Injera is a type of flatbread originally from Ethiopia but widely consumed in other African countries as well, being particularly popular in Eritrea and Sudan. More importantly, is Injera keto friendly? Does Injera have carbs? Are there any good keto alternatives to Injera? Less chattering, and let’s find out.
This article will take you through what Injera is made of, the number of carbs in Injera, and the nutritional value of Injera, to answer the question, is injera keto friendly?
Spoiler alert: No, it is not, but you may be able to eat Injera if you are on a low-carb diet.
Never fear, though. We will give you some keto-friendly alternatives to Injera so you don’t have to miss out on eating a ketogenic diet.
What Is Injera?
Traditional Injera is made of teff flour. But there are varieties made from barley, millet, sorghum, and even corn and rice. It seems most flours are fit to make Injera, so how keto-optimal it is, depends on the flour used.
As mentioned above, Injera is a type of African flatbread traditionally made from teff flour. That said, what truly makes Injera is fermentation.
It doesn’t necessarily need to be made out of teff – barley and millet, at least, are pretty common, and a variety of other grain is used as well.
But to make Injera, you need to ferment the dough.
The flour is mixed with water, and the fermentation process starts by adding ersho to the mixture.
Ersho is a yellow liquid that accumulates on the surface of the teff flour mixture during fermentation. Then it’s taken off the surface and stored to aid with future fermentations.
The fermented dough is supposed to be thin and dense, so that it can be poured onto a griddle in a thin layer. It’s baked on a single side, resulting in a smooth bottom layer and a porous top one.
What Is The Nutritional Value Of Injera?
The macros below are for one serving of traditional teff flour injera, which is usually defined to be 125 grams*.
- Carbs: 25 grams
- Protein: 4.8 grams
- Fat: 0.8 grams
- Fiber: 3.5 grams
- Sugar: 0 grams
- Calories: 126
*The macros may change based on the flour used for injera dough.
Let’s look at the number of carbs in Injera to decide is inerja keto friendly.
How Many Net Carbs Are There In Injera?
Injera has decent fiber content but is still quite low compared to the overall carb content. Injera is very high in net carb content with 21.5 grams per serving. 25 grams of overall carbs – 3.5 grams of fiber equals 21.5 grams of net carbs.
How many carbs in Injera? Around 20 grams of net carbs per serving.
Is Injera Keto Friendly?
No, unfortunately, Injera is not keto friendly. Even though it’s traditionally made out of teff flour which is comparatively low-carb and can be somewhat successfully added to a keto diet, one serving of Injera contains more net carbs than your entire daily allowance.
This is all the more true for other varieties made from flours with even higher carb content (millet, barley, corn, and rice flours).
For more on keto flours, check out our article, which explains everything you need to know about keto flours.
Is Injera Low Carb Friendly?
So, we have established that Injera is not keto friendly, but is injera low carb friendly?
People eating a low-carb diet will normally try to stick to under 100 grams of carbs daily.
So with the average number of carbs in inerja working out at 25 grams per serving, somebody eating a low-carb diet may be able to incorporate Injera into their low-carb diet.
Injera can be enjoyed ona low-carb diet
Is Injera Keto Friendly FAQs
There have been a number of questions around injera, so we have added them to our injera keto FAQs here for you. If you have any more questions, please contact us directly, or pop them in the comments below and we will try and help however we can.
What Are The Best Keto Alternatives To Injera?
You can try making a keto-friendly version of Injera by substituting teff flour with fermented almond flour.
The taste will likely differ, but it should have a characteristic sour element.
Or, you can substitute with a simple almond/coconut/cauliflower-based tortilla-type flatbread.
Check out our recipe here for the ultimate keto coconut flour flatbread.
Summary: Is Injera Keto-Friendly?
In summary, no, unfortunately not, Injera is not keto-friendly. It is far too high in carbs and will put you over your daily carb allowance. As always, keto-friendly alternatives to this delicious bread can be eaten without breaking the carb bank.
