Queso Fresco, which translates to “fresh cheese” in Spanish, is a type of cheese that originates from Mexico. Without a doubt, Queso Fresco is one of Mexico’s most popular cheeses. This article explores the place of Queso Fresco in a ketogenic diet.
What is Queso Fresco?
This cheese is traditionally made from cow’s milk and has a crumbly texture with a mild, slightly savoury flavour. Whether you’re serving it fresh or cooking a delicious dish with it, Queso Fresco is incredibly versatile.
Nutritional Profile of Queso Fresco
When it comes to fat content, Queso Fresco is a relatively low-fat cheese, with around 21 grams of fat per 100 g serving. In addition, this Mexican cheese is a good source of protein, with around 18 g of protein per 100 g. Lastly, Queso Fresco is relatively high in salt content, with around 780 mg of sodium per 100 g serving.
Keto-Friendliness of Queso Fresco
Fresh Cheese is keto-friendly because it is both low in net carbs and high in fats. Fresh Cheese is good for keto because it is low in net carbs (2.98g of net carbs per 100g serving). It is important to limit your net carb consumption to 20g - 30g per day to stay in ketosis. You can calculate your ideal daily net carb allowance by using this keto macros calculator. Then use the serving calculator below to determine a serving size that fits your net carb budget. Fresh Cheese is a good source of fat because it does not contain any non-keto ingredients. However, most of your fats should still come from natural and minimally processed sources like virgin olive oil, MCT oil, and grass-fed butter. It is important to get your fats from healthy sources so your body can burn clean fuel while on ketosis.
Benefits of Including Queso Fresco in a Keto Diet
Queso Fresco is minimally processed and free of harmful ingredients like non-keto sweeteners, highly refined oils, and food additives. It is important to check both macros and ingredients of your foods to achieve a healthy weight loss on keto.
Read also: Creamy Keto Soup
How to Enjoy Queso Fresco on Keto
Keto Fried Queso Recipe
This is one of the easiest, cheesiest keto snacks you will ever eat! All you need is olive oil and queso fresco, but it’s so delicious you won’t be able to stop eating it! Queso fresco is a cheese commonly used in Mexican dishes and can be found in the cheese section of most grocery stores. By itself this cheese doesn’t have much flavor, however, when you throw it in a hot pan and fry it up - it will make your taste buds sing! The trick to creating good fried cheese is to ensure your pan is HOT before you throw in your cheese. Make sure your oil and pan are fully warmed up or your cheese will melt and not retain it’s shape if you need to keep it in the pan for too long.
Ingredients:
- Round of queso fresco
- Olive oil
Instructions:
- Cut a round of queso fresco into slices.
- Cut the very longest ones in half to make them easier to handle.
- Heat some olive oil in a large skillet over a medium-high heat.
- Add the slices of cheese to the hot pan (I had to cook mine in two batches).
- After a minute or two, flip them all over.
- Then after another couple of minutes, remove them from the skillet and drain on some paper towels.
- As they cool they will firm up a little, which makes them easier to handle.
- You will slice your queso fresco into about 1/4 inch thick squares and then place them into a preheated skillet set to medium-high heat.
- It should only take a minute or two to get a nice crust on your cheese and then you will flip it and let it cook for another minute or two until the other side has a nice crust.
- Take it out and place it on a paper-towel-lined plate to absorb the excess grease.
- Let cool and then dig in!
- Dip in tomato sauce for some extra flavor.
Heat skillet and oil to medium-high heat. Add cheese into hot skillet and let cook for 1-2 minutes or until a golden-brown crust has formed on the cheese. Let cool then serve immediately. Eat by itself or dip in tomato sauce for extra flavor.
Other Considerations
Love this recipe? You can absolutely serve them on their own, but as much as I like cheese, I think this would become a little one-note. Also, you could absolutely add extra seasonings to the queso.
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is my best approximation. I cannot guarantee completely accurate data due to variations in ingredients and cooking methods. Carbohydrates from sugar alcohols are not included in net carb counts as it has been shown that they do not impact blood sugar.
Lastly, Queso Fresco is relatively high in salt content, with around 780 mg of sodium per 100 g serving. And this can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure.
Read also: Queso and the Keto Diet
Around the world, health authorities generally consider this cheese to be safe for pregnant women, as long as it is made from pasteurised milk.
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers