A delicious way to use unripened green tomatoes, these keto fried green tomatoes taste just like the classic southern recipe with their delightfully crunchy coating.

I love backyard gardening. This year my garden is doing well and not only am I up to my ears in fresh zucchini but my tomato plants are exploding with fruit. Unfortunately, some late spring storms threatened to damage my plants. I picked the largest of the green tomatoes in an effort to prevent damage.

What does one do with a bowl of unripened tomatoes? One makes homemade green tomato salsa verde (link when recipe is live), and lots of fried green tomatoes!

Fried Green Tomatoes- A Southern Tradition

Fried green tomatoes are a Southern staple and tradition. Picking green tomatoes helps encourage remaining fruits on the vine to grow bigger. But green tomatoes are sour and very hard. Battering or breading them in cornmeal and deep frying them in bacon grease makes them delicious.

Fun fact: while everyone thinks of fried green tomatoes as a homestyle southern recipe, according to Bon Appetite, the first mentions of fried green tomatoes were actually in cookbooks well north of the Mason Dixon line. They were first mentioned by cookbooks from Ohio and New York. They become mainstream after the popular 1991 movie Fried Green Tomatoes turned them into the iconic food they are today.

Keto Fried Green Tomato Ingredients: tomatoes, eggs, keto bread crumbs, salt, pepper, olive oil.

How to Make Fried Green Tomatoes Keto Style

While most fried green tomato recipes call for flour, cornmeal or breadcrumbs, my keto version uses low carb ingredients.

First, I sliced my tomatoes into half inch slices. Then, I dusted the sliced tomatoes in equal parts of protein powder and oat fiber to get the egg wash to stick. Dusting coconut flour works well, too.

Rather than making a batter for fried green tomatoes, I used a seasoned keto breadcrumb mixture of crushed pork rinds and Parmesan cheese. This combination results in a crisp crust which rivals any panko crumb coating. I use this same keto breading on my Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops and Fried Eggplant Rounds recipes.

Bowls with green tomatoes, beaten egg and keto breadcrumbs.

Standard breading procedure: three shallow bowls for dredging, dipping and coating.

Sliced green tomatoes with keto breading before frying

Sliced green tomatoes with keto bread crumb coating before frying.

*Vegetarians, feel free to sub your favorite nut flour for the crushed pork rinds. Just note that nut flours are slightly higher in carbs and burn easily. Make sure to watch the tomatoes carefully while cooking.

To make low carb fried green tomatoes, first slice your green tomatoes into half-inch thick rounds. Next, follow a standard breading procedure: Dredge the slices in the protein powder/oat fiber combination. Remove excess. Dip each round into the egg mixture to coat, then into the keto breadcrumb mixture. Fry in olive oil until golden brown and crisp.

Sauce for Fried Green Tomatoes

If you have had fried green tomatoes before, you may have had them with a remoulade sauce. Remoulade is a mayonnaise based sauce similar to an aioli. Often there are different ingredients like chopped pickles mixed into the basic sauce.

I like to make a similar easy dipping sauce for these keto fried green tomatoes. I mix together mayo, sriracha, horseradish, and some powdered sweetener to create a zesty dipping sauce. However, feel free to customize your sauce to your taste. You could also mix a ranch dipping sauce for these with mayo and a teaspoon or two of my homemade ranch seasoning.

Crispy fried green tomatoes on a plate with dipping sauce

What to Serve with Fried Green Tomatoes

Because green tomatoes are tart, they make a great foil to creamy dishes. They are great served on their own with a dipping sauce or as a base for keto eggs benedict. They're fantastic with low carb versions of fried chicken and crispy chicken wings. Whatever you serve them with, you will definitely enjoy this delicious keto version of a southern classic!

Keto Fried Green Tomatoes

Keto fried green tomatoes taste just like the classic southern recipe with a delicious crunchy coating made of low carb friendly ingredients.

4.80 from 5 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: keto, vegetables

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 35

Servings:

Calories: 251kcal

Author: Kim Hardesty

Equipment

Non-stick or cast iron frying pan
Sheet pan
Shallow bowls
Cooling rack

Ingredients

1 pound green tomatoes slices, ½-inch thick
2 large eggs, beaten
3 tablespoon olive oil (for frying)

For dredging (optional)

1 tablespoon oat fiber (optional)
1 tablespoon whey protein powder (optional)

Keto Bread Crumb Coating

1 cup crushed pork rinds* (1 oz/ 29 grams) (see post or note below for subs)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (1 oz/ 29 g)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
½ tsp salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon granulated garlic
¼ tsp onion powder

Instructions

Preparation

Place a piece of waxed paper or parchment paper on a large sheet pan. Slice tomatoes and let drain on paper towels.
Whisk protein powder and oat fiber together (dredging mixture) in a shallow bowl (if using). Mix ingredients for keto bread crumbs together and place in a shallow bowl. Beat Eggs in a shallow bowl with a fork.

Procedure

Pick up a tomato slice with a fork and place it into the dredging mixture, coating both sides. Shake off any excess.
Place the dredged tomato slice into the beaten egg, coating both sides. Let any excess drip off.
Put wet tomato slice into the crumb mixture and coat both sides well. I cover the top side with crumbs and press gently to make sure they adhere.
Transfer tomato to lined sheet pan and continue coating the remaining tomato slices.

Method

Heat a non-stick or cast iron frying pan over medium heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and swirl to coat the pan. When the oil shimmers, add several tomato slices, cooking until browned. Turn the tomatoes over and brown the other side. Add more oil as needed.
Remove the fried tomatoes to a paper towel or cooling rack to drain and cool while cooking the remaining tomatoes. Serve as a side or a snack with a dipping sauce.
For an easy sauce mix mayo, siracha, prepared horse radish and powdered sweetener to taste. Very yummy!
Serves 4 people at 2.2 net carbs each.

Notes

*As mentioned in the post, please feel free to use your favorite nut flour in place of of the pork rinds. I would start with ½ cup. -Kim

Nutrition

Crispy Eggplant Rounds

Keto Fried Green Tomatoes

Fried Green Tomatoes- A Southern Tradition