The Ultimate Guide to Keto-Friendly Flours

Low-carb and keto-friendly flours are alternatives to traditional wheat flour that help reduce blood sugar spikes and keep you in ketosis. Each type of keto flour has its own flavor, texture, and purpose, so choosing the right one depends on what you’re making and your taste preferences.

This guide gets into our favorites, with details on what they’re made of, net carbs in each, and our favorite uses for these low-carbohydrate flours. 

A Quick Comparison

Before we get into the details, here’s an overview of the calories and macros for each type of low-carb flour substitute based on a 2-tablespoon or 14-gram serving size:

If you’re unsure about the right balance of macros for your goals, our Keto Calculator is a free, efficient way to help you identify the ideal grams of carbs, fats, and proteins you need.

The Best Low-Carb Flours

Similar to the table above, we ranked these keto-friendly flour options from lowest to highest net carbs per serving. Learn what makes each flour unique and our favorite uses. 

Pork Rind Dust

Pork rind dust is made from ground-up pork rinds, which are deep-fried pig skin or chicharrones. With its zero-carb content, this keto flour substitute is an excellent choice if you’re following a carb-free diet or trying to keep carbs as low as possible. 

When it comes to flavor, pork rind dust has a savory and salty taste. Use it to coat pork, chicken, and fish, like our salmon patties. This is one of our favorite keto “flours” for frying. Two tablespoons provide 0g carbs, 1.2g fat, and 2.4g protein.

Lupin Flour

Lupin flour is another carb-free flour alternative made from dried and ground lupin beans, legumes closely related to peanuts. It can be used for cooking and baking to make noodles, chocolate chip cookies, bread, and tortilla chips. 

You can also use it as a thickening ingredient instead of cornstarch in soups and gravies. Note that if you’re allergic to peanuts, you may also be sensitive to lupin. (1) Two tablespoons provide 0g net carbs, 1g fat, and 6g protein.

Oat Fiber

Cereal grains like oats aren’t keto-friendly, but oat fiber is. Sugar-free oat fiber is made from the non-digestible outer husk of oats and is almost entirely insoluble fiber. Yes, you need fiber on keto. It’s good for your gut, especially at the start of your diet, to support digestion.

Oat fiber is used in keto-friendly recipes calling for a more bread-like texture, but you probably won’t use it as a standalone flour. Blend it with almond flour for a good chew and less crumble on baked goods. Two tablespoons provide 0g net carbs, 0g fat, and 0g protein. 

Chia Seed Flour

Chia seed flour is made from chia seeds, which are packed with omega-3 fatty acids that reduce triglycerides and lower inflammation in the body. (2) If you enjoy baked or fried meats and fish, chia seed flour adds a crispy texture to your meals. 

Another interesting way to use this is by blending it with other low-carb flours for cakes and muffins. Two tablespoons provide 1g net carbs, 1.5g fat, and 5g protein.

Almond Flour

Almond flour is a widely used alternative to wheat flour for cooking and baking. Made from skinless, ground almonds, it’s rich in vitamin E, potassium, and magnesium. (3)

If you prefer a slightly nutty flavor in your recipes, almond flour is a good choice. Note that it’s slightly different than almond meal, which is made from unpeeled almonds and has a coarser consistency.

We like almond flour with our keto breads, apple crisps, pancakes, and waffles. It’s also easily blendable with coconut flour for treats that benefit from extra crumble, like our keto chocolate cake. Two tablespoons provide 1g net carbs, 7g fat, and 3g protein.

Flaxseed Meal

Flaxseed meal is a nutritious, low-carb flour high in fat and potassium. (4) Due to high levels of absorption, flaxseed meal requires more water in recipes for seed bread, breakfast pancakes, crackers, and pudding. Two tablespoons provide 1g net carbs, 5g fat, and 3g protein.

Walnut Flour

Walnut flour is made by grinding walnuts into a fine meal. Rich in omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, walnut flour adds a nutty flavor to baked foods like brownies, muffins, and quick breads. (5)

Since its texture can be a little coarse, it’s often blended with finer flours like almond or coconut to reduce breadcrumbs. You can also use it as a crust on fish or chicken. Two tablespoons provide 1g net carbs, 7g fat, and 1g protein. 

Sunflower Seed Flour

Sunflower seed flour is made of raw sunflower seeds blended to a flour-like consistency. Given that sunflower seeds are high in antioxidants, it’s a great way to give your recipes a health boost as you follow a ketogenic diet. 

Bakers can use it in muffins, pancakes, or bread recipes. It’s also used as a binder in meatballs or veggie burgers. If it looks too pricey at the grocery store, almond flour is the closest alternative. Two tablespoons provide 2g net carbs, 8g fat, and 2.45g protein.

Coconut Flour

Coconut flour is made from ground coconut meat. Once it’s dried, it becomes a suitable ingredient for baking. Most of the fats in coconut flour are medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), which help increase ketone levels to enter or maintain ketosis. 

Coconut flour is mildly nutty, so it’s nice in brownies, keto-friendly bread, and cookies. This one is highly absorbent, so we like to blend it with almond flour when we need a bit of extra moisture, like in our tres leches cake. Two tablespoons provide 4g net carbs, 1.5g fat, and 3g protein. 

Psyllium Husk Powder

Psyllium husk is a popular supplement for maintaining regular bowel movements, but it can also improve the texture in low-carb recipes. 

You won’t replace your alternative flours with it, but try it in pizza dough, pie crusts, flatbreads, or sourdough bread for a fiber boost with the rest of your low-carb ingredients. Two tablespoons provide 7g net carbs, 1.4g fat, and 5g protein.

Benefits of Keto-Friendly Flours

Low-carb flours are a no-brainer if you’re following a specialized diet like keto or paleo, as they help keep carb consumption low. Here are a few extra benefits for anyone who uses flour in their cooking and baking: 

• They have a low glycemic index (GI). Keto-friendly flours are digested more slowly. As a result, they don’t cause blood sugar spikes and crashes, making these flours healthy for individuals with diabetes. Just watch for added sweeteners in your baking.
• They’re satiating. The fiber content in low-carb flours promotes a longer-lasting feeling of fullness. Whether you’re on keto or simply looking to reduce your total carb intake, satiety is an important factor for appetite control and weight management.
• They can help you with weight loss. Beyond satiety, many of these flours are low-calorie and high in dietary fiber. Others are high in healthy fats to promote better digestion and act as a more stable energy source. That can make it easier to stick to your diet.
• They can be nutrient-dense. Many of these have high amounts of vitamins, minerals, and other health-boosting compounds to help you meet your nutritional needs. Always check the product information if you’re seeking something high-protein or high-fiber.
• They’re high-quality. Keto-friendly flours are generally made with fewer heavily processed ingredients and are non-GMO. That allows you to follow keto and a whole foods diet. 
• They’re versatile. Eliminating wheat flour from your diet doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy bread, buns, and pizza crust. Low-carb flours are suitable for any recipe that would normally require wheat flour, including soups and gravies that need thickening.
• They taste good. We’ve already mentioned that some of these flours come with a nutty aftertaste. Nuts like almonds, walnuts, and pecans are great on keto, and nut-based flours add a nice flavor to baked goods. 

Tips for Baking and Cooking 

The best keto substitute for all-purpose flour depends on what you’re making, but we do have some tips and tricks as you make the switch to lower-carb baking flours:

• Adjust for moisture. Coconut flour absorbs a lot of liquid, so it’s common to see it as a blended flour with almond flour, which behaves more like a wheat flour. If you’re sticking to coconut, you may need to increase the amount of eggs or other liquids in your recipe.
• Adjust for texture. Most keto flours are naturally gluten-free, so you may need to add ingredients that act as a binder. Eggs, flaxseed meal, xanthan gum, and psyllium husk can do the trick in traditional baking recipes.
• Adjust for flavor. We like the earthy notes in walnut flour and the mild nutty aftertaste of almond flour, but some low-carb flours can overpower a recipe. If you’re using coconut flour in your cookies, they will taste like coconut.
• Consider blending flours. Many keto recipes include flour blends to improve the balance of flavors and textures or the structure of a dish. You can experiment with or steal any of our tested recipes. We love our keto tortillas for taco nights. 

FAQs

Is keto flour gluten-free?

Most keto flours, like almond, coconut, and sunflower seed flours, are naturally gluten-free. If you’re sensitive to gluten or have celiac disease, it’s important to check labels for cross-contamination. The exception here is keto wheat flour. While it’s lower in carbs than regular wheat flour thanks to added fiber and modified starches, it still includes wheat, so it’s not suitable for anyone with gluten sensitivity.

How do low-carb flours affect baking and cooking results?

Low-carb flours tend to require more liquid to achieve the right consistency in a recipe. Most likely, you’ll be adding more water, eggs, or oil to keto baking. You may also notice different flavor profiles. Almond and coconut flours can have a nutty aftertaste, for example.

Can low-carb flour be used as a 1:1 substitute for regular flour in recipes?

Most low-carb flours aren’t suitable as 1:1 substitutes for traditional white flour. Usually, you’ll have to use a smaller amount of these substitutes due to their absorbency. If you’re substituting one alternative for another in a keto recipe, it’s more likely that you can go 1:1.

Why is keto flour so expensive?

Some keto flours are more expensive than wheat flours because they’re made from nuts, seeds, or fiber-rich ingredients that are costlier to produce. Others are produced on a smaller scale, like organic coconut flour, or are very niche. All of that can mean a higher price tag.That said, it’s easier to find a low-carb type of flour today than it was even just a few years ago. More interest in the keto diet will mean more availability of keto-friendly products and lower costs.

The Bottom Line

You don’t need to ditch your favorite baked goods recipes on a low-carb diet. You just need to make some adjustments to those recipes to convert them to be low-carb baking approved or seek out recipes that make following a keto diet even easier.

If you want to look beyond sweet treats, browse our keto-friendly recipes for low-carb breads, mains, and side dishes to help you meal plan. You can take the guesswork out of the low-carb keto diet.

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