30+ Slow Carb Foods For Weight Loss

Don’t cut all carbohydrates when you’re striving to lose weight! Here are 30+ slow carb foods for weight loss to enjoy and improve your health!

Slow carb foods are basically low-glycemic foods that are a source of slowly digestible carbohydrates. These slow carb foods are absorbed slowly by the body, providing a steady source of energy over an extended period.

That means, these foods don’t cause spikes in your blood sugar levels, instead, they help to keep it stable and you satiated for a longer period of time. Which is awesome when your goal is to improve your health or to lose weight.

Not surprisingly, slow carbs are an essential part of any healthy diet, as they provide sustained energy, promote satiety, and help to prevent blood sugar imbalances. 

Can Slow Carbs Help You Lose Weight?

Enjoying a diet that is rich in slow carbs (rather than high-glycemic foods) would be an excellent option for you if you want to lose weight, manage certain health conditions like diabetes, or simply improve your overall health.

So, let’s take a closer look at some examples of slow carb foods that you might incorporate into your diet and at some recipes for nutritious and delicious meal ideas. 

Legumes 

Legumes are an excellent source of carbs, protein, and fiber, making them a staple in most healthy diets like the Mediterranean diet. Here are some examples that you can include in your meal plan: 

• Lentils can be used in a wide variety of dishes, including soups, stews, and salads. Lentils are high in protein, fiber, and slow carbs, making them an excellent choice to maintain your energy levels throughout the day. You can experiment with green, brown, red, and black types of lentils. 
• Chickpeas: Another nutritious legume, chickpeas are a great source of carbs, fiber, and protein. You can use them in salads, curries, and, of course, to make hummus. 
• Black beans are a staple in many Latin American cuisines and are an excellent addition to a healthy slow carb diet. Due to their high protein content, they’re often incorporated as a meat substitute in vegetarian or vegan dishes.
• Peas including green peas, snow peas, and snap peas. Each type looks and tastes different, which means you can enjoy a variety of meals. Peas are rich in slow carbs, vitamins C and K, and folate. You can enjoy them in healthy meals like soups, salads and rice dishes!

Non-Starchy Vegetables

Non-starchy vegetables are an excellent source of slow carbs, vitamins, and minerals, which makes them a great addition to any healthy diet. Some examples include: 

• Broccoli: This veggie contains antioxidants like sulforaphane that are shown to have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. Enjoy broccoli steamed, roasted, or stir-fried with other healthy ingredients such as chicken and tofu. 
• Cauliflower: Another cruciferous vegetable that improves digestion, heart health, and immune function. Enjoy it boiled, steamed, roasted, mashed, or as a substitute for rice.
• Spinach: A leafy green vegetable that supplies the body with slow carbs, fiber, vitamins A, C and K, and folate. It also contains lutein and zeaxanthin, which are antioxidants boosting anti-inflammation processes. You can consume spinach raw in salads or cooked as part of omelets, dips, soups, and stews.
• Brussels Sprouts are easy to prepare and can be a great addition to a slow carb diet.
• Asparagus is rich in several vitamins like K, folate and of course – iron. Enjoy it roasted in salads or as a side for fish or chicken.
• Peppers. For the full health benefits and a lot of vitamin C, enjoy this slow-carb vegetable raw. But if you’re looking to up the flavor of a salad – roast it!
• Radishes make a great low-calorie, yet high-nutrient snack! They’re great in salads and surprisingly grow really fast!
• Eggplant. This delicious vegetable is best enjoyed roasted or cooked with tomatoes, pesto and of course – garlic.
• Lettuce might be labeled as nutrient-poor, but it’s actually quite a good source of fiber and several minerals. The best way to enjoy it is in salads or as lettuce wraps!

Other Foods To Enjoy

If you want to try a slow-carb focused diet to lose weight, here are some other foods to add to your meals:

• almonds
• avocado
• chia seeds
• flaxseed
• cashews
• pistachios
• hemp seeds
• barley
• Brazil nuts
• hazelnuts
• sauerkraut
• artichokes
• bok choy
• cucumbers
• endive
• apples
• parsley
• basil
• dill
• mint
• coconut
• oregano
• cinnamon
• turmeric
• cumin
• sage
• thyme
• olives
• onions
• garlic
• olive oil
• flax oil
• kale
• zucchini
• kidney beans
• green beans
• coconut oil
• mushrooms

And of course dairy-free animal protein sources like eggs, chicken, turkey lamb, beef, fish and sea food.

Slow Carb Recipes

Now that we got this, here are some quick and easy recipes that feature a variety of slow carb foods:

• Ground Beef and Mushrooms
• Tomato Chickpea Salad
• High-Protein Tuna Egg Salad
• Spicy Shrimp Chickpea Salad
• Green Beans And Tomatoes

Conclusion

As you can see, you can enjoy these slow carb foods for weight loss in many different ways! Your diet doesn’t have to be restrictive and your meals don’t need to be boring!