Embarking on a keto diet requires plenty of preparation and often a total pantry overhaul. Stock up on these essential pantry items so that you can enjoy the keto diet to the fullest.
I’ve been the keto diet for a long time now and it’s a lifelong commitment for me. For over 10 years now, I’ve been eating low carb and gluten-free. And for about 5 of those years, I’ve been fully keto.
In the past decade, I’ve learned a thing or two about a successful keto lifestyle, and I want to pass these tips on to you.
This list of keto pantry staples is quite comprehensive. It includes all the basics, plus an advanced supply list for those of you who love to bake. And you can tailor it to suit your tastes, needs, and additional dietary restrictions.
Ready to conquer the keto lifestyle?
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Preparation is the key to keto diet success
I simply cannot stress this point enough: be prepared.
We live in a gluten and sugar-filled world, and it’s hard to resist temptation when it’s in your face all the time. You are far more likely to slip and get off track if you don’t have a good array of tasty low carb foods around to keep you satisfied.
So making sure to have your pantry well-stocked with keto-friendly snacks is absolutely crucial. And having the ingredients on hand for easy keto dinners and keto breakfasts makes it easier to stay on track.
If you love baking, as I do, it’s important stock up on baking ingredients too. But how do you know what ingredients will work best? What are the basics you should spend your money on?
I’ve done enough experimenting with a huge array of low carb and gluten-free ingredients and I want you to benefit from my experience. My keto baking pantry list has everything you need.
Keep it simple
As with any big lifestyle change, it’s best to start with the basics.
There are so many “keto” products and pre-packaged foods on the market nowadays. It’s a hot keyword and every brand and company is trying to capitalize on the trend. But many of them really aren’t that keto friendly at all.
While it may be tempting to load up on these items, I don’t recommend it. You are much better off sticking with real, whole foods as the building blocks of your healthy diet.
Healthy Fats and Oils
You certainly don’t need all of these in your pantry at once, but having a few options on hand goes a long way for keto cooking and baking.
- Butter: I always have at least two pounds of butter in my fridge. I love it for savory recipes like my keto mushroom soup, and for baking treats like keto sugar cookies.
- Coconut Oil
- Ghee is also good option for dairy-free keto recipes. I adore the brown butter ghee from Tin Star Foods.
- Avocado Oil
- Olive Oil
- Mayonnaise (preferably made with avocado oil, not canola oil or soybean oil)
Rich Proteins
Protein helps fill us up and keep us satisfied. I stock up on ground beef or chicken thighs whenever I see a sale. If you purchase pre-made burgers or sausage, remember to check the label for hidden sources of carbs.
- Eggs: Good for easy meals and for baking! Try my Sheet Pan Frittata for an easy breakfast or dinner.
- Beef: Steak is great, but ground beef is much less expensive. See my favorite keto ground beef recipes.
- Lamb
- Pork
- Poultry: Easy Chicken Broccoli Casserole is a fan favorite!
- Fish
- Bone broth: Sip it plain or make some warm and comforting keto soup.
Fruits and Veggies
Not all fruits and veggies are keto-friendly, so make sure you have a good array of the lower carb options to choose from. These are the ones I keep in my fridge most often:
- Fresh berries
- Avocado
- Lemon and lime
- Tomatoes
- Broccoli
- Brussels Sprouts
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Cucumbers
- Green Beans
- Mushrooms
- Radish
- Zucchini
- Asparagus
- Bell Peppers
- Leafy greens
Nuts & Seeds
Most nuts and seeds have a high fat content and plenty of fiber, making them a great keto snack. And nut and seed butters are useful for cooking and baking.
- Almonds
- Hazelnuts
- Macadamia Nuts
- Nut and seed butters
- Peanuts (not a true nut)
- Pecans
- Walnuts
- Pumpkin seeds
- Sunflower seeds
- Coconut
Dairy (and dairy-free alternatives)
- Heavy cream
- Cream cheese
- Hard and soft cheeses
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt (full fat)
- Coconut milk/cream
- Dairy-free cream cheese
- Unsweetened nut and seed milks
Keto baking essentials
In case you didn’t already know, baking is my happy place. I keep my pantry stocked at all times with keto-friendly flours and sweeteners so that I can whip up keto cookies or keto chocolate chip muffins any old time.
But while I have a huge array of flours, sweeteners, chocolate, nuts, and other baking ingredients at my disposal, the truth is you don’t need all of that to be a successful keto baker.
This list includes the absolute essentials to get you started. Even if you never buy anything more than what’s listed here, you will find yourself able to create wonderful keto desserts and baked goods. You can also see this list on my Amazon storefront!
Any good baking cupboard should always have baking powder, vanilla and other extracts, and salt. Plus plenty of butter, eggs, and cream (or dairy free alternatives) in the fridge!
Keto Flours
Keto flours take some getting used to, as they don’t behave even remotely like wheat flour.
- Almond flour – by far the most common keto flour and incredibly useful and delicious. Please read my tutorial on Baking with Almond Flour for detailed information.
- Coconut flour – also a very common keto flour but you really need to know what you’re getting into. Once you get used to it, it makes some of the best keto cupcakes! Please read Baking with Coconut Flour for more information.
- Sunflower seed flour is a great nut-free alternative to almond flour. And it’s easy to make your own. How to make sunflower seed flour.
Keto Sweeteners
The number of low carb sweeteners and sweetener blends has exploded in recent years. It’s wonderful because we have so many choices now. But all those choices can also be very confusing and overwhelming.
And they don’t all behave the same way! They all have their pros and cons.
Please read The Ultimate Guide to Keto Sweeteners for an in-depth look at how these sweeteners work and how they affect your results.
In my cupboard, I always keep:
- Swerve Sweetener – granular, powdered, and the new Swerve Brown, which is truly the best brown sugar replacement out there.
- Allulose and/or BochaSweet – these are great sweeteners for keto ice cream, keto caramel sauce, and other treats that can re-crystallize with erythritol.
Keto-friendly Chocolate
Once upon a time, there was no good sugar-free chocolate and I had to use chopped up 90% Lindt bars. Now there is a vast array of keto chocolate to choose from. I recommend you keep on hand:
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: Dutch process cocoa gives a better chocolate flavor for most recipes.
- Unsweetened chocolate – this is 100% cacao chocolate, with no sweetener whatsoever. It’s important to choose quality chocolate like Ghirardelli or Guittard. The cheaper Baker’s chocolate tends to seize more easily and will ruin some of your recipes.
- Sugar-free chocolate chips – ChocZero or Lily’s Sweets are the two best brands.
Protein Powder
You will notice that many of my keto cakes and muffins call for protein powder. There is a method to my madness, I promise.
I am not trying to add more protein to my diet, I get plenty of that as it is. But gluten is actually protein that helps conventional baked goods rise properly and hold their shape. In the absence of gluten, another dry protein can make your keto baked goods lighter, fluffier, and more like the ones you used to love.
- Unflavored grassfed whey protein
- Unflavored egg white protein (dairy free option)
Plant-based protein powders may work as well. But don’t try to replace with collagen protein as it bakes very differently and may make the recipe gummy and hard to cook through.
Penny Olson says
You say that using coconut flour & others that are not your most common, almond flour, is for those who are not beginners in low carb baking & cooking. I truly believe you from experience but I have a dilemma. I need to avoid large amounts of almond products, large amount of chocolate products & also large amounts of peanut, cashew, & other nuts (except macadamia & pistachio) products. I can use some but not the amounts that many low carb recipes call for in both yours & other recipe sources. Buying cookbooks that have a majority of recipes with items in them that one cannot use much of is spendy & impractical. Do you have anything in your repertoire of cookbooks that would be less based on at least almond flour, but preferably any of the above list of no-no’s for me & possibly others who experience kidney stones for which these products could also be a problem. Most kidney stone food sources with recipes are quite limited in any low carb information. Thank you very much, Carolyn. I have 4 of your cookbooks already & do find them quite helpful.
Patricia Bedard says
Hi Carolyn,
I believe it was last week when I read your email. I saw an item that you baked that called for either a spring form pan, or a tart pan. because they both can move out of the pan.
Also with the recipe I was looking at, called for “Lotus Biscoff ( not sure of the spelling) cookies” for the crust.
I bought both pans and now I can not find the recipes for them.
It was either for a cheesecake, or something with a cheese tart.
Being 80 years old, my memory is goin a little. ????
Hoping you can help me
Oh one more thing I have been on Keto for over a year now. I have lost 37 pounds.????
Patricia Bedard
Carolyn says
Was it lemon flavored? do you remember? Just trying to pin down what it was since I have a ton of recipes that use either pan.
Lise May says
Carolyn, love your recipes and am a fan of your Youtube videos! (and great tattoo – Haida? I too am a BC girl originally)
One of my favourite additions to my Keto coconut flour bread and muffins is psyllium fiber husks (not powder). It adds some density and structure (an extra fiber to lower the overall carb count!!). I recommend trying it!
Carolyn says
Thanks! And yes, it’s a Haida-style tattoo in the spirit of Bill Reid’s work. He was so amazing and if you’re from BC, I am sure you are familiar.
Christina says
Hi my name is christina am a health care worker (PSW)
am ready to start my healthy lifestyle it’s time ..
I have been watching your video and watching you as made me want to do keto diet. I do have a very bad dairy allergy. I can’t do whey power . If you have any idea I can use for that would be great. This week I start my shopping for keto pantry. Am very excited. I also got two of your cook book this year for Christmas. Am looking to buy all of them this week too.
Carolyn says
You can use egg white protein powder, it works well. Thanks!
Michele J Branchaud says
I’m trying to determin a good brand of Yacon Syrup. Could you recommend a brand? You’re my gugu when it comes to Low Carb and have gret respect for all you’ve done for the Low Carb Community. I appreciate any recommendations!
Carolyn says
I’ve used this one a number of times https://amzn.to/2VyMmXI
Kyla says
What type of fish sauce and unsweetened cocoa powder do you recommend? I like the page but I think you should include a specific link to “tools/ingredients & products” that you use specifically with amazon links. Makes it quicker to find. I know this specific part of the page has some links, but sometimes in your books I have to go searching making it really difficult to just find everything in one spot. Can’t wait to try some of your recipes!
Carolyn says
I don’t have specific brands of these. I use good quality cocoa powder most of the time, though, like Valrhona if I can afford it!
Danielle Schultz says
Hello
Thanks for all of your tips. I stumbled upon you when looking for an alternative to using butter in a frosting. I don’t care for butter and my fiancé has to watch his cholesterol and his birthday is coming up we already invested in gluten free flour and and slot of the wonderful products you have shared. I am looking forward to using avacados in a lot of baked goods and sauces as I love them as well.
Sherlyn says
I have been in a keto diet foe about a month now. And I have found heaven with your tips so much.
Thank you for taking the time to share with us about your experience!
This motivates me a lot to continue in this journey.
Best regards!
Cynthia says
Have you ever used Finely Ground Cashew Flour in any of your recipes? I was wondering if this could be an alternative to Almond Flour or Coconut Flour.
Cynthia says
I also found finely ground pecan and walnut flours. I love to bake and I’m looking for all possible alternatives to wheat flours. I’m trying to get the hubby off of wheat based baked goods.
Carolyn says
It can be but it’s too high carb for me.
Melissa Zmerzlikar says
Hi Carolyn,
My mom got me hooked on your blog. I’ve been grain and sugar free for 3 years now. I haven’t baked much because I have a problem with the sweeteners. I gave my bag of Swerve to my mom. I don’t like the cooling effect of erythritol and stevia leaves a bad aftertaste. I love Lakanto’s liquid monkfruit (it has a clean after taste) and I use Pure Monk or Lakanto’s monkfruit powder (300 times sweeter than sugar, with a slight after taste) but it doesn’t have a 1:1 ratio with sugar so I lose the volume. I tried filling that volume with inulin and that was a HUGE mistake, I had indigestion/heart burn for nearly a year. What can I use for volume and still use monkfruit? Any suggestions?
Carolyn says
It totally depends on the recipe. What are you trying to make?
Melissa Zmerzlikar says
Thanks for responding so quickly! One recipe was dark chocolate pecan brownies, I did use monkfruit and inulin (small amount), and those were good but I have to now avoid inulin. Since I can no longer have King cake for Mardi Gras (maybe you’ve solved this problem?), I decided to make a King Cheesecake. I had used 2 cups of inulin in that recipe and realized my mistake. Inulin only breaks down in the large intestines and some people can’t tolerate it, that’s me. The powdered monkfruit had too much of an aftertaste, for some reason the liquid monkfruit doesn’t leave an aftertaste. I plan to contact Lakanto to find out what the difference is between the two processes. Thank you!
Carolyn says
I think in something like cheesecake, you could just do the liquid monk fruit. It may be a bit more dense but should the okay.
Carol Logan says
Hi Carolyn,
Just a note to Thank you for all your hard work in making this life style easier and tastier!!
Appreciate your knowledge and willingness share.
Renee Rutledge says
Would collagen protein work?
Carolyn says
Do you mean for the protein powder? No sadly it makes baked goods more gummy and hard to cook through.
gremlin says
When you say salt in recipes, what kind of salt do you mean? I know to convert from regular table salt to kosher salt you add more (and I’d guess the same for other larger salt like sea salt), but I can’t tell from the video I was watching (cinnamon roll scones!) if you’re using table salt or something else. Thanks!
Carolyn says
Fine sea salt or table salt in baked goods so it dissolves.
gremlin says
thank you!
Carole says
You said you keep Xylitol on hand so I am sure you use it in recopies. Just a warning do NOT ever give anything to your pet that has Xylitol in it, Xylitol is deadly to animals and the effects are not reversible.
Carolyn says
Yes, thanks, I am well aware. I don’t actually use it at all anymore anywhere. And it’s not toxic to cats… only dogs.
Melissa says
Hi Carolyn,
I love your site. I’ve tried several of your recipes, and I think my favorite is the Orange Cardamom Biscotti.
I’ve been wondering … is there a way to determine how much powdered stevia would substitute for the liquid stevia in your recipes? I’m trying out the NOW brand “Better Stevia,” and I think the little scoop included equals about 1/16 tsp. However, I don’t really have much baking experience to know where to start to try to determine how to substitute it for the liquid stevia amounts. I think I would also like to figure out how to sub it for Swerve, too, just to see how I would like it. Any suggestions about how to figure substitutions like this would be so cool! Thanks for keeping your recipes coming!
Carolyn says
Does it say anywhere on the packaging or the website for this brand how much that little scoop equals in sweetness to sugar? If it does, I can help guide you more.
Amanda Grimes says
So excited to try these dried cranberries and they turned out awesome! I love adding cranberries to baked goods and salad . This was so easy to make…thank you!!
H Rendleman says
I saw that you have used a dehydrator to make your dried cranberries. And that it took 12 hours. What temperature are you setting your dehydrator for?
Carolyn says
There is just a berry setting I use, I am not sure of the exact temp.
Julie says
Can I do this to thawed frozen cranberries, as fresh ones are out of season right now?
Carolyn says
The frozen ones should be fine. Let them drain really well.
Jessica S. says
Hey Carolyn, do you have any suggestions for a sugar free semi-sweet chocolate chip? I recently discovered that my boyfriend does not like dark chocolate (gasp!) Ironically, discovered while making your Mexican hot chocolate…and now having trouble finding a chip alternative – so far as I can tell, Lily’s has a dark chip and milk chocolate bars, but not chips…my only thought at the moment is to chop the bars.
Also, I’ve recently been loving Ripple (have not tried other brands, but they are out there) milk alternative in recipes -I’ve subbed for almond milk in a few of yours. The carb count is great and it also works great in coffee (does not curdle like some alternatives)…it’s made from yellow pea protein! I think Boathouse also makes one, but I’ve not tried it. By us, I’ve seen Ripple at Target and Whole Foods so far.
Carolyn says
Lily’s are the only chips I know of and really equate to semi sweet in my mind (dark chocolate is often higher cacao) but if those are too dark for him, chopping the milk chocolate is your best alternative.
rona anne crandall-santana says
Could we subsitute other berries and receive the same result? My son loves dried fruit but its just way too high in carbs. It would be nice to have some dried berries as an occasional snack or mix in.
Carolyn says
You can definitely dry other berries but they all take a different amount of time because of different moisture contents.