Sushi is off the menu once you live low-carb, right?
Are you aware of the shocking truth behind rice sushi? Sushi is healthy right?
Hmm, once you see the shocking infographic below, you may need to think again.
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Is sushi low-carb?
Sushi is a high-carb meal. Sushi is full of rice, often added sugar and flour, and so is high in carbs with minimal salmon or protein.
You may not thank me for posting the picture below. I bet you were eating sushi thinking it was a healthy alternative to sandwiches?
But when you see deconstructed sushi and the equivalent number of slices of bread, you may never touch it again.
Once you see sushi broken down into its counterparts, and understand how rice affects your blood sugars, you may want to stop eating sushi from now on.
Because when you live on a low-carb diet or ketogenic diet, you'll be basing your meal on lower carb foods that are higher in protein and nutrient-rich.
What's in regular sushi?
You probably already know that traditional sushi contains white rice (or sometimes brown rice), but did you know that many sushi contains added sugar to help the rice become sticky?
There is also sugar in the Japanese pickled ginger, there are added sugars to the sweet teriyaki sticky sauces and wheat in the crumbed bread or panko coatings.
And did you know sushi is made with shorter grain rice which has a higher starch content?
And when you see how little nutrition there is, you may decide never to eat sushi again. It's just not worth the high blood sugars.
Is there protein in sushi?
There's not much protein in sushi.
1 California roll (20g) = 1.1g protein, 2g net carbs, 0.9g fat
1 vegetarian sushi (22g) = 0.4g protein, 3.3g net carbs, 0.3g fat
1 sushi avocado roll (20g) = 0.3g protein, 4.2g net carbs, 0.8g fat
Nutritional values from cronometer.com
To eat 30g protein, you would have to eat one of the following:
- 27 California rolls
- 75 vegetarian sushi rolls
- 100 sushi avocado rolls
- 1 chicken breast (100g/3.5oz)
Is sushi nutritious?
Not really. And look at the teeny weeny quarter avocado, fake crab, mayonnaise (probably made with vegetable oils and sugar) and the almost homoeopathic dose of tuna.
You know I'm always repeating myself asking you to give up the sandwiches, because, in reality, it is the filling that is the nutritious part, well this picture is an incredibly visual way to understand that.
Take a look at other shocking food autopsies and see how you can make healthier choices. Sushi, sandwiches, rolls, sweets, soda and all other high carb foods are all about crowding out nutrition.
Healthy sushi alternatives
An easy low-carb lunch idea is a salad, packed with quality proteins, healthy fats and some leafy greens.
High-carb foods such as bread, pasta and rice, bulk up your meals and crowd nutritious foods out.
Next time you're tempted to pick up sushi or a sandwich, take a look at what is really inside. Start by throwing half the rice or bread away. Baby steps.
And start to say no to the juice or soda you usually enjoy with your sushi. Save some money and carbs, bring a bottle of flavoured water or ask for a glass of tap water. More often than not, they will say yes.
No rice sushi
My children love sushi, so I knew I had to develop a low-carb sushi recipe.
My cream cheese sushi is a rice-free alternative you will adore. It is packed with far more salmon than traditional sushi, has lots of vegetables and healthy fat to keep you fuller for longer, rather than having that afternoon sugar crash you are probably used to.
Storage
You can store the cream cheese sushi in the fridge for up to 3 days.
If you take the low-carb sushi for a packed lunch, you need to ensure it is packed with a chiller block in an insulated box.
The Ultimate LOW-CARB Lunchbox Book: This isn’t about doing more, it’s about doing things DIFFERENTLY!! DON'T WAIT - BUY NOW
For more ideas for lunches:
- How to help your child eat real food
- High carb vs low-carb lunch box review
- 50 yummy sugar-free snacks for kids
Lunch box prep Lunch box reviews 
Sugar-free snacks for kids
📖 Recipe
Low-Carb Sushi Recipe
Please rate this recipe ↩
Recipe Video (tap to play)
Calculate ingredients
Ingredients
- 2 large nori sheets
- 100 g (3.5 oz) salmon of choice
- vegetable sticks (of choice)
- 150 g (5 oz) cream cheese full fat
Instructions
- Mix the cream cheese with a fork until soft. Add the salmon and stir through.
- Place the salmon cream cheese mixture along the nori sheet leaving a 1 inch strip at the end. Wet the strip of nori sheet with a little water to make it sticky.
- Place vegetable sticks along the centre and length of the cream cheese mixture.
- Roll up firmly from the cream cheese end and enclose using the nori sticky strip.
- Leave on the chopping board while you are making the next sheet, then cut into small sushi rolls.
- Refrigerate.
Notes
- Cut the sushi into 16 pieces. 1 serving = 4 pieces.
- Nutrition values are calculated for the nori sheets, salmon and cream cheese basic roll.
- Your choice of vegetables used is additional.
Jacqueline
Please give a link to the video! "Tap to play" doesn't do it for someone on a laptop!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
The video is there unless you have an ad blocker installed on your laptop. Alternatively, you can see all my cooking videos on my YouTube channel.
Sherry
Hi Libby
Not sure if this idea has been posted by anyone else yet, but I have a suggestion… I know for some it’s the rice that they like in sushi, so to keep more of the rice consistency you could use cauliflower ‘rice’ (cauliflower that’s finely grated or processed), used either by itself or preferably mixed with some of the cream cheese (which would help it stick together better, and be yummier).
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Yes, I have a cauliflower sushi recipe here. Yummo!
Dr. Laura
If you're planning to use raw salmon in your sushi, be sure to freeze it for at least 24 hours before thawing and using it. There has been an uptick in cases of parasites (notably tapeworms) in fresh salmon, so better safe than sorry. Also be aware that GMO salmon is out there, and while they tell us it's not dangerous, IMO it hasn't been around long enough to really know that for sure.
Thanks for your wonderful work helping people to live healthier!
Edna
2 questions for you........#1 where do I get the wrap from as I live in small town Canada.......#2 how long can you keep them once they are made up as I am making for one but don't want to make daily
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I just buy the nori (seaweed) sheets in the Asian aisle of my supermarket. They will keep fresh in the fridge for up to 3 days, but the nori sheets do tend to go a little soft and chewy after the first day.
Janet
Amazon carries Nori sheets
Diane
Wow! Do you think it would work with cauliflower rice mixed in with the cream cheese? I love your website so much! 🙂
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Now that would be amazing. I love this idea. Go for it.
Kitty Peaks
Totally on board with low carb goodness, but I'm always annoyed at infographics or photo breakdowns that are visually misrepresentative. If it's only like eating 6 pieces of bread (obvs still way too much) then only show six pieces of bread, and not twelve. I get it is for the impact factor but it is also why people are so confused about food!
Fiona
Look again - the photo clearly shows 12 pieces of bread - cut in halves - last time I looked 12 divided by 2 = 6 slices .... and it is clearly labelled as such ... no confusion .
Taylor
Really? This is meant as a joke right?
That is 6 pieces of bread cut in 1/2
Deb
A great alternative would be to order sashimi at the sushi place - just the fish!
Helene
Okay, I have a confession. Although I'm down 43 lbs with my keto lifestyle so far, I have been unable to give up sushi night, a tradition we've had for a decade!! We've always done take out sushi on Wednesdays! When I dove in with serious keto, I made the obvious choice - I ripped out the nutritious bits and left the rest behind! We are lucky that our sushi place gives a generous amount of fish, and I avoid anything with sugary sauces. I peel off all of the rice, and leave myself with a pile of fish, and imo crab. I know the imo crab isn't perfect... but the sushi I get is salmon, cream cheese, capers, thin hint of lemon slice, imo crab. I go fat heavy for the day, and very low carb, planning ahead. I use coconut aminos, and no longer break out my extra jar of ginger... just use sparingly what comes with it. Last night was sushi night... and I woke up today at a new low. Sure, it looks like a waste... My husband plows through it, and I sit there carefully peeling away the rice, leaving a giant pile when I'm done... but in the end, I get a pile of yummy fish, some imo-crab, avocado, and cream cheese... and I LOVE IT. I know it's not ideal, but I've also found that without the rice and soy sauce, I don't even have that bloated feeling afterwards.
Shane Close
What about the resistant starch factor?
Debbie
Exactly! ?
djnikkik
For me, one of the hardest things about going low carb has been giving up sushi. Sushi is probably my all time favourite food and I've spent years working on my sushi making skills and recipes. Family members often request me to make sushi on special occasions and let me tell you, it is hard to put in all that work and effort to make the sushi and then have to sit back and watch everyone else enjoy it while I go without. When I saw this recipe I thought 'there's no way it is going to be anything like the real thing' but I thought I'd give it a go. WOW! While it isn't quite the same as rice sushi it's pretty damn close and the taste is almost exactly the same, it's just the different texture of the soft cream cheese vs the sturdier rice that was the only big difference. I don't know how you keep coming up with these golden recipes but I'm sure glad I found this website. Now to enjoy my low carb sushi goodness! 🙂
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Hey thank you so much for this amazing comment. My kids love this and you have just reminded me to start making it again. It is so much easier and healthier than regular sushi. Sushi is packed with carbs, sugar and very little fish. Try sashimi instead and leave the sushi for someone who is carb loading, or my use recipe instead. So glad you liked it.
Shirley Seeley
I would think that you could use the 0 calorie-0 carb rice from Miracle Noodle. I just ordered my angel hair today and noticed they had "rice"....could prove interesting.
Nicole
I want to thank you soooo much for posting this visual for me!! I live right beside a sushi place-like literally next door-and since going keto I have been missing sushi the most. I've been tempted so many times to just go over and cheat but thanks to this photo, now every time I look that way, all I'll see is those awful six slices of white bread and that tiny mouthful of tuna. Thank you! Thank you!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
The power of visualisation. As soon as i saw this image I knew I had to share it. So many people think sushi is a health food and we have gone off our rockers when we say it isn't.
John
I love you Libby. Your site (including this sushi recipe) has brought me from the brink of a keto abyss. Thank you for all the wonderful ideas and recipes !!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Thank you John, how lovely 🙂
Fay Wood
Cracking up at the wording "almost homeopathic dose of tuna"! Haha, gold!
Love your work.
Xx
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Can you tell I'm a pharmacist?
Erinne
Seems amazing! Just amazing! I love sushi and I never thought that it is so low on nutrients, but this one is !!!! amazing!
helene
utterly awesome! now to sneak sum coconut oil in too so they arent hungry in 30 min!
Erik
I would think the fat in the cream cheese would take care of that.
Hélène
Nope my kids are always hungry. Thin, strong n active. Just always hungry. Lol