This Keto Teriyaki Chicken is a super easy keto chicken recipe with no marinating required! The chicken is stir-fried and coated in a thick, gluten-free teriyaki sauce that has a spot-on taste and the perfect amount of sweetness along with carrots, broccoli, and bursts of pineapple.
Why order take-out when you can have Teriyaki Chicken that's just as good at home - but without the carbs and gluten!
This Paleo And Keto Teriyaki Chicken has always made a regular appearance at my dinner table because it's delicious, quick, & healthy. Once you try it, I'm sure it will become part of your regular rotation too.
How to sweeten keto teriyaki chicken
For the sweetener, any keto sweetener will work.
If you choose an erythritol-based sweetener, I recommend using powdered, since erythritol doesn't dissolve as well as other sweeteners.
If you are Paleo, I recommend coconut palm sugar.
? Easy instructions
Start by chopping up some carrots and broccoli. Then, set them aside. To make this lower carb than it already is, feel free to reduce or omit the carrots.
Then cut up around 2 lbs of chicken into bite-sized pieces. You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, either will work.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cook in a single layer over medium-high heat until cooked through and set aside. Don't overcrowd the pan and cook in batches if needed.
Once the chicken is cooked and set aside, add the carrots and broccoli to the skillet along with around ½ cup of water. Cover (leaving the lid slightly vented) and cook 5 to 10 minutes, or until veggies are crisp-tender.
Teriyaki sauce
For the keto teriyaki sauce, combine water, coconut aminos (can use gluten-free soy sauce if you're not Paleo), rice vinegar, sesame oil, sweetener, ginger, garlic, and arrowroot or tapioca flour to thicken.
Starches are not usually part of a Keto diet, but it is needed to thicken the sauce. Since there is so little in the recipe, however, it doesn't affect the carb count too awfully much.
However, if you're totally against using starch, you can thicken it with xanthan gum.
How to thicken sauces with xanthan gum
Xanthan gum will clump if you just dump it into the sauce! Because of this, you need to very lightly and slowly sprinkle in ¾ tsp. xanthan gum into the sauce while whisking vigorously! The sauce will thicken in as little as 20 to 30 seconds.
There may be a few tiny clumps when whisking in xanthan gum. Simply remove the clumps or leave them – it’s no big deal.
Or, you can transfer the sauce to a blender and blend on low while slowly sprinkling in the xanthan gum. If using a blender, the xanthan gum shouldn’t clump at all.
The sauce doesn’t need to be hot to thicken. The trick to xanthan gum is to slowly add it while vigorously whisking or blending. This will cause the sauce to thicken nicely.
After you whisk together the sauce, chop up a pineapple and set it aside. For lower carb, only use 1 cup of pineapple or omit altogether.
When the broccoli and carrots are done cooking, add some chopped onion and saute until the onion is tender. Add more oil to the pan if needed to prevent sticking.
Then, add the chicken back to the pan along with the gluten-free teriyaki sauce and pineapple.
Stir until the sauce is thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve over rice or cauliflower rice to keep it Paleo and Keto.
? Top tips
- For the sweetener, any keto sweetener will work. If you choose an erythritol-based sweetener, I recommend using powdered, since erythritol doesn't dissolve as well as other sweeteners. For Paleo, I recommend coconut palm sugar.
- If you're only Paleo and not low-carb or keto: Use up to 4 carrots, 1 head of broccoli, a whole onion, and a whole chopped pineapple.
- For lower-carb, omit the carrots and pineapple altogether. Then, only use the ½ onion, ½ head of broccoli, and thicken with xanthan gum.
Looking for more Paleo And Keto dinner recipes?
Check out my Paleo & Low Carb Beef And Broccoli, Keto Orange Chicken, Paleo, Dairy-Free, & Low Carb Fettuccine Alfredo With Blackened Chicken, and My PCOS Kitchen's Gluten-Free Chicken Nuggets!
If you’ve tried this Keto Teriyaki Chicken or any other recipe on the blog please let me know in the comments below!
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📖 Recipe
Keto Teriyaki Chicken {Paleo & Gluten-Free}
Ingredients
- 2 Lbs. Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs or Breasts cut into bite-sized pieces.
- ½ Head Broccoli chopped (about 1 ½ Cups), can use 1 whole head if not Keto
- 2 Large Carrots chopped into bite-sized pieces, can use up to 4 if not Keto
- .5 Medium Onion chopped
- 1 Cup Chopped Pineapple optional, can use a whole pineapple if not Keto
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (or oil of choice) + more if needed
- ½ Cup Filtered Water
Teriyaki Sauce:
- ½ Cup Filtered Water
- ⅓ Cup Coconut Aminos + more as needed or gluten free soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar
- 1 tsp. Sesame Oil
- ¼ Cup Keto Sweetener see notes below, or coconut palm sugar for Paleo
- 1 Tbsp. Honey optional
- ¾ tsp. Ground Ginger
- ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
- ¾ tsp. xanthan gum or 1 ½ Tbsp tapioca or arrowroot flour mixed with 2 Tbsp of cold water for Paleo
Instructions
- Chop the carrots and broccoli then set aside.
- Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add in the coconut oil to melt. Once melted, add the chicken in a single layer and do not stir. Once the bottom of the chicken is browned, stir and continue cooking until chicken is cooked through. Set aside.
- Add the chopped broccoli and carrots along with ½ C water to the skillet. Cover (leaving it slightly vented) and let cook 5 - 10 minutes or until crisp-tender.
- While carrots and broccoli are cooking, chop up an onion, the pineapple, and whisk together all of the teriyaki sauce ingredients, except the xanthan gum.
- Add the onion to the pan and saute until tender, adding additional coconut oil to the pan if needed to prevent sticking.
- Over medium heat, add the teriyaki sauce to the pan and very slowly sprinkle in the xanthan gum (be sure not to dump it in or it will clump!) while whisking vigorously. Add the chicken and pineapple chunks (if using).
- Taste and season with additional coconut aminos or salt and pepper as needed. If the sauce needs to be thicker, slowly sprinkle in more xanthan gum as needed.
- Serve with rice, quinoa, or cauliflower rice.
Notes
- For the sweetener, any keto sweetener will work. If you choose an erythritol-based sweetener, I recommend using powdered, since erythritol doesn't dissolve as well as other sweeteners. For Paleo, I recommend coconut palm sugar.
- If you're only Paleo and not low-carb or keto: Use up to 4 carrots, 1 head of broccoli, a whole onion, and a whole chopped pineapple.
- To use the tapioca or arrowroot starch option, simply mix together the starch and water in a small bowl. Then, bring the teriyaki sauce to a boil and stir in the starch mixture until thickened.
- For lower-carb, use 2 carrots and no pineapple. Then, only use the ½ onion, ½ head of broccoli, no honey, and thicken with xanthan gum.
- The nutrition facts use the lower-carb options above.
Nutritional information is approximate and may vary.
Looking for more information on the keto diet? Check out these resources:
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!