Until recently there haven’t been many low-carb keto condiments and sauces to choose from. But now brands and keto cooks alike have caught on to the need for low-carb high-fat versions of staple sauces, dips, and marinades.

Here’s a list of the 8 best keto condiments, each with a choice between a delicious DIY recipe or high quality store-bought option.

1. Keto Mayonaise

Invented in France way back in the 1800’s mayonnaise is now a $1.3 billion dollar U.S. industry. Throughout its history mayonnaise has always been keto. Though some brands add sugar, the most popular brands are still zero-carb foods.

The ingredients of most mayos are just oil, eggs (yolks), vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and sometimes paprika or other spices.

But that doesn’t mean basic store-bought mayo is healthy. In fact, mayonnaise mostly contain industrial vegetable oils high in omega-6 and polyunsaturated fatts that can become oxidized and lead to inflammation in the body.

Best Store-Bought Option

Fortunately, brands like Primal Kitchen and Kinsingtons are catching on to the need for mayo made with olive oil and avocado oil that have less polyunsaturated fat.

Easy Recipe

Jettisoning the white vinegar and rapeseed oil of commercial mayo for apple cider vinegar and avocado oil, this recipe will fuel ketosis without fueling inflammation.

And if you’re on the carnivore diet, substitute oil for liquid bacon grease.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Avocado oil (bacon grease for carnivore diet)
• 2 egg yolks  (chose the best pasture-raised eggs)
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Pinch sea salt

Directions

1. Add egg yolks and vinegar to food processor or immersion blender jar, blend until combined
2. Slowly add oil. If using immersion blender add all oil at once and go up and down without lifting blender into air.
3. Add mustard and salt, blend in.

2. Keto BBQ Sauce

Most people think of bbq sauce as tangy and sweet, but you can still get that classic bbq flavor without all the sugar and carbs. In fact many regional and traditional bbq sauces don’t actually call for added sugar. So you can think of keto bbq sauce as a return to the roots of bbq flavor.

Best store-bought option

Again primal kitchen gets the nod. Though other brands offer great choices, we appreciate the variety of primal kitchens flavors.

Easy  Keto BBQ Recipe

This South Carolina inspired keto BBQ sauce can liven up pretty much any keto meat, and even make nutrient-packed organ meats more of a treat than a chore. Try it as a dip with pan fried sweetbreads.

Ingredients

• 16 ounces of Sugar-Free Tomato Sauce
• 4 tablespoons of no-sugar-added Worcestershire Sauce
• 4 tbsp of apple cider vinegar
• 4 tbsp of Liquid Smoke Flavor
• 2 teaspoons of sea salt
• 2 teaspoons of onion powder
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika (or cayenne is you want it spicy)
• 1/4 teaspoons of powdered stevia, optional.

Directions

1. Add all ingredients to a medium saucepan, stir over medium heat.
2. Simmer for 5 minutes
3. Allow to cool, use it, jar the rest, refrigerate.

3. Keto Ketchup

Commercial ketchup is loaded with high-fructose corn syrup which can quickly spike your blood sugar, damage your glycocalyx, cause premature aging via glycation, and contribute to insulin resistance and diabetes. Even small amounts of sugar can trigger carb addiction.

Luckily there are a number of tasty low-carb ketchups on the market. And you can easily make your own!

Best Store-Bought Option

Keto Classic Ketchup by Yo Mama’s Foods offers a zero-carb option. But overall we prefer the flavor of G Hughes Sugar Free Ketchup, with only 1 gram of carbs per serving.

Easy Keton BBQ Sauce Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 oz Tomato paste (no sugar added)
• 1 cup Water
• 1/4 cup powdered monk fruit
• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 3/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/8 tsp mustard powder

Directions

1. Add all ingredients to small saucepan, whisk until smooth
2. Over low heat, simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally. Taste and add salt and sweetener to taste
3. Let cool and for smoother more uniform texture puree in blender

4. Keto Ranch Dressing

Ranch is just about the most comforting and keto-friendly dressing out there. This is a real asset when making the transition to keto, since for most people a ketogenic diet means giving up a lot of other comfort foods.

However, most store bought ranch dressings, even “keto-certified” varieties are loaded with inflammatory seed and vegetable oil along with gum emulsifiers and preservatives.

Best Store-Bought Option

Primal Kitchen Ranch dressing comes closest to meeting our standards thanks to an ingredient list that includes avocado oil, apple cider vinegar, and organic seasonings. It does however have some gums to maintain a consistent texture.

Easy Keto Ranch Dressing Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup Mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup Sour cream
• 2 tsp Lemon juice
• 2 tsp parsley
• 1 tsp dill
• 1 tsp chives
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. Whisk all ingredients together except for heavy cream
2. Gradually whisk in heavy cream until you reach your consistency. For a lighter dressing, use less cream and add water
3. Refrigerate for a few hours to let flavors mingle before serving. Keep for up to 10 days

5. Keto Cheese Sauce

For people that tolerate dairy, cheese on keto can be a staple source of fat, protein, and delicious whole-food variety.

Keto cheese sauce is a way to make your cheese even more versatile. You can pour it over steak, organ meats, and low-carb vegetables to boost both your fat intake and gastronomic pleasure.

Unfortunately, all store-bought cheese sauces we’ve come across are made with some combination of powdered cheeses, gum stabilizers, and usually have synthetic preservatives.

The good news, it’s really easy to whip up keto cheese sauce on your own, and it’s way tastier!

Easy Keto Cheese Sauce Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 oz. cream cheese
• ⅓ cup heavy cream, plus 3 tablespoons
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder (leave out if you don’t want spicey)

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in a small saucepan(except for 3 tbsp heavy cream)
2. Stir over low for a few minutes until the mixture is smooth and uniform
3. Stir in 3 additional heavy cream to increase smooth creamy texture.

6. Keto Aioli

Ordering an extra side of aioli when eating out on keto is a great hack to boost your macros. And it makes a great addition to keto vegetables and meats alike.

Best Store-Bought Option

Again Primal Kitchen Aioli leads the pack thanks to their avocado oil base.

Easy Keto Aioli Recipe

Ingredients

• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large Egg
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 15 ounces light olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/390F.
2. Place the garlic cloves on a cookie sheet and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown and soft.
3. Set the garlic aside to cool.
4. Place the cooled garlic, egg, mustard, salt and pepper in a food processor and blend on medium for 3 minutes until well blended.
5. Add the oil to a measuring jug and very slowly pour it into the blending food processor until it is all combined.
6. Add the optional lemon juice if the mixture become too thick.
7. Place in an airtight jar and store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

7. Keto Mustard

Best Store-Bought Option

Though most commercial mustards are a low carb food, they almost always include processed ingredients like xanthan gum stabilizers and sulfur dioxide preservatives.

This is not the case for Nobel Made The New Primal Coarse Dijon Mustard. This mustard leads the pack with a short list of whole foods ingredients and only 1 carb per serving. Finding a good keto mustard is also crucial when creating more complex low carb sauces on your own, since mustard is often a key ingredient.

Also worth noting is to avoid honey mustard on keto, since it will certainly include added sugars.

DIY Keto Mustard Recipe

If you’re a stickler about choosing the purest ingredients, or you’re just a DIY keto condiment enthusiast, here’s an easy keto mustard recipe to add to your repertoire.

Ingredients

• 4 oz whole mustard seeds
• 4 oz ground mustard seed powder
• 1 cup cold water
• 5 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp sea salt or Himalayan salt
• 2 tsp turmeric

Directions

1. Using spice grinder or mortar and pestel, grind whole grain mustard seeds to a coarse consistency
2. Combine ground mustard seeds, salt, mustard powder, and turmeric powder in a mixing bowl
3. Add cold water and stir until smooth
4. Let paste sit for 10 minutes
5. Add apple cider vinegar
6. Store in glass jar and let sit in fridge for at least 12 hours so that bitterness can mellow before using

8. Soy Sauce on Keto

The most popular soy sauces are naturally low in carbs with around 1 gram per 1 tablespoon serving.

However, some people wonder if there are healthier and gluten-free options. That’s where alternative umami-packed sauces come into play.

Popular alternatives to soy sauce on keto include Bragg’s Liquid Aminos, and Coconut Aminos by Coconut Secret. Both are gluten free while combining complex umami flavor thanks to more than a dozen different amino acids.

Either of these options can add savory complexity to your keto meals, especially those that feature fatty keto fish.

Keto Sauces and Condiments: The Takeaway

Though part of the beauty of a keto diet is how it simplifies your eating, that doesn’t mean it has to be boring.

These seven essential keto sauces and condiments can liven up pretty much any keto dish.

Keto sauces and condiments can be especially helpful when you’re getting used to a nose-to-tail way of eating that incorporates nutrient-rich but unusual tasting organ meats.

All the store-bought options we recommend have the simplest and purest ingredients we could find. While the DIY keto sauce and condiment recipes empower you to chose the very best ingredients.

Bon appetite!

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