High-Carbohydrate Meals: Some Examples (2024)

FAQs

What is an example of a high carb meal? ›

Carbohydrates are found in a wide array of both healthy and unhealthy foods—bread, beans, milk, popcorn, potatoes, cookies, spaghetti, soft drinks, corn, and cherry pie. They also come in a variety of forms.

1. Sugary Foods. Most people already think of many of the foods in this category as unhealthy treats. Candy, soft drinks, and sweet desserts such as cake, chocolate, and ice cream are all expected entries on a list of carbs to avoid to lose weight.

On high-carb days, keep the carbs healthy. Skip refined, sugary foods and go for whole foods like sweet potatoes, oatmeal, whole-wheat bread, brown rice, fruit and quinoa. These starches are high in fiber and have a more complex carbohydrate structure, requiring your body to burn a bit more energy to break them down.

Simple carbs, which are the so-called “bad” carbs, consist of short chains of sugar molecules. They include sugar, honey and other sweeteners, and are also found in dairy products, fruit and fruit juices, and in highly processed foods.

What carbs should you avoid to lose weight? ›

A low-carb diet generally limits grains, legumes, fruits, breads, sweets, pastas and starchy vegetables, and sometimes nuts and seeds.

Though pasta is versatile and inexpensive, it's also high in carbs. Choosing a whole wheat variety is typically lower in carbs. Just 1 cup (151 grams) of cooked spaghetti packs 46 grams of carbs (43 grams net carbs). The same amount of whole wheat pasta provides 45 grams (39 grams net carbs).

Low in carbs

Pure peanut butter contains only 20% carbs, making it suitable for a low carb diet. It also causes a very low rise in blood sugar, making it a good option for people with type 2 diabetes ( 7 ).

The official serving sizes for a high-carbohydrate food is the amount that includes 15 to 30 grams of carbohydrates. That is equivalent to a slice of bread, a third of a cup of cooked rice, or a half-cup of cooked pasta. If those amounts seem small, it may be because you are used to seeing way bigger portions.

A high carb diet means the majority of your calories come from carbs. But an extreme diet (over 70% carbs) is just like any other extreme diet – unhealthy. And eating excess added sugars and refined carbs should be avoided or eliminated.

Starchy foods are our main source of carbohydrate and have an important role in a healthy diet. Starchy foods – such as potatoes, bread, rice, pasta, and cereals – should make up just over a third of the food you eat, as shown by the Eatwell Guide.