Is Hummus Keto-Friendly? (& Better Substitutes)

Dips can be confusing on keto because the ingredients are not always clear. Find out whether hummus is keto-friendly and what other options you have.

The first thing to note is that there is not just one hummus recipe. Different ratios of ingredients can contain different amounts of carbs.

That being said, the example hummus recipe in this article contains around 8.3 grams of net carbohydrates (total carbs minus fiber) per 100 grams.

In theory, you could eat small amounts of this and stay in ketosis.

However, because it is somewhat higher in carbs, you can say that hummus is generally not keto-friendly. In combination with normal amounts of food, it will likely kick you out of ketosis.

Especially if you consider that there are store-bought brands that increase the carb count even more by adding sugar.

Example hummus recipe

As briefly mentioned, you can make hummus in different ways. By changing up the ingredients, you can also change how many carbohydrates the mix contains and in turn, how keto-friendly it is.

One example of a hummus recipe is:

• 1 (15 oz. = 425 grams) can of garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
• 2 to 4 tbsp. water
• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 3/4 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. salt

This article will focus on the nutrition information of a hummus recipe that is slightly different but very similar to the one above (1).

Carbs in hummus

How many carbs there are in hummus plays an important role in how keto-friendly it is and in what amounts.

100 grams of the example hummus contain the following amounts of carbs (1):

• Total carbs: 14.3 grams
• Of which fiber: 6.0 grams
• Net carbs: 8.3 grams

There are definitely foods that are higher in carbohydrates too.

However, the 8.3 grams of net carbs in 100 grams of hummus is likely enough to kick you out of ketosis after eating reasonable amounts of other foods.

One cup of the example hummus is about 246 grams and contains the following amounts of carbs:

• Total carbs: 35.2 grams
• Of which fiber: 14.8 grams
• Net carbs: 20.4 grams

As you can expect, eating more hummus will also mean consuming more carbohydrates.

Even though portion size can change a lot, hummus tends to come with a lot of carbs. In turn, it will generally not be keto-friendly.

Carbs in hummus vs chickpeas

Hummus is a dip with chickpeas as the main ingredient. You may want to know how these foods compare in terms of carbohydrate amounts and keto-friendliness.

In the table below, you can find the amounts of carbs in hummus vs chickpeas (1, 2).

If you do decide that you want to implement one of these foods on a ketogenic diet, hummus will generally be a better choice than chickpeas.

Do keep in mind that hummus recipes can vary in terms of carb counts. Some brands add sugar which makes them relatively high in carbohydrates.

Other nutrition information hummus

In some cases, you can consider implementing foods that are slightly higher in carbs on a ketogenic diet because they contain nice amounts of important nutrients.

Fats, proteins, vitamins, and minerals still influence your overall health and sometimes whether you stay in ketosis or not.

100 grams of the example hummus contain the following nutrients (1):

• Calories: 166
• Protein: 7.9 grams
• Carbs: 14.3 grams
• Part of the carbs that is fiber: 6 grams
• Fat: 9.6 grams
• Manganese: 39% of the DV (Daily Value)
• Copper: 26% of the DV
• Folate: 21% of the DV
• Magnesium: 18% of the DV
• Phosphorus: 18% of the DV

And some other vitamins and minerals in smaller amounts.

Hummus does contain nice amounts of a variety of important nutrients. However, these are not at the level where you absolutely want to implement more hummus.

You should be able to find more nutritious and more keto-friendly foods too.

Is hummus a carb or protein?

While most foods contain different nutrients in some amounts, it is sometimes possible to put them into categories based on what macronutrients they mainly include.

That being said, hummus is an example of a food that contains both carbs and proteins in nice amounts. It is hard to put it in one category or the other.

Why you can sometimes eat hummus on keto

Even though hummus is somewhat higher in carbs, it is sometimes possible to eat it and stay in ketosis. To understand why this is and avoid overdoing it, a quick recap of the keto basics can be helpful.

You can describe any way of eating where you get and stay in ketosis as a ketogenic diet. Ketosis is a state where your body mainly burns fat as fuel (3).

A typical recommendation to get in this state is to consume 55%-60% of your calories from fat, 30%-35% from protein, and 5%-10% from carbohydrates.

In reality, how many carbs you can eat while staying in ketosis can vary due to differences in things like body weight, body composition, and exercise habits.

That being said, the keto statistics above can still help you get a rough idea of how many grams of hummus and other foods you can eat on ketogenic diets.

If you use the percentages above, you will likely conclude that you can eat around 20 to 50 grams of carbs a day.

Keep in mind that you don’t include the fiber in hummus and other foods in these amounts. Fiber is a category of carbohydrates but your body deals with them in more keto-friendly ways.

How to avoid eating too much hummus on keto

So to be able to eat hummus while staying in ketosis, you will likely have to control your portions in one way or another.

Preparing a big bowl of hummus with your favorite dip foods and hoping that you don’t eat too much will likely not offer the results you want.

You can use some of these tips to avoid eating too much hummus on keto:

• Estimate in advance how many grams of hummus still fit in your ketogenic diet
• Weigh out this many grams of hummus and put the rest of the hummus somewhere else
• Don’t eat unlimited amounts of hummus during other activities
• If you really crave hummus too much you may need to buy smaller or no portions

Keep in mind that your initial estimations about how many grams of hummus are keto could be suboptimal. You may need to adjust these over time.

What to eat with hummus on keto

Hummus is a type of dip and spread which means you typically eat it in combination with other foods.

Unfortunately, dipping foods are often high in carbs and not that keto-friendly.

At the same time, this does not imply to all options you have. You can eat some of the following foods with hummus while following a keto diet:

• Pork rinds
• Cheese crips
• Low-carb crackers or chips
• Celery sticks
• Cucumbers
• Mini peppers

While these foods tend to be improvements over more standard options, you want to keep in mind they often still contain certain amounts of carbs.

To stay in ketosis, you may still need to keep your portions small. Especially considering that hummus contains a good amount of carbs too.

Substitutes for regular hummus on keto

Another way to approach hummus on keto is swapping out chickpeas which add most of the carbohydrates to the recipes.

Some of the following foods can also offer you a good-tasting type of hummus on keto:

• Avocado hummus
• Cauliflower hummus
• Zucchini hummus
• Almond hummus
• Artichoke hummus

These alternatives will not have the exact same taste but you may like them enough to consider.

Why you do follow a ketogenic diet?

By now it should be clear that even small amounts of hummus can kick you out of ketosis. Whether this is a problem and to what extent depends on why you follow a ketogenic diet.

There are people who need/want to stay in ketosis every minute of the day. If you are in this category, you likely want to stay away from hummus.

On the other hand, hummus can still be decent for weight loss and good for health. Even if it is not keto-friendly in combination with the rest of your diet.

Related posts:

• Is Chickpea Flour Keto-Friendly? (& Substitutes)

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