Chicken is an ideal low-carb, keto-friendly food, but not when it is breaded, fried, and covered in sauce. While many of the options at Wingstop are not great for a low carb diet, there are some options you can enjoy guilt free.
The best option for eating keto at Wingstop is to order classic or jumbo wings as plain or atomic. Unfortunately, if you’re hoping for sides, celery sticks are the only option here. As for other keto-friendly veggies, you are out of luck.
We usually recommend preparing your own food on the keto diet. It’s hard to completely avoid sneaky sugars, sauces, and other additives at fast food restaurants. But life happens. So, when you’re in a pinch, follow these tips for low carb Wingstop dining.
Tips For Ordering Low Carb at Wingstop
You can eat a much healthier meal when you buy your groceries at the supermarket and prepare them yourself at home. If you’re craving delicious wings, you can even make your own at home using one of our keto-friendly recipes.
Here are a few to get you inspired:
- Easy and spicy baked chicken wings
- Keto spicy dry rub baked chicken wings
- Buffalo chicken wings
- Crispy keto fried chicken
Eating at home also means you won’t be tempted to indulge in an unhealthy side dish that all fast food restaurants inevitably provide at low prices to make you think you’re getting a great deal.
Our advice is to choose your Wingstop wings carefully to ensure you pick keto-friendly options. Some are breaded while others don’t appear to be. This brings us to our first tip.
#1. Ask which wings are breaded and which are not
There are three primary ways you can order chicken wings at Wingstop: classic, boneless, or crispy tenders. Per the online nutritional information, the jumbo wings (we assume these are the classic wings) are the lowest in carbs, which tells us that these bone in wings are probably not breaded.
For example, the plain, atomic, and original hot wings all contain one carb for every two wings. The cajun, lemon pepper, and Louisiana rub wings all have two grams of carbs per two wings, so these would be your next best choice.
It’s a good idea to ask which wings are breaded and which are not when you order them just in case the options vary depending on location. From what we can tell, the classic or jumbo wings are not breaded (they only have spice dry rubs) whereas the boneless wings and tenders are breaded.
#2. Hold the sauce
In addition to ordering non-breaded wings, you’ll also want to ask to hold any sauce that comes on them. There are some flavors that contain fewer carbs than others, but it’s best to be on the safe side and ask for plain wings with no sauce at all.
Keep in mind that this includes all dipping sauces, too. Plain wings are still plenty tasty, especially when they’re served hot. If you still need sauce, ask for the sauces that don’t have added sugar.
Here is a breakdown of the carbs in some of the sauces (per 3.5 ounce serving):
- Wingstop ranch dressing : 2 grams
- Wingstop blue cheese: 3 grams
- Honey mustard: 18 grams
- Cheddar cheese sauce: 8 grams carbs
#3. Be cautious with your side orders
Like most fast food restaurants, Wingstop offers side dishes and combos to enhance the value (but not the nutrition) of your food. You can get a combo or family pack at Wingstop that includes a side dish, a drink, and the dip of your choice. You can also order your wings by the piece.
Family packs also come with veggies, which includes celery and carrot sticks. For the record, celery and carrot sticks are the only side dish that you can safely order on a low-carb diet at Wingstop. Everything else including the yeast rolls, French fries, and fried corn is off limits if you eat keto.
The same goes for the beverages at Wingstop. Aside from water and Gold Peak unsweetened tea, there is nothing on the menu that’s low-carb approved.
#4. Use the wing calculator
Wingstop has a Wing Calculator on their website that you can use to determine what you should order.
It will ask you the following questions:
- How many people are you trying to feed?
- How hungry are you? The options are snacky, hungry, and starving.
Then the calculator will spit out a suggestion. Keep in mind that you’ll still need to use our tips to make sure your order is low-carb.
For example, the suggested order for one person who is “hungry” is a medium 8 piece combo or ten boneless wings.
You can click on the order you want and start to customize it. In this scenario, go with the ten boneless wings and make them plain jumbo wings. These are lowest in carbs.
You can access the calculator here.
What Low Carb Options To Order at Wingstop
Wingstop doesn’t offer much of anything on their menu besides wings, so you won’t be eating here for breakfast. Most locations open at 11 AM and don’t close until midnight, which makes it an ideal place to stop for a snack in between meals.
Although there are only three different ways to order your wings (classic, boneless, or chicken tenders), there are several different wing flavors to choose from. Some are lower in carbs than others. It’s always best to ask for plain classic wings. Avoid the boneless and chicken tenders/strips as these are breaded.
- Plain (one carb per two pieces)
- Atomic (two carb per two pieces)
- Mild jumbo wings (one carb per two pieces)
- Original hot (one carb per two pieces)
- Louisiana rub jumbo wings(one carb per two pieces)
- Lemon pepper wings (one carb per two pieces)
- Garlic parmesan jumbo wings (one carb per two pieces)
- Cajun jumbo wings (one carb per two pieces)
Remember that the above carb listings are only applicable if you order the Wingstop jumbo wings or classic wings. The boneless wings and chicken tenders are breaded, so the carb count will be much higher. For this reason, we suggest only ordering the classic or jumbo wings as plain, atomic, original hot or mild. Be sure to double check and ask if they are breaded before ordering.
You’ll also want to make sure you order your chicken and no sides, including dips. Wingstop offers carrot and celery veggie sticks as sides, which you could safely order alongside your meal. But these are mostly for people who order their chicken with a dipping sauce. If you’re strict keto, then you might want to stick with the celery.
What NOT To Order At Wingstop
Here is a list of foods that are off limits at Wingstop:
- All boneless wings (if they are breaded)
- All crispy tenders
- All dips
- Hickory smoked barbeque sauce
- Mango habanero sauce
- Spicy Korean Q sauce
- All Wingstop fries
- All fried corn dishes
- Brownies
- All sweetened drinks
Conclusion
If you find yourself in a pinch and Wingstop is your only choice for food, then we recommend going with the plain classic or jumbo wings without any sauce to stick to your ketogenic diet. Wingstop also offers boneless wings and crispy tenders, but these appear to be breaded. It’s always a good idea to ask which wings are breaded and which are not. Also, beware of the side dishes at Wingstop. You can safely order celery or carrot sticks, but that’s it!
If you need a keto meal plan to follow, check these available plans!
Image credit: Author Leahdi – wikimedia
