Keto pasta & noodles – Top UK low carb alternatives

Pasta, another common ingredient found in a lot of UK food cupboards. The traditional product made from wheat flour is not keto-friendly. However, there are alternatives that are low carb and can be found in some UK supermarkets. Read on to find out where you can get the best keto pasta alternatives.

Related – want to see the best keto rice alternatives? Check out the article here.

Types of low carb keto pasta

Of course, any pasta made from wheat flour is a no go on keto. However, there are pasta (and noodles) products that are derived from alternate sources such as konjac root and soya (plus other beans).

Konjac

Popular in Asian cuisine. It’s made from the konjac yam and is formed into many popular pasta shapes. The most common forms include noodles, spaghetti, fettuccine, and penne.

Taste & Texture

Products made from konjac, have a very particular texture. They are quite gelatinous and so are a bit chewy. This can take a bit of getting used too and many are put off the first time they try it. Taste-wise, it has no real flavour and is quite bland. This makes them suitable as a base where you’re going to be adding your own sauce.

Note on smell – initially, when you open the packet you will be hit with a strong fishy aroma. This is normal and you can get rid of the smell by putting them in a sieve and washing them with cold water. You may need to repeat this a process a couple of times. Let them dry, then cook as instructed on the packet.

Nutrition per 100g

• Energy: 12 kcal
• Fat: 0.1g
• Carbohydrate: 1.0g
• Fibre: 3.9g
• Protein: <0.5g
• Salt: 0.01g

Where to buy

Some UK food stores now stock products made from konjac. However, they can be quite expensive. It’s often better to buy them online in bulk. Alternatively, if you have an Asian food supermarket near you, then they are likely to stock a range of them. Just look for Shirataki Noodles (or something similar). Sometimes they are marketed as Miracle noodles.

Bare Naked Noodles / Spaghetti

Available at: Tesco, Morrisons, Ocado, Amazon and other food stores

Size: 380g (other sizes available)

Note: available in both spaghetti and noodle shapes.

Yutaka White Shirataki Noodles

Available at: Amazon and Asian supermarkets

Size: 4.5kg (12 x 375g)

Note: the price can fluctuate quite a bit so stock up when you can.

Miyata Shirataki Spaghetti

Available at: Amazon

Size: 3.24kg (12 x 270g) – available in other pack sizes

Note: available in a range of shapes such as Rice, Seaweed, Spaghetti, Udon and Wok.

Side note – My Protein occasionally sell konjac products marketed under the Zero range (Noodles, Penne, Rice and Fettuccine). They seem to be sold out quite often and looks like they may be running down the stock. It’s a shame as My Protein commonly do 40% off site-wide discounts, which make them a bargain.

Soya and other beans

Aldi are currently selling a range of 3 pasta alternatives that are made from beans instead of wheat. They are all quite low carb and suitable for a keto diet. Though just make sure you can fit them in your macros.

The only downside is that finding them can be difficult. The Aldi stores where I live do not stock them, so I can’t give a review of them! Although, many other people have tried them and they get rave reviews!

Why not take a look in your local Aldi and see if you can find them. The range includes:

• Soy Bean Spaghetti – Carbs per 100g: 2.1g
• Black Bean Spaghetti – Carbs per 100g: 1.6g
• Edamame & Mung Bean Fettuccine – Carbs per 100g: 3.0g

All are priced at £1.89 each for a 200g packet. Making them one of the cheapest pasta alternatives for keto.