People Are Freaking Over Starbucks’ Keto White Drink. Here’s How to Make It at Home
Starbucks is one of the leading coffee shops for keto-friendly drink options. Now, its latest secret menu beverage — the low-carb “white drink” — has taken keto followers by storm.
The Starbucks white drink is a spin on the coffee chain’s Peach Citrus White Tea Infusion: A drink that normally blends a fruity white tea with a cane sugar-based syrup. At 11 net carbs, the original infusion is not particularly keto-friendly — but a few customizations ramp up the fat content while cutting sugar.
Keto white drink fans on Instagram recommend ordering the original Starbucks tea infusion with a few modifications: Ask for sugar-free vanilla syrup instead of regular syrup, and add heavy cream to the drink. Then, customers can also ask their barista to blend with ice for a frappe-style beverage.
The result? A frosty drink that mimics the flavors of peaches and cream, without the sugar and carbs that will max out your macros. The Starbucks white drink is certainly a low-carb treat — but is it really keto?
Is the Starbucks white drink truly keto-friendly?
Starbucks’ white drink is a step in the right direction for creating a low-carb tea blend. By cutting out sugar and adding fat, it fits in a ketogenic diet better than many drinks on the menu.
However, the white drink does not support a true ketogenic state. Starbucks sugar-free syrups (and many sugar-free products) contain a sugar substitute called sucralose. Sucralose is a common sugar substitute often advertised as low-carb or diabetic-friendly. However, new research shows that it may ultimately raise blood sugar by altering your gut bacteria,[1] and ultimately won’t support ketosis.
The Starbucks white drink also contains heavy cream — a dairy product that’s technically keto-friendly, but not the highest-quality source of fat. Between pasteurization that oxidizes the fats in cream and lactose that can upset your stomach, conventional heavy cream can be highly inflammatory—making it more of a “dirty keto” option.
What’s the takeaway? Your Starbucks white drink needs an upgrade — and with a few easy swaps and just minutes of prep, you can make a keto-friendly version at home in a fraction of the time.
Related: Keto Diet for Beginners – Your Complete Guide
How to make the keto Starbucks white drink at home
This recipe is a clean, anti-inflammatory spin on the OG Starbucks white drink — with optional upgrades to support a more ketogenic state.
Start to Finish: 5 minutes
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Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup boiling filtered water
- 3 bags of organic peach white tea with no added sugar or artificial flavors, such as Rishi
- 1/3 cup full-fat canned coconut milk (BPA-free)
- 6 drops of liquid stevia or monk fruit, or more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, or more to taste
- 1 cup ice
- 1 tablespoon MCT oil or Brain Octane Oil (optional)
Instructions:
- In a mug, add boiling water and tea bags. Steep tea for 4 minutes (or as instructed on the box), then remove and discard tea bags.
- Add tea to a high-powered blender with coconut milk, sweetener, vanilla, oil, and ice, and blend until slushy (about 10 seconds). For a non-blended version, simply blend liquid ingredients and pour over ice.
- Taste the mixture, and add more sweetener, ice, or vanilla if needed and blend or mix again until smooth.
- Serve with chocolate muffins, breakfast wraps, or oat-free oatmeal for the ultimate keto-friendly breakfast.
Serves: 1
Nutritional Information (Per Serving):
- Calories: 250
- Total fat: 26g
- Net Carbs: 1g
Want more cool, keto-friendly coffee and tea? Try mint mojito iced coffee, dirty chai frappes, an iced matcha latte, or an iced coffee protein shake.
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