15 Keto-Friendly Shabbat Recipes

Easy tips and tricks to ensure you don't miss out.

By Tracy Block | March 17, 2020

Whether you’ve been keeping a keto diet for a while, or you’ve just embarked upon your keto journey, everyone needs a little help and support to stick with this eating lifestyle.

Unlike some diets where you can take a break or have a “cheat day,” it is not recommended if you are maintaining a keto lifestyle. This even goes for your Friday night glass of wine. When it comes to the ketogenic diet, you better believe a glass of Manischewitz will eat through your Shabbat carb count quicker than you can say boreh p’ri hagafen. So shelve the sweet wine and opt for a drier wine instead — think cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, or chardonnay. The drier the wine, the lower the carb count (around 3 grams of carbohydrates per glass on average), so if you want to refill that kiddush cup, it’s time to kick the sweet stuff to the curb.

Now that you’ve had your fill of vino, it’s time to talk grub…

Before we dive into our list of keto-friendly Shabbat recipes, let’s chat about fats. If you’re keto and kosher, fret not; butter is never the be-all, end-all. To avoid mixing your meat with dairy, you can cook keto-style dishes with:

Avocado oil
Olive oil
Coconut oil
Beef tallow
Sesame oil

Note: Avoid vegetable-based oils, which are created via chemical extraction and industrialized high-heat processing. The fat sources above are less processed and make for healthier options since the negative effects of vegetable-derived oils are largely unknown.

Semi-Homemade Shabbat Shortcuts

While we can’t get enough of grandma’s traditional recipes, it’s not always easy to throw down on a full Shabbat spread. If you’ve had a long week, we won’t hold it against you if you’d rather kick back than stand by the stove. A few keto Shabbat cooking hacks to consider include:

Bagged veggies: In a pinch, grab some cleaned veggies on the way home from work. Think brussels sprouts, green beans, florets, spiralized veggies — it will make your role as the cook less of a hassle. Simply toss the veggies in your fat of choice, season them, and lay them out on a cookie sheet for a quick roast in the oven.
Deli goods: You can always hop over to your nearby deli to grab a few items like chopped liver or smoked fish dip (lox and cream cheese roll-ups sound divine, too). Just make sure to ask about the ingredients first. Request a printout of the label so you can confirm you’re in the clear. And don’t forget that box of flax crackers on your way out!
Prepared foods: Sometimes snagging a rotisserie chicken at the local grocer is the quick fix you need. Whole Foods even serves up noodle-free chicken soup, when you’re in a bind.

But if you have the time and you’d rather go all-out, we’ve rounded up a list of 15 keto-friendly recipes, from starters to sweets, that would make for a tasty arrangement smack dab in the center of your keto Shabbat table.