The ketogenic diet is very low in carbs and high in fats, which is why fruit doesn’t make up a significant portion of the keto meal plan.
Some fruit, such as raspberries, blackberries, or cantaloupes, are surprisingly low in carbs and provide vitamins and minerals, so you could easily incorporate them into your keto diet.
Small fruits can be a convenient snack on the go and well as a way of curbing your sweet craving. They are also easy to portion control and allow you to stay in ketosis.
Therefore, it can be easy to assume that peaches fall into this category too. This is not true.
Even a small peach contains 12.6 grams of net carbs, making peaches unsuitable for ketogenic diets, even in small portions.
Why don’t you continue to read on to find out more about the specifics of low-carb peach alternatives, what the net carbs are in peaches, and to get a definitive answer to the question “are peaches keto-friendly?”.
Are Peaches Healthy?
Even though fruits will add carbs to your daily intake, they are full of vitamins and minerals that will provide a boost to your overall health.
Peaches are no different. This sweet stone fruit contains Vitamin A and Vitamin C, which provide a boost to your immune system.
They are also high in niacin, which promotes strong bones and helps to prevent their decalcification, a condition that leads to osteoporosis.
Peaches are also high in minerals like Potassium, Copper, Manganese, and Phosphorous. Eating peaches can support the nervous system, promote heart health and provide anti-aging properties.
Are Peaches Keto Friendly?
While peaches are minimally processed whole foods, unfortunately, they are high in carbohydrates, which makes them unsuitable for the keto diet.
A piece of this sweet stone fruit contains around 12.6 grams of carbs, 1.3 grams of protein, 2.2 grams of fiber, and only 0.4 grams of fat (*).
When following a ketogenic diet, the standard approach recommends consuming less than 30 grams of net carbohydrates. (*)
With an average peach containing half of your daily carb allowance, you can see how peaches might not be the best choice.
Will Eating Peach Kick Me Out of Ketosis?
The total carb count is not the only thing you should focus on when following the keto diet.
In order to stay in ketosis, it is recommended that you don’t consume more than 5 grams of net carbs in one meal.
Ketosis is a state when your body utilizes readily available fats instead of glucose for energy. And because peaches contain very little fats and a significant amount of carbs, eating one would raise your blood sugar levels and kick you out of ketosis.
Canned Peaches
Canned peaches can be a convenient way of eating this delicious fruit. The problem is that canned peaches are often drowned in sugary syrup that drives the carb content even higher.
And even if the canned peaches contain no added sugar, they are sot suitable for keto. A cup of canned peaches contains around 14.9 grams of total carbs, 11 of which are sugar (*).
Dried Peaches
You’ve guessed it. Dried peaches contain too much sugar and carbs to be suitable for the keto diet.
Just like raisins, dried cranberries, or dates, dried fruit is too sweet, easy to overeat and even a small serving of dried peaches contains a carb count too high for the ketogenic diet.
The amount of carbs of dried peaches depend on the brand and the amount of added sugar. Popular brands, such as Sun-Maid dried peaches contain 22 grams of net carbs per serving.
Further, dried fruit also contains sulfites and other preservatives, making them even less keto-friendly and worse than fresh peaches.
Is Peach Cobbler Keto?
Peaches are a common ingredient in many popular dessert recipes. And peach cobbler is one of them. A traditional peach cobbler contains around 40.3 grams of net carbs per serving (*).
But a traditional peach cobbler is not the only option available. Many keto dieters love this popular dessert too and there are lots of keto-friendly recipes online that have modified the traditional recipe and gave it a low-carb twist.
Some keto peach cobbler recipes only contain 3 grams of carbs per serving. This would allow you to enjoy a tasty dessert and still stay in ketosis.
How is it possible?
Keto-friendly peach cobbler recipes adjust the ingredients list to make this dessert high in fats and low carb.
Using almond flour instead of plain flour, lots of butter, heavy cream, sugar-free keto sweeteners such as stevia, peach flavorings, and a small serving of peaches make this dessert suitable for a low-carb diet, even though peaches are not keto.
Can You Incorporate Peaches in Keto Recipes?
The ketogenic diet doesn’t restrict specific foods as long as you make sure that you stay within the required net carb count.
While some foods are more keto-friendly than others, you can still enjoy some of them just by controlling your serving size.
Peaches might be a little bit tricky to incorporate into your keto diet. This is because they are very small to start with, so the suitable quantities would be very low.
One way of making peaches keto is by combining them with other high-fat foods. Eating a small serving size of peaches alongside cream or cheese would twist the ratio from carbs to fats.
Keep in mind that the 100-gram serving size of peaches contains 8 grams of net carbs. In order to stay within your carb allowance and maintain ketosis, a 50-gram serving should be safe.
Low-carb Peach Alternatives And What Fruits Can You Eat On Keto Diet?
Even though we’ve established that the net carb count of peaches is too high to be suitable for the ketogenic diet, this doesn’t mean that you should cut out fruit completely.
Fruit is full of Vitamin C, antioxidants, and provides many health benefits that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Selecting other low-carb fruits such as raspberries, strawberries, or cantaloupe melon can provide an alternative to peaches that could hit your sweet spot and give you the immunity boost too.
But in case you’re craving the peach flavor, you can reach for calorie-free peach flavor drops, peach flavor enhancers, sugar-free peach soda, keto peach jelly, or keto peach fat bombs.
The Conclusion – Are Peaches Keto friendly?
Even though peach is a whole food that has some nutritional benefits, even a small piece of this fruit contains around 13 grams of net carbs, making peaches, not the most keto-friendly fruits.
If you’re considering eating this fruit in other forms, such as canned or dried peaches, you can cross these off the list too. Both canned and dried peaches often contain added sugar, making the total carb count even higher.
It’s not a surprise that the traditional peach cobbler is not suitable for the keto diet either. With over 40 grams of net carbs per serving, a peach cobbler would quickly kick you out of ketosis.
The Alternatives
But the good news is that by modifying the recipe and swapping the high-carb ingredients for foods high in fats, you can make your own keto-friendly peach cobbler.
If you’re looking for an alternative that would hit the sweet spot, we recommend fruits that have a much lower carb count, a lot more fiber, and the same amount of antioxidants and vitamins.
Some of the best keto fruits include berries or melons. And if you’re looking for something with just as much peachy flavor and none of the carbs, we recommend peach flavor enhancers or sugar-free peach soda.
