Is Zesty Deli Horseradish Sauce Keto?

The Ingredient Breakdown

As a food scientist, I look beyond the marketing claims and dive straight into the ingredient label. The keto diet relies on keeping carbohydrate intake low enough to maintain ketosis, a metabolic state where your body burns fat for fuel. Unfortunately, the formulation of Zesty Deli Horseradish Sauce works directly against this goal.

The primary red flag is the inclusion of high fructose corn syrup and sugar. These are pure forms of carbohydrates that have a high glycemic impact, meaning they will spike your blood sugar levels almost immediately. On a keto diet, even a small amount of these ingredients can be enough to knock you out of ketosis.

Furthermore, the sauce utilizes modified corn starch and soybean oil. While soybean oil is technically low in carbs, it is highly processed and inflammatory, which contradicts the goal of a 'clean' keto lifestyle. The modified corn starch acts as a thickener, but it is a refined carbohydrate derivative. The presence of hydrolyzed soy protein and autolyzed yeast suggests a focus on flavor enhancement rather than nutritional quality, often adding to the overall processed nature of the product.

Nutritional Value

When evaluating a condiment for keto, we look for minimal net carbs per serving. While the specific nutrition label for Zesty Deli Horseradish Sauce isn't listed in your data, the ingredients list tells us the nutritional profile is skewed toward sugar.

Typically, sauces containing high fructose corn syrup and added sugar will contain anywhere from 2 to 5 grams of carbohydrates per tablespoon. On a strict keto diet (usually 20g net carbs per day), a condiment that consumes 10-25% of your daily allowance is considered a poor choice. Additionally, the fat content comes from soybean oil, which is a highly processed industrial seed oil, lacking the healthy fats (like MCT oil or avocado oil) that keto dieters prefer to prioritize.