A1 Sauce, or as it’s frequently referred to A1 Steak Sauce is a popular brown sauce, widely used with a variety of meat dishes. Meat, especially high-fat meat, is usually a staple in a Keto dieter’s meal plan, it’s only natural to wonder if this childhood staple could be incorporated into the diet. So let’s find out, is A1 Sauce keto?
What is A1 Sauce?
A1 Sauce is a brown sauce, somewhat similar in both taste and consistency to the famous Worcestershire sauce. As such, it has the characteristic semi-sweet taste with a bit of tang and peppery notes.
The big difference between A1 Sauce and Worcestershire sauce is that A1 sauce is tomato-based. They’re similarly flavored with spices, vinegar, garlic, onions, and sugar, and an added sweet element (molasses for Worcestershire sauce, raisins, and orange puree/marmalade for A1 sauce), but the A1 Sauce’s tomato base makes vinegar less pronounced than in Worcestershire sauce.
A Keto-Cap (aka A Keto Recap!)
If you’re new to keto and want a bit more information, check out our keto beginners guide.
As a quick summary, if you need it, the keto (also known as the ketogenic diet) is a low-carb, high-fat diet.
The whole concept of the keto diet is that your body transitions from burning glucose, in simple terms, sugars or carbohydrates, to burning fat as its primary fuel source.
For a keto diet, people will restrict their macros to eating;
- 70% of their calories from fat
- 25% from protein
- 5% from carbohydrates
Sticking to these macros for a period of time will put your body into a state of ketosis. Ketosis is when your body has transitioned from burning carbohydrates as its primary fuel source to burning fat for fuel. It is at this point that you will start to see and feel the benefits of the keto diet.
There are a lot of new terms and abbreviations that you may come across, sometimes it can feel like a new language that you need to learn. In order to help you out and keep you on the right track, we have created a keto terms and keto abbreviations guide, bookmark these to make your keto journey easier.
Some people can be put off the keto diet because of the side effects, however, these are only short-lived and the health benefits of keto far outweigh the side effects.
One of the main benefits which attract people to the keto diet is that it can cause significant reductions in insulin levels (by up to 75%) and blood sugar levels, which can be attractive to those that struggle with diabetes, amongst other health complaints.
What is the Nutritional Value of A1 Sauce?
Per 1 Serving, which the producers define as 1tbsp (17g), A1 Sauce contains:
- Carbs: 3 grams
- Protein: 0 grams
- Fat: 0 grams
- Fiber: 0 grams
- Sugar: 2 grams
- Calories: 15
How Many Net Carbs are there in A1 Sauce?
A1 Sauce contains no fiber, so all its carbs are net carbs. Thus, it contains 3g net carbs per 1tbsp (17g of product).
Is A1 Sauce Keto Friendly?
No, A1 Sauce isn’t keto-friendly. But it has the upside of being a sauce, and thus not usually used in large quantities at once. If you’re very careful and stick to strict serving sizes, you’ll be able to incorporate a serving (or even two, on a particularly low-carb day).
But, frankly speaking, wasting 3-6g net carbs on a sauce when you’re only allowed 20g per day, shouldn’t be something you do regularly.
Also, A1 sauce contains corn syrup and orange puree, which are not keto friendly ingredients. That having been said, their quantities are so low, that you may consider it if you are eating a dirty keto diet.
What are the Best Keto Alternatives to A1 Sauce?
Unfortunately, all brown sauces tend to be high in net carbs due to various ingredients. Even “Steve’s Keto Steak Sauce” isn’t particularly keto-friendly despite the name, with 2g net carbs per serving.
Be it fruits (apples, dates, raisins), molasses, marmalade, or sugar – all of these separately is enough to shoot the sauce carb content through the roof, and the majority tend to incorporate at least a couple.
The best you can do is “ketofy” a brown sauce by making it at home and substituting the sweetener with more keto-friendly means, like erythritol or xylitol, while skipping the non-keto elements. But the taste is unlike to be comparable.
Staying hydrated on the keto diet is really important, for more on how much water you should be drinking, check out our guide to staying hydrated on the keto diet.
If you’re planning on dehydrating yourself(!) and drinking alcohol on the keto diet, check out our ultimate guide to drinking alcohol on a keto diet. Also, you may be interested in, how to recover from a cheat day.
Summary: Is A1 Sauce Keto?
In summary, if you are living a clean keto diet then A1 sauce is not keto friendly. It contains non keto ingredients such as corn syrup, also, one tablespoon will set you back 3 grams of carbs. Your best bet is to make your own keto friendly version of this steak sauce and save on the carbs.
