Is Butternut Squash Keto-Friendly?

Butternut squash is not considered a keto-friendly vegetable option. It is relatively high in carbs and low in fats, meaning it is not suitable for the keto diet.

Though it is possible to use butternut squash in a keto-friendly way, you may be better using a more keto-friendly vegetable, like pumpkin or spaghetti squash, to replace butternut squash in your recipe.

High in Carbs and Low in Fats

• Butternut squash is a member of the squash family. It is high in carbs and low in fat, making it an unsuitable vegetable to consume on the ketogenic diet.
• The ketogenic diet requires you to eat a low-carb, high-fat diet, meaning butternut squash is not a good choice for this diet.
• Butternut squash is common in many winter recipes, so you may need to substitute this vegetable.
• A good substitute for recipes that use butternut squash is zucchini. Zucchini is a keto-friendly summer squash that is low in carbs or you can also eat acorn squash.
• Zucchini can replace the bulk of butternut squash and adds vitamins and minerals to your recipe, too.
• You could also swap the butternut squash in a recipe for other keto-friendly vegetables, like cauliflower.

Natural Product

• One positive of opting for very small amounts of butternut squash on a keto diet is that it is a natural product. As a natural product, it doesn’t have any added sugars or oils.
• Butternut squash contains vitamins A and C as well as magnesium and potassium, among other vitamins and minerals. 
• This means that, even in very limited quantities, butternut squash is adding nutrition to your diet.
• Overall, we would still recommend avoiding butternut squash when on the keto diet and using a keto-friendly vegetable in its place.