Keto Diet Cheese List

Since starting the keto diet, my cheese radar is certainly going in over time! So, we have put together a Keto Diet Cheese List – Everything you need to know about Keto and Cheese.

How does Keto Diet fit with Cheese?

As you are probably already aware, a big part of the Keto Diet is adding fats and moderate protein to your diet. Cheese is one of those double-whammy foods which provides both fat and protein. Cheese is also low in net carbs which is perfect for Keto!

If you want to get even more information you can check out The Oxford Companion to Cheese (Oxford Companions). 

Related Article: How to start the Keto Diet

We have a 10 day Keto Kickstarter Challenge available here

How much fat and protein do you need on the keto diet?

When following the keto diet you will want to use the 75/20/5 rule. 75% of your diet will be consumed as fat, 20% of your diet will be consumed as protein and 5% of your diet as carbohydrates.

When you eat food like cheese that contains both fat and protein means that you will be hitting your daily targets within your food choices.

The key is getting the right balance between fat, proteins, and carbohydrates (macros). Yes, cheese will help with this!

Reading this and wondering how fat can be good for you and why fat would be used if you are looking to lose weight?

We have a great article that addresses why fat is really important and how healthy fats can be used to aide in weight loss. 

Keto Cheese List:

Please note that the grams mentioned for each cheese is an estimate only and may differ depending on your brand of cheese. This is used to give you a rough guideline only.

Common Cheeses

American:

This is a highly processed cheese which comes in a range of colors – yellow, white, orange. It is a firm cheese with a salty, mild taste.

Due to its highly processed properties this would not be a cheese you would be consuming if you wanted to be on a more natural diet. If you are happy eating processed foods, go for it.

One slice has roughly 7 grams of fat and 4 grams of protein, it has 1 net carb. This certainly fits within the Keto Diet, but please consider the amount this has been processed.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Processed

Blue Cheese:

This cheese has a very strong taste and goes very well with quince paste. You need to have an acquired taste to enjoy this strong flavor.

This is probably a cheese to work towards enjoying rather than going for it straight away if you are a new cheese lover. In saying this, you may fall in love straight away!

Sometimes this cheese is called blue vein cheese due to the blue lines of mold throughout it that look similar to a vein.

One ounce of blue cheese has 8g fat, 6g protein and 1g net carb.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Brie:

This is a soft, gooey cheese. It is rich in creaminess, low in flavor. This is a great beginners cheese. Made from cow’s milk and extra cream is added to create a higher fat content.

You can buy triple-cream brie which is extremely creamy. This is what makes brie cheese slightly creamier than camembert.

1 ounce on brie cheese has about 8g fat, 6g protein, and 0g net carbs. You need to eat up to 4 ounces for the net carbs to start registering.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Camembert:

Very similar to the brie cheese, the camembert has a very creamy subtle flavor. It is a great beginners cheese. It has slightly less cream than brie so it has a slightly smaller amount of total fat. Camembert is a favorite for pizza’s, salads, crackers and more!

1 ounce of camembert has 7g fat, 6g protein, and 0g carb. Again, 4 ounces will get the net carbs registering.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Related Topic: Do you feel like shopping for cheese accessories? Check out these cheese boards, cheese platters, and cheese knives!

Cheddar:

A medium hardness cheese with a medium taste. It has a light yellow color. Sometimes the taste can be ‘sharp’ however, it is certainly a beginners cheese. Again, this is a cow’s milk cheese.
This is a family favorite and simple to cook with.

One once of Cheddar cheese has 9g fat, 6g protein, and 1g net carbs. If you are looking for a high fat, this is a good one at 9g!
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Colby:

Another semi-hard / medium cheese similar to Cheddar. Colby has a mild taste and is another beginners cheese. It is a moist cheese but not as soft as brie or camembert. Colby (American origin) is very similar to cheddar (English origin) however, Colby is stopped before entering the ‘cheddar process’.

1 ounce of Colby has 9g fat, 7g protein, 1g net carbs. This has a higher amount of protein if you are needing to add more to your diet.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Edam:

This semi-hard cheese, again is similar to Colby in flavor – very mild. Sometimes Edam is sold as having ‘less fat’ so this is something to be weary of when following the Keto Diet.

Read the packaging carefully to avoid ‘low fat’. Edam cheese is mainly made from cow’s milk, although can also have goats milk added.

One ounce of Edam has 8g fat, 7g protein, and 0g net carbs. 2 ounces are needed for the net carbs to register at 1g.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Feta:

This is a crumbly, salty cheese which adds a punch of flavor. It can be made from cow, goat, and even sheep’s milk. Traditional in Greek foods, this has a range of health benefits.

This is also a good option to try, if your body doesn’t overly love dairy products as some people find they can tolerate goat’s milk over cow’s milk.

One ounce of Feta cheese has 6g fat, 4g protein, 1g net carbs. This will change depending on the origin of milk (i.e goat vs sheep vs cow).
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Halloumi:

This is a semi-hard cheese made from a mixture of goat and sheep’s milk. Sometimes cow’s milk is used also. It almost has a tofu texture to it and can be fried similar to tofu due to its very high melting point.

1 Ounce of Halloumi cheese has 8g fat, 6g protein, and 0 net carbs.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Mozzarella:

Anybody that has eaten pizza, is likely to have come across the stringy mozzarella cheese. This has a mild taste and is extremely fun to eat! Made from cow’s milk, it can also be made from buffalo milk!

1 ounce contains 7g fat, 6g protein, and 1g net carb.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Parmesan:

The stinky cheese! Sometimes people think this cheese smells like vomit, however if you can get past the smell the taste is amazing! It has a mild-strong taste and goes wonderfully with Italian foods. Sprinkle shredded parmesan on a hot meal and watch it melt with goodness!

One ounce of parmesan has 7g fat, 10g protein, and 1g net carbs. This cheese has a high protein amount.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Ricotta:

A soft, creamy taste sort of similar texture to cottage cheese although has somewhat smaller lumps. This is actually a curd rather than a full cheese. It is quite low in fat, so that needs to be considered for the keto diet.

One ounce of Ricotta has 4g fat, 3g protein, and 1g net carb.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes, but not as good as other cheeses
Natural / Processed: Naturally made curd

Swiss:

A very common cheese with a yellow tone. Swiss cheese is well known for the holes that throughout it. This makes for a fun looking slice! It is a medium-hard cheese. Swiss cheese unsurprisingly originated in Switzerland.

One ounce contains 9g fat, 8g protein, and 0 net carbs. 2 ounces of Swiss registers 1g net carbs.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Aged Cheddar:

This is a hard cheese that is almost white in color. It has a strong taste that is sometimes described as being ‘sharp’. It doesn’t have an overbearing taste like Blue Vein. This is Cheddar cheese which has been left to develop longer than your typical cheddar.
This is a huge favorite in my circle of friends.

In one ounce there is 9g fat, 7g protein, and 1g net carbs.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Cashew:

You are probably wondering if this is an error – isn’t cashew a nut? Yes, nut cheese is a thing! It is a great alternative if your body does not respond well to dairy.
You can make cashew cheese at home by adding nutritional yeast, lemon, and garlic to a processor. The nutritional yeast provides the ‘cheese like’ flavor.

One ounce has 7g fat, 5g protein, and 5g net carbs. This makes it a higher carb cheese option. However, if you balance your meals, this may fit fine within your daily macro balance.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Somewhat – watch the carbs due to the cashew nuts
Natural / Processed: processed from natural products

Cheddar Curds:

This is a moist cheese like product that is make from curdled milk. This does not sound appetizing, but you may be surprised!
It tastes similar to cheddar cheese in flavor but the texture is soft and rubbery. Curds are very high in fat, so a great option if you need to up your fat intake.

One ounce of curds has 9g fat, 7g protein, and 0 net carbs. There are zero net carbs even when a high amount of curd is consumed. Making it a very Keto friendly addition to your meal.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes – big time
Natural / Processed: Naturally made during cheese making process

Comte:

This cheese is made from unpasteurized cow’s milk. So if you are looking for a natural cheese, you have found it. It is a French cheese and with that comes big flavor. It does have a creamy texture and had medium hardness.

In one ounce is has 10g fat, 8g protein and 0 net carbs. Similar to the cheddar curds, it does not have any net carbs registering no matter the amount you eat. This makes it another fantastically keto friendly addition.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes- big time
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Beaufort:

This is a raw cow’s cheese with a firm texture. Again, this is made from unpasteurized cow’s milk and is also French. This is similar to the comte it has a strong taste also. Some people can be put off by the smell, but try to move paste this. It has a very low melting point.

Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Gorgonzola:

Don’t get this one confused with the well-known blue vein cheese! They look similar with gorgonzola having the same blue veins running through its light colour. This has a rich and creamy flavor – however it does have a full on taste.

One ounce has 8g fat, 6g protein, and 1g net carb.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Gouda:

This is a firm and creamy cheese with a low melting point. The longer the gouda cheese is aged, the more flavor is produced. If you like strong tasting cheese go for a longer aged process. If you prefer subtle tasting cheese go for quick procesed gouda.

One ounce has 8g fat, 7g protein, and 1g net carbs.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Sheep:

You can actually use sheep milk to make a range of cheese. There are some cheeses that are sold as ‘sheep milk cheese’. The sheep’s milk (from the female ewe) adds a fatty, rich flavor to your cheese. It’s a bit to get around milking a sheep, but if you can move past that, you may really enjoy this full flavor.

Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally made

Smoked Cheese:

This is where you take cheese and cold smoke it to add a smokey flavor to it. You can do this to a range of cheeses but usually harder cheeses. You can add a range of flavors to the smoking process to taint the flavor further e.g. apple or rosemary stalks.

This does not change the macros of the cheese.
Keto Friendly Cheese: Yes
Natural / Processed: Naturally smoked

Which will you try?

Are you now feeling brave? Go on! Next time you are steering at the cheese section. Pull this article up, and choose one to try! You can do it, be brave.

Cheese anyone?

I am hoping that you are now keen to go away and eat some cheese!! As you can see, it fits super well into the Keto Diet with high fat and moderate protein levels.

Plus… if you get into eating lots of cheese it is a great excuse to add cheese boards, cheese platters, and cheese knives to your kitchen collection! Who doesn’t love new kitchen tools!