If you’re new to keto, it’s a diet that favours high fat, low carb foods. Normally with less than 50mg of carbs a day. (Psst, that includes the carbs you get from the natural sugars in fruit and some veg, too).
When you’re on a keto diet, the aim is to get the body into a metabolic state called ketosis, which metabolises your energy from the ketones your liver produces – rather than from carbs.
There are pros and cons, so if you’re investigating keto food, let us break it down with you.
Do Mindful Chef do Keto Recipe Boxes?
When you’re on the hunt for weight-loss friendly keto box meals, it can feel like there’s a lot of information out there.
We’ve looked long and hard into providing keto box meals and the only thing we’re putting on your plate is: balance.
That’s right. Our recipes are balanced like an Olympic gymnast by nutritionists to offer the exact nutritional breakdown our bodies need from fresh, natural foods.
- healthy carbohydrates
- quality proteins
- good fats
- lots of lovely fresh fruit and vegetables!
(What’s more, you’ll see the breakdown in every recipe in your account.)
Keto meal boxes and protein
When it comes to protein, we love 100% British meat, free-range chicken and eggs, and sustainably sourced fish in generous portions. Because high quality protein fills you up and helps you feel satisfied!
Keto meal boxes and carbs
Let’s talk good carbs. Yes, that’s right. The slow-release, energy giving ones that don’t cause those dreaded slumps and cravings. We love giving you British quinoa and brown rice, red rice and black rice (ok, technically this isn’t a rice), gluten-free pastas, barley and corn, sweet potatoes and new potatoes fresh from the UK’s rich soils. Tomatoes fresh from the vine on the Isle of Wight, butternut squash and more. (All our fresh UK produce is LEAF-marque accredited, too).
I don’t want a Keto Recipe Box but I do want to limit my carbs?
No problem! Mindful Chef offers 20 recipes a week to choose from, and did you know that every single one lists out the exact breakdown of protein, carbs, and more? So you can tailor your carbohydrate intake however you need.
Help! I need keto inspo!
Keto-friendly recipes under 50g coming right up
Crispy Tofu & Avocado Salad with Tahini Drizzle – at 18g carbs
Stuck for inspo? How about this Mexican Hake with Black Beans & Guacamole at 33g of carbs
Almond-coated chicken, green beans and herb yoghurt at 18g of carbs
Italian Meatballs and Courgetti with 26g of carbs
Do keto meal boxes take a lot of planning?
We think so, yes. Because ketosis is only achieved by cutting out all carbs and eating a diet high in fat, you always have to check the labels, and buy keto-friendly foods. Also keto meals can feel a bit same-y because they’re based around a high fat intake.
What’s in a keto-friendly recipe box?
Your recipes will be:
- high in fat – you’ll be looking to eat 2-4tbsp of oil a day
- contain less than 20g of carbohydrates.
Traditional keto meals should contain cheese, non-starchy leafy greens, lean meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, and dairy, but Keto meal boxes will also exclude:
- Oats
- Wheat
- Rye
- Rice
- Buckwheat
- Barley
- Quinoa
- Corn
- Buckwheat
- Corn tortillas
- Fruits including oranges and tangerines
- Pineapples
- Bananas
- Apples
- Pears
- Grapes
- Any fruit juices or smoothies
- Any dried fruits
- Mangos
- Nectarines
- Peaches
- Any legumes (chickpeas, lentils, etc)
- Potatoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Yams or Yucca
- Peas
- Corn
- Artichoke
- Parsnips
Excluding foods in your keto meal box prep
Bang goes that Sunday Roast! We’re going to say it again – there’s room for broccoli and birthday cake in our lives. Excluding one food at the expense of another isn’t healthy and doesn’t lead to great habits in the long-term.
The only foods we exclude in your Mindful Chef recipe boxes are stodgy ones:
- cheap fillers
- white rice
- white pasta
- white bread
- white sugar
These empty calories cause spikes and slumps – a hard no from us. Who needs a carb coma?
If you don’t do Keto Recipe boxes, what do you do?
Good question. We’re on a mission to make healthy eating easy, so all our recipes are gluten and dairy free, we never put refined carbs or sugars in our meals, as this can suit a wide variety of diets these days.
For more information, read our FAQ here:
Yet to try healthy eating made easy? Get £25% off your first four recipe boxes by entering code BLOG25X4 at checkout. Mindful Chef healthy recipe boxes help you to cook delicious nutritious meals, in as little as 15 minutes. Each box contains recipe instructions, pre-portioned ingredients and responsibly sourced, seasonal British produce.
