Subway UK Keto Order Guide
The ketogenic diet requires careful attention to carbohydrate intake, but that doesn’t mean you have to avoid fast food entirely. Subway UK offers several options that can fit into a keto meal plan if you know what to order. This guide walks through the best choices, what to avoid, and how to customise your order to stay in ketosis.
What to order at Subway UK on keto
Subway’s salads are the most straightforward keto option. Skip the bread and ask for any sandwich as a salad. The chicken tikka, turkey, or steak options work well. Avoid meatballs and teriyaki chicken due to their sugar content. For toppings, load up on non-starchy vegetables like lettuce, spinach, cucumbers, and peppers. Add cheese, mayonnaise, or olive oil for fat. A typical salad with double meat and full-fat dressing runs about £6.50.
What to avoid
Bread is off-limits, including wraps and flatbreads. Many sauces contain sugar, so stick to mayonnaise, mustard, or olive oil. The sweet onion, honey mustard, and sweet chilli sauces are particularly high in carbs. Some veggie toppings like sweetcorn and carrots also add unnecessary carbohydrates. keto-friendly fast food options at other chains follow similar principles.
What this means in practice
A keto Subway order in the UK might look like this: a salad with double chicken tikka (£7.20), extra cheese (50p), avocado (£1), and mayonnaise. Skip the croutons and sugary sauces. This meal provides around 5-7g net carbs, 40g protein, and 50g fat. Tesco sells similar pre-packaged salads for £3.50, but Subway offers more customisation. In winter, a warm topping like melted cheese can make the salad more appealing.
Nutrition specifics
Subway UK provides nutritional information online. The chicken tikka contains 2.3g carbs per 100g, while the steak has 1.2g. Cheese adds minimal carbs but boosts fat content. A tablespoon of mayonnaise contributes about 0.5g carbs. If you’re tracking macros closely, keto macro calculators can help you stay within your daily limits.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get a keto-friendly wrap at Subway UK?
No. All Subway wraps contain at least 50g of carbohydrates, which exceeds most people’s daily keto allowance. Stick to salads instead.
Are Subway’s soups keto-friendly?
Most contain thickeners or starches. The tomato and basil soup has 12g carbs per serving, making it unsuitable for strict keto.
How do I add more fat to my Subway salad?
Extra cheese, avocado, and full-fat dressings like mayonnaise or ranch increase fat content without adding carbs. Olive oil is another good option.
The bottom line
Subway UK can work for keto if you opt for salads with low-carb proteins and high-fat toppings. Avoid bread, sugary sauces, and starchy vegetables. A well-built salad provides a balanced keto meal when you’re on the go. If you’d rather not do the macro maths yourself, the Keto Dieting app does it for you on Google Play and the App Store.
References
- Bueno NB, de Melo IS, de Oliveira SL, da Rocha Ataide T (2013). Very-low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet v. low-fat diet for long-term weight loss: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. British Journal of Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114513000548
- Hyde PN, Sapper TN, Crabtree CD, et al. (2019). Dietary carbohydrate restriction improves metabolic syndrome independent of weight loss. JCI Insight. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.128308
