Unfortunately, the answer to the question is hominy keto friendly, is NO! Hominy is high in carbs meaning they are not keto-friendly. However, there is no need to fear, as always we have sussed out some keto friendly hominy substitutions for you. Read on to find out more.
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Recap on Keto
The whole ethos of a keto diet is to keep your macros to 70% Fat, 25% Protein, and 5% Carbohydrates (Carbs).
This 5% of Carbs should not exceed 20 grams per day for a traditional keto diet. Depending on whether you are doing Lazy, Dirty or Strict Keto, will depend on how strictly you track these macros, and how willing you are to eat sugars.
In order to keep your carb consumption under 20 grams, you need to be conscious of what you are eating and stick to low carbs healthy foods, that are also low on the glycaemic index.
The reason for this is so as to not to spike your blood sugar and knock you out of ketosis.
If keto is new to you, why not check out our Keto Starters Guide.
What is Hominy?
Hominy is a food produced from dried maize kernels. The kernels have been treated with an alkali. This is a process called nixtamalization.”Lye hominy” is a type of hominy made with lye.
It is often a popular ‘diet’ food due to it being very low in calories. Hominy has a sweet taste.
These are the corn that is used to make cornmeal and corn-based products such as corn flakes.
What is the Nutritioinal Value of Hominy?
The nutritional values of Hominy per 100 grams are;
- Carbs: 14 grams.
- Protein: 1.5 grams.
- Fat: 0.9 grams.
- Fiber: 2.5 grams.
- Sugar: 1.8 grams.
- Calories: 72 cal
As you can see, Hominy is low in calories, low in protein, and fat, hominy is also has a high carb content.
How Many Net Carbs are there in Hominy?
Net carbs are calculated by deducting the total amount of fiber from the total number of carbs.
There are 11.5 grams of net carbs in Hominy; (14 grams of carbs – 2.5 grams of fiber = 11.5 grams of net carbs).
The average serving size of hominy is 165 grams, making it 19 grams of net carbs per serving.
So Is Hominy Keto Friendly?
With the whole aim of keto to keep your total net carb count under 20 grams, hominy, with 19 grams of net carbs per serving, is not keto friendly at all.
Not only is hominy high in carbs, but it is also low in fat and protein, which is not in keeping with the macros required for a keto diet.
Is Hominy ok on a Low Carb Diet?
If you are eating a low carb diet, you will likely be trying to keep your carbohydrate intake under 100 grams per day. If these are the macros that you are working towards you may be able to have a small portion of hominy on a low carb lifestyle.
Just be careful not to overdo it as you will soon use up your carb allowance for the day.
Other Surprising Foods Which are NOT Keto Friendly
Foods that you should not eat on the keto diet
- Low-fat Yoghurt
- Oranges
- Apples
- Quinoa
- Granola (check out our keto-friendly version!)
- Black Beans
- Polenta
- Chickpeas
- Wholegrain Rice
- Sweet Potato
For years, I had been eating all of the above, thinking that I was being healthy and feeding my body all of the ‘good’ stuff, all whole foods, how wrong was I?
For other keto facts and keto myths busted, check out this article!
Keto Friendly Alternatives to Hominy
As hominy is too high in carbs, as will be most corn and beans, why not check out some of these more, keto-friendly vegetables that may make the perfect hominy substitution;
- Asparagus: 2.5 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Broccoli: contains 4 grams of net carbs per cup per 100 grams
- Brussels Sprouts: 5 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Cabbage: 4 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Carrots: 7 grams of net carbs per 100 grams (check out our article on carrots here)
- Cauliflower: contains 3 grams of net carbs per cup 100 grams
- Celery: contains 1.5 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Courgette: 3.5 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Green Beans: 5 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Raddish: 3.4 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Ruttabage (Swede): 9 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Turnip: 6 grams of net carbs per 100 grams
- Fennel: 4 grams of net carbs per 100 grams (check out our article on fennel)
If you are looking for a hominy substitute for a Mexican-style casserole, chili, or posole, I find radish is a good substitution as they remain firm after prolonged cooking. Depending on the size of your radishes, slice them in half or quarters.
If Mexican is your thing, why not check out some of our favorite keto Mexican recipes.
Final Thought: Is Hominy Keto Friendly?
If you are eating a keto diet, hominy is definitely not keto friendly. Eating hominy will potentially knck you out of ketosis. However, if you are eating a low carb diet, you may be able to incorporate hominy into your diet without any negative effects. Just make sure you don’t go overboard or else you’ll end up using up your daily allotment of carbohydrates before lunchtime.
