Keto Sesame Chicken

Sesame chicken is a super yummy staple of any Chinese restaurant. This keto sesame chicken is light, fresh, and delicious!

WHAT IS SESAME CHICKEN?

Sesame chicken is a Chinese-American dish that’s popular throughout the United States. In many ways, it’s similar to General Tso’s chicken; however, traditionally, sesame chicken aims for a more sweet taste than its spicier counterpart.

Usually, this dish is found in Chinese buffets and is heavily battered. The sauce is also full of sugar and other added ingredients.

HOW CAN SESAME CHICKEN BE KETO?

By using the right cut of chicken (chicken thighs) and monk fruit sweetener, you can easily make this famous dish keto-friendly. We still use many of the same ingredients that give the sesame sauce its famous taste without all of the sugar.

SESAME CHICKEN INGREDIENTS

Believe it or not, the ingredient list needed to make delicious keto sesame chicken is relatively short and simple.

You’ll need to make sure you have the following items on hand before making this recipe.

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (use of chicken breasts discussed below)
• 1/4 cup liquid aminos
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup chopped green onion
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• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
• 1 pinch pink Himalayan salt

HOW TO MAKE SESAME CHICKEN

Surprisingly, sesame chicken is extremely easy to make.

1. Cut the chicken thighs into bite-sized chunks
2. In a wok over medium-high heat, combine the liquid aminos, minced garlic, sesame oil, xanthan gum, water, and pinch of salt
3. In a non-stick skillet, coat the bottom with olive oil and cook the chicken thigh chunks
4. As the chicken chunks are almost done, heat the sauce mixture to high and bring it to a rolling boil
5. Add the chicken to the sauce and stir constantly until the sauce thickens and the chicken is well coated
6. Remove from heat and ladle chicken and sauce over some of our Keto Cauliflower White Rice

The most important part is letting the sesame sauce reduce and thicken properly.

If you don’t thicken the sauce as it needs to be, it will affect the overall taste of the chicken. You should always aim for a nice thick sauce, as you might remember from the processed version in restaurants.

A thickened sauce will stick to the chicken and provide a richer flavor.

WHAT CUT OF CHICKEN SHOULD I USE?

For keto, definitely use chicken thighs. They are a fattier cut of chicken, especially when compared to breast meat. The thighs will also provide a juicier, more tender bite after the dish is cooked.

The thighs also have a better fat to protein ratio. This is especially helpful to those who are looking to achieve certain macros each day.

If you are looking to simply make this dish low-carb and are not concerned with a certain level of fat, you can easily use chicken breasts. The breasts are much lower in fat but higher in protein.

As a reminder, a lower fat to higher protein ratio is not recommended if you are aiming to be keto.

WHAT GOES BEST WITH SESAME CHICKEN?

An easy and delicious side dish to have with your keto sesame chicken is a variation on our Keto Cauliflower White Rice. Simply follow the recipe as written, but add 1/4 cup liquid aminos to it as you are cooking it. That will give it a nice soy sauce flavor much like fried rice.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for something with a bit of spice to it, our Low-Carb Spicy Roasted Broccoli is another excellent option.

WHAT TYPE OF SESAME OIL SHOULD I USE?

There are several varieties of sesame oil you can purchase. Unrefined, refined, and toasted are three main variations you might see on your local supermarket shelves.

You really could use any of the three, but we recommend using either unrefined or toasted sesame oil. Refined oil is mostly used for deep frying and doesn’t have the nice sesame flavor you are looking for.

Toasted sesame oil has a deeper, richer flavor profile than unrefined and will have a much bolder taste.

If you want to know more about the different types, check out this great article that discusses each type in more detail.

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