Most Beans Are Off Limits on the Keto Diet, So What About Green Beans?

Since you eat very low-carb on the keto diet (it’s also a high-fat, moderate-protein diet), you may be curious about certain starchy vegetables and legumes. But if you’re feeling a little discouraged by everything you can’t eat on the keto diet, here’s a bit of good news: green beans get the green light.

While green beans share a name with off-limits legumes like kidney and pinto beans, they are much lower in carbs. “In one cup of green beans, there are about 10 grams of carbohydrates, with four of those coming from fiber,” Jaclyn Shusterman, RDN, CD, CNSC, a health coach at Arivale, told POPSUGAR. That’s only six grams of net carbs, making green beans about as virtuous as a side of broccoli or Brussels sprouts.

When preparing green beans, try sautéing them in oil and topping them with herbs for a flavor-packed bite. (On keto, you can even serve them with bacon or prosciutto.) If you’re craving the comfort food of green-bean casserole, there are ways to make that keto-friendly, too — by making the sauce with almond flour, for example.