Coconut Aminos: How To Use This Must-Have Keto & Paleo Pantry Staple

This is where coconut aminos come in. One of my favorite pantry staples for making Asian-inspired dishes, coconut aminos are the perfect substitute for soy sauce in many recipes—and they just so happens to be vegan, paleo, and keto and far lower in sodium. So now, instead of skipping out on your favorite recipes, just make this simple swap. Your taste buds won't notice a major difference, but your body definitely will.

In order to make the best decisions about food in the long term, it's important to understand why certain foods may not be the best choice and what actually makes the alternatives healthier. Here, I'll explain the difference between coconut aminos, soy sauce, and tamari—all of which can serve the same culinary purpose but may have significantly different effects on the body, depending on your personal sensitivities and health status.

Soy sauce is made from fermented soybeans, wheat, salt, yeast culture, and water. While the fermentation can help add in beneficial probiotics—which are great for your gut—the addition of wheat (which contains gluten) can negate those good probiotics and cause a storm of inflammation in your body. This is a no-go for many people, especially those with gut problems or autoimmune conditions. Soy sauce is also extremely high in sodium, containing about 290 mg1 per teaspoon—and who uses just one teaspoon?

If you are looking for a gluten-free version of soy sauce, tamari is just that. It's made with fermented soybeans, salt, a yeast culture, and water—everything but the wheat. Tamari can tend to have a stronger flavor than soy sauce since many brands add in more soybeans to make up for the lack of wheat. So, while tamari is gluten-free, it doesn't solve your soy problem. If you're not sensitive to soy, tamari can be a suitable option as long as you opt for a brand that uses organic, non-GMO soybeans. It's still sky-high in sodium, though, with 290 mg per teaspoon.

Wondering where you can find coconut aminos? They're available at most grocery stores you probably already shop at such as Whole Foods Market or Trader Joe's, or online through Amazon.

Even though coconut aminos contain potassium, magnesium, zinc, and antioxidants, the amount of each is so minimal you'd have to consume an impossibly large amount of this coconut liquid to make a noticeable impact. Other than being much lower in sodium than traditional soy sauce, the main health benefit for choosing coconut aminos is its lack of soy and gluten—both of which could potentially affect your health.

I personally use coconut aminos often and it's a condiment I use frequently throughout my plant-based keto book, Ketotarian. Since stir-fries are one of the most common recipes that include soy sauce, I made sure to include a nutrient-packed stir-fry recipe in my book. The addition of coconut milk and apple cider vinegar along with coconut aminos delivers a deliciously nuanced flavor that tastes better than takeout. Check out the recipe below, which happens to be vegan-, keto-, and paleo-friendly.

Ingredients

Method