how much is in a whole bowl of Tom Yum Goong.
Having this as a side dish is always welcome when dining out at a Thai restaurant as it adds so much flavor to the overall meal and, as mentioned above, can be eaten with so many different items.
Soup is always great when you’re conscious about your goals and it’s a plus when the soup comes with high protein and low fat options such as chicken or shrimp.
The goal is to never overeat and make sure that we’re sticking to our goals by understanding our calorie range and macronutrient ratios.
I know that there’s sacrifice to counting calories but it’s worth it in the long run if you want to stay fit and lean.
2. Moo Satay (Pork Skewers)
It was really hard to choose between which one would take either the number one or number two spot but I’ve concluded that Moo Satay comes to a close second.
Moo Yang or Moo Satay is the dish that I actually order the most when I go out to my favorite Thai joint.
I don’t need rice, I don’t even need veggies when I eat Moo Satay. To me, it’s a complete dish and is fine to eat on its own due to its awesome sweet, savory, and spicy flavors.
Let’s take a look at its nutrition contents and see if it fits into a Keto diet.
For every 33 grams of fats consumed, you get 11 grams of carbs (3 coming from fiber) and 31 grams of protein.
A little high on the fats but a Keto diet has 60-70% of its calories coming from fats so this is actually fine to eat.
This is my go to meal since I don’t need to order other things to supplement this.
Sure it’s nice to eat this with a Papaya salad but Moo Satay with the veggies and cucumbers it’s usually served with is more than enough to fill me up and leave me satisfied with the meal.
I totally recommend you try this out if you really want an awesome pork dish that is delicious and satiating.
1. Gai Yang (Chicken Skewers)
Taking the number one spot we have Gai Yang which is essentially the same flavor as the pork but is made out of chicken.
The reason this takes the number one spot is because, just like the Moo Satay, it's delicious and is a complete meal on its own.
What is really surprising about this dish is the macronutrients as its protein content is off the charts. Here are the nutrition facts for Gai Yang down below.
For every 31 grams of fats eaten, you consume 8 grams of carbs and 63 grams of protein within a 270 gram serving of this dish.
What’s important here is the ratio between carbs and proteins which is something that is very rare for something this delicious.
For every 8 grams of carbs you consume, you get 63 grams of protein.
This is an insane ratio and is seriously a great option for anyone looking to shred down and get your protein in.
Gai Yang takes the number one spot because of its flavor and macronutrient ratios.
Alongside the Moo Satay, Gai Yang is a dish that is sweet, savory, and spicy while being healthy and friendly for any type of diet out there.
Next time you go to your favorite Thai joint, make sure you get yourself some Moo Yang and see what the hype is all about!
Conclusion
Thai food has such a variety of different dishes that are healthy and, in this case, Keto friendly.
There are so many proteins that you can choose from and vegetables with complex flavors and textures.
The one thing to watch out for, however, is the delicious sticky rice that comes with every meal. I know that there is a lot of sacrifice with this but it’s definitely worth it in the long run.
Make sure that you’re set on your goals and keep up with whatever diet suits you best.
Whether that’s keto, IIFYM, or Intermittent Fasting, don’t give up and keep it up forever!
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PHILLIP PAK
Phillip Pak is a fitness expert who has been training clients for 6 years. Throughout his fitness journey, Phill has done it all when it comes to diet and nutrition. He is now the owner of Aspire Fitness Walnut where his main goal is to help those who are seeking to find the best version of themselves. Phillip is also a NASM Certified Nutrition Coach (CNC) and a NASM Certified Personal Trainer (CPT).
