Being low-carb/keto has some awesome benefits! Aside from the energy and health factor, it gives us the excuse to eat chicken thighs all the time.
Chicken thighs have a lot more fat and oils compared to chicken breasts and we all prefer this cut of chicken much more. I recall only about 10 years ago, it was all about lean meats and chicken thighs were a foregone thought. Now the game has changed and chicken thighs can have their rightful spot in the limelight!
However, to every upside, there is a downside. Although we could indulge in chicken thighs, our sauce of choice, Teriyaki, was out.
Teriyaki is very sweet and if you look at the traditional recipe, it is indeed loaded with no-nos for low-carb/keto people. So, we decided made our own Teriyaki sauce that really tastes exactly like Teriyaki, and wait for it…2.2g of CARBS/serving!!
That is compared to the traditional versions that have anywhere from 6-20g of carbs.
This super easy dish is low-carb/keto friendly and maintains the traditional sweetness and juiciness of Teriyaki Chicken, with only a fraction of the carbs!
A couple of ingredients you will need for this recipe are Japanese Sake, Swerve/Monkfruit, Almond Flour, Soy Sauce and optional Xanthan Gum (to thicken the teriyaki sauce).
Here is the sake we normally use for reference. You can purchase everything else on Amazon.
Now, let’s get started!
Prepping Time 5M
Cook Time 10M
Total Time 15M
Net Carb/Serv 3.6g
Servings 2
Ingredients
- 2 Boneless & Skinless Chicken Thighs (you can have skin on if you prefer).
- 1/4 Cabbage
- Salt & Black Pepper to Taste
- 4 tbsp Japanese Sake
- 2 tbsp Swerve/Monkfruit
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- Pinch of Toasted Sesame Seed
- 1/8 tsp Xanthan Gum (optional to thicken teriyaki sauce)
Directions
1) Gather all the ingredients.
2) Take cabbage and use a vegetable shredder to make a bed of cabbage (you can use a knife, but the vegetable shredder makes it so much easier). Plate shredded cabbage inside a bowl.
3) Take chicken fillets, pat dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Set aside.
4) In a Teflon sauce pan, add Japanese Sake, Swerve or Monkfruit, Soy Sauce, optional Xanthan Gum and bring to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to med-low heat and let it cook for 2 minutes while occasionally stirring. Once 2 minutes has passed, remove from heat and set aside. Note – if you opt not to use Xanthan Gum, the teriyaki sauce will be runny.
5) While waiting for the teriyaki, heat up olive oil in a cast iron pan on high. Once the oil starts to ‘smoke’, reduce heat to medium and carefully add chicken inside the cast iron pan (take caution as oil may splatter. You may partially cover the pan to reduce splatter as well). Cook until chicken has a nice crust, which will be about 2-4 minutes.
6) Once crusted, flip and cook for 2-4 more minutes or until done (time will depend on the thickness of chicken thigh, so if you are unsure, either cut to check or use a meat thermometer, center internal temp should be 165F).
7) Transfer chicken onto a bed of cabbage.
8) Pour half of the teriyaki sauce onto each serving and sprinkle toasted sesame seeds (if the teriyaki sauce is thick, put it on medium heat for about 30 seconds and it should loosen up).
If you are looking for other low-carb/keto ideas, be sure to check out our growing Recipe Index full of Asian Inspired low-carb/keto recipes!
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Teriyaki Chicken
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb Boneless & Skinless Chicken Thighs
- 1/4 Whole Cabbage
- 1/8 tsp Salt to Taste
- 1/8 tsp Black Pepper to Taste
- 4 tbsp Japanese Sake
- 2 tbsp Swerve or Monkfruit
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1/8 tsp Xanthan Gum optional to thicken teriyaki sauce
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1/8 tsp Toasted Sesame Seed
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Take cabbage and use a vegetable shredder to make a bed of cabbage (you can use a knife, but the vegetable shredder makes it so much easier). Plate shredded cabbage inside a bowl.
- Take chicken fillets, pat dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Set aside.
- In a Teflon sauce pan, add Japanese Sake, Swerve or Monkfruit, Soy Sauce, optional Xanthan Gum and bring to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to med-low heat and let it cook for 2 minutes while occasionally stirring. Once 2 minutes has passed, remove from heat and set aside. Note - if you opt not to use Xanthan Gum, the teriyaki sauce will be runny.
- While waiting for the teriyaki, heat up olive oil in a cast iron pan on high. Once the oil starts to 'smoke', reduce heat to medium and carefully add chicken inside the cast iron pan (take caution as oil may splatter. You may partially cover the pan to reduce splatter as well). Cook until chicken has a nice crust, which will be about 2-4 minutes.
- Once crusted, flip and cook for 2-4 more minutes or until done (time will depend on the thickness of chicken thigh, so if you are unsure, either cut to check or use a meat thermometer, center internal temp should be 165F).
- Transfer chicken onto a bed of cabbage.
- Pour half of the teriyaki sauce onto each serving and sprinkle toasted sesame seeds (if the teriyaki sauce is thick, put it on medium heat for about 30 seconds and it should loosen up).
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