This time of year is all about gathering with your loved ones around food and fun. If you’re hosting a backyard barbecue or just grilling out with your family, here are some creative ways to enjoy all this season has to offer while staying true to your health goals.
1. Start with a choice cut
Any meat will generally taste good if it’s smothered in a sugary sauce, but high-quality, juicy proteins will shine through on their own with fewer condiments added on. If you like to take the minimalist route, aim for great cuts with a sugar-free dry rub, or seafood with herbaceous, citrus-y dressings, and focus on cooking them to perfection.
2. Don’t be afraid to get saucy
If you love your BBQ sauce and want it to be a co-star at your cookout, try making a delicious, tangy sauce using an allulose blend instead of sugar. Not only is allulose a healthy keto substitute for sugar, but it also caramelizes well for that classic browning at the edges (just keep an eye on it so it doesn’t brown too quickly—you may want to add it toward the end).
You can use allulose as a 1:1 sugar replacement in all your backyard barbecue recipes from BBQ sauces and marinades to salad dressings to cupcakes to lemonade.
3. Lighten up your sides
Your average potato salads and pasta salads tend to be carb dense, and let’s face it—a little boring sometimes! A cool, crisp cucumber salad, cabbage slaw, or shredded brussels sprouts salad will add crunch to your menu and keep things light. When preparing side dishes, think: flavor. Spices, seasonings, sliced chilies, and fresh cut herbs will go a long way in making any side dish deliciously memorable.
4. Make keto buns
You may have been told to skip the buns if you follow a low-carb diet, but we’re here to change all that! With the Keto Bread Mix, you can make everything from keto hot dog buns to Texas toast to dinner rolls at your next get together. Or just stick to the recipe on the back of the bag! The nostalgic white bread flavor and texture is perfect slapped on a plate with your barbecue and sides.
5. Bring on the vinegar
The punchy taste of vinegar is a quintessential flavor in barbecue sauces and sides and it’s something we tend to crave at a cookout (think dill pickles and even vinegar chips). Its pungent taste balances the richness of your favorite BBQ fare, but it’s also a superfood ingredient that may help lower your blood sugar spike during a meal.
If you’re looking to minimize blood glucose spikes at a big summer BBQ, try a vinegar-based sipper beforehand: a spoonful of apple cider vinegar, a big splash of lime juice, and maybe even a few drops of bitters, mixed in a large glass of mineral or sparkling water and plenty of ice.
6. Offer fruity infusions
Don’t forget to stay hydrated while you’re out in the sun too! If you want to enjoy the fruits of the summer but are avoiding carbs in your diet, fruit-infused water can be one way to reap the flavors and even some micronutrients and electrolytes from your favorite stone fruits, tropical fruits, melons, and summer berries without consuming the actual fruit itself. Try a gentle, cold-infused peach or watermelon-mint water or even an unsweetened, fruity iced tea to stay refreshed and in ketosis.
We’re big believers in the power of cooking to connect people and enhance wellbeing—and that doesn’t stop in the summertime! For more summery recipe ideas, follow Scotty’s on Instagram and check out our recipe index on the site.
