21 Potluck Side Dishes That Are Low Carb

Need an easy low carb side dish you can take to potluck? From salads to vegetable dishes, you'll find easy and delicious low-carb side recipes that are perfect for pairing with steak, chicken, pork, seafood and more.

From zucchini to cauliflower and from cucumbers to tomatoes there's no shortage of ways to make delicious sides that are low carb and come together easily. Bonus, these are real crowd pleasers so no one will know they're secretly healthy.

Make any one of these delicious low-carb sides for your next potluck event. You'll find sides that go with all of your favorite main course dishes.

Best Low Carb Side Dishes

Let these easy side dish recipes inspire you with ideas that are both healthy and tasty.

Tomato Cucumber Salad

Perfect for summer picnics and BBQs, use homegrown or farmer's market tomatoes and cucumbers to create the base of this fresh salad. Add zest to the sliced tomatoes and cucumbers with slices of purple onion and then toss it all with a red wine vinaigrette.

Garnish with fresh basil for a delicious herbal flavor and finish it with a dash of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. It's a flavorful low carb salad that's uncomplicated and always a hit!
Recipe

BLT Salad

Crunchy, savory and full of outrageous flavor, this bacon, lettuce and tomato side salad is always appreciated on the buffet table at any potluck. Romaine lettuce serves as the crisp base for the additions of crumbled bacon and cherry tomatoes. Add buttery smoothness and healthy fat with chunks of ripe avocado. Toss it all w

ith a zesty homemade chipotle balsamic vinaigrette. It's the perfect side item for chicken, steak, pork and fish.
Recipe

Broccoli Salad With Bacon

Crunchy raw broccoli florets are combined with more flavorful ingredients like crumbled bacon, chopped walnuts and sweet raisins for a delightful low carb salad. This make ahead side dish gets tossed with a savory onion vinaigrette dressing that infuses the flavor as it chills in the fridge.

It's a spectacular combination of salty, sweet, nutty and savory that's welcome on any potluck table.
Recipe

Avocado Caprese Salad

This pretty presentation of a stacked caprese salad is a luscious way to offer a low carb side item at your next potluck event. Start with a base of freshly sliced heirloom tomatoes, generously cut. Top them with a creamy and buttery slice of ripe avocado, which is the perfect low carb substitute for cheese, a key ingredient in a traditional caprese salad.

Add the finishing layer of a fragrant fresh basil leaf. Garnish with a dash of salt and pepper before lightly drizzling with olive oil and vinegar.
Recipe

Keto Coleslaw

What summer potluck or BBQ would be complete without coleslaw? Keep it crunchy and tangy with this low carb recipe that uses a keto-friendly dressing for a creamy and zesty vinaigrette.

Shredded cabbage and carrots make up the base while the avocado oil mayonnaise joins with apple cider vinegar and a dollop of honey to create a delicious dressing. Oh, and there's no shame in using a store-bought pre-made coleslaw mix if you're short on time!
Recipe

Antipasto Salad

While you can male a meal of this crunchy salad, it can also be served as a low carb side item for picnics and potlucks. It's a keto-friendly side dish, too.

Full of Romaine lettuce, Italian cured meats, olives, artichoke hearts and pickled peppers, it's tossed with a simple Italian dressing. From steak to burgers and from chicken to seafood, this antipasto salad is always a winner.
Recipe

Simple Roasted Tomatoes

Let your oven do the work of roasting fresh cherry tomatoes to juicy tenderness. Add them to a baking dish and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. As they roast, they'll burst with natural sweetness from their juices.

Serve them hot or cold. They're perfect to make ahead and keep chilled in the fridge. Before serving, garnish with fresh basil or parsley.
Recipe

Zucchini Pasta Pesto

Noodles go low-carb with these strands that are made from zucchini. Just spiralize them into green curls and top with a homemade dairy-free pesto sauce. It can be a no-cook side item if you choose to not blanch the zoodles.

Blanching the zucchini noodles softens them just a bit, but it's not necessary. Either way, it's an easy and healthy side item for potlucks that's always a hit.
Recipe

Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash

Replace pasta noodles with a low carb and keto vegetable option by using spaghetti squash. A single serving comes in at 7 grams of carbs. The easiest and quickest way to cook this large vegetable is to use your Instant Pot. In just 15 minutes it will be pressure cooked to tenderness, making it simple to cut in half and de-seed before scraping out strands of the flesh to create spaghetti noodles.

From there you can top the noodles with your choice of a sauce, pesto, grated cheese or just lightly seasoned with your favorite herbs, salt and pepper.
Recipe

Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts

Never mushy, but instead, crispy on the outside while tender on the inside is what you'll get when you air fry Brussels Sprouts. Before cooking, drizzle or spritz them with olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt and cracked pepper.

They need just 15 minutes to air fry, turning once or twice to ensure even cooking. For extra zestiness, lightly drizzle with balsamic vinegar before serving. Make this low carb deliciousness as a side for steak, chicken or seafood.
Recipe

Roasted Carrots

It doesn't get any easier than this when you're looking for a low carb side item for a potluck. For a healthy and tasty veggie, roasted carrots that are peeled, cut and tossed with melted coconut oil are spread on a baking sheet and seasoned with pepper and salt.

Bring out their natural sweetness by roasting them in the oven for approximately 20 minutes or until they're tender and caramelized.
Recipe

Air Fryer Asparagus

Vibrant green stalks of asparagus are quickly cooked to perfection with the help of an air fryer. Just snap off the reedy ends, spritz them with olive oil, add a dash of sea salt and cracked pepper and add them in a single layer to the air fryer basket. They'll need between 5 and 10 minutes to achieve that crispy outside coating while becoming tender on the inside.

Need more flavor? Try using infused garlic oil on them or squeeze a little lemon juice on them before serving. Consider sprinkling with a little parmesan cheese or slivered almonds. Either way, it's a quick low carb side dish that's super easy to prepare.
Recipe

Cauliflower Rice

Traditional rice is replaced with this low carb version that uses cauliflower to mimic the look and texture of rice. Just place large florets of raw cauliflower in a food processor and pulse it to the desired consistency. You can also use a box grater to achieve the same effect.

To cook it, sauté it in a skillet with a little fat, such as olive oil, ghee or bacon fat and season with salt. It's the perfect potluck low carb side item to pair with protein like seafood or meat, from chicken, to pork, to beef.
Recipe

Garlic Roasted Broccoli

Grab a sheet pan, line it with parchment paper and add fresh or frozen broccoli florets to it. Boost the flavor by drizzling them with garlic-infused olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast them in the oven between 10-20 minutes, depending on how crunchy you like the broccoli.

Be sure and let them stay in long enough to get a light caramelization on their edges. This delicious side dish works with any entrée, making it a go-to veggie to round out a meal.
Recipe

Deviled Eggs

Deviled eggs are a classic for all parties, picnics and potlucks. This healthy no mayo version is super easy to make and can be dressed up with your favorite toppings. Try sliced olives, roasted red peppers, chives, crumbled bacon or paprika.

It's simple to make several different versions or load them up with all the toppings. They're always a crowd pleaser!
Recipe

Keto Potato Salad

Potato salad isn't exactly low carb, but you can keep carbohydrates under control by swapping out potatoes for another veggie. Here, this keto-friendly recipe uses rutabagas as a tasty stand-in.

Peel, chop, boil and drain the rutabagas before combining with cooked bacon crumbles, fresh dill, chopped dill pickles, lemon juice and homemade keto mayo. Mix well and chill before serving.
Recipe by The Big Man's World

Cauliflower Potato Salad

You'll never miss the nightshades in this cauliflower potato salad that's paleo and a perfect side dish for your next potluck. Roasted and seasoned cauliflower florets are mixed with sliced hard-boiled eggs, chopped celery and onion, diced dill pickles and tossed with an avocado mayonnaise and apple cider vinegar dressing. Garnish with a sprinkle of paprika before serving.
Recipe by Wicked Spatula

Bacon Wrapped Cabbage

There will be no leftovers of this easy keto-friendly side dish that wraps bacon slices around wedges of cabbage and roasts them to scrumptiousness. It's a combo that practically makes itself, with just a little help from you. Thickly slice, or cut into wedges, a green cabbage.

Wrap a slice of sugar-free, nitrate-free bacon around each slice and secure it with a toothpick. Garnish with freshly cracked pepper and roast until the bacon is crispy. It's a low carb side that pairs wonderfully with steak.
Recipe by Easy Low Carb

Creamy Garlic Mushrooms and Bacon

Perfect as a low carb side dish or as an accompaniment to steak, pork or chicken, small button mushrooms are cooked and smothered with a savory and garlicky sauce. Adding outrageous flavor to the mushrooms is the addition of cooked bacon, garlic and onion in butter and olive oil.

Spices plus chicken broth and heavy cream add richness and depth to this side dish. It all comes together in less than 20 minutes on your stovetop. How easy is that?
Recipe by Diethood

Keto Green Beans

This classic green vegetable side dish is keto-friendly and made creamy with the addition of cream cheese. Use either frozen or drained, canned green beans that are heated in a skillet along with butter and minced garlic, salt and pepper.

Add the cream cheese and stir it in as it melts and coats the green beans. Once heated through, serve this 10 minute easy keto side dish to rave reviews.
Recipe by Salty Side Dish

Cauliflower Mac And Cheese

Low carb and great for those on a gluten-free and keto diet, this creamy side dish is a delicious cauliflower mac recipe that's full of flavor. Cooked cauliflower florets are drained well before being mixed with grated white and yellow sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, egg, seasonings and sliced green onion. Add to a casserole dish and bake until the top is golden and bubbly. Delish!
Recipe by All The Healthy Things

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