Low Carb Hunan Chicken
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Looking for a delicious Keto dinner idea? This Low Carb Hunan Chicken recipe is perfect! It’s packed with flavor, nutrients and best of all, it’s easy to make. It’ll take about 20 minutes from start to finish so you can spend time enjoying dinner with the family after a long day.
This was inspired by my Low Carb Cashew Chicken , and both pair well with this Low Carb Cauliflower Fried Rice.
Ingredients
Chicken
- Chicken thighs * skinless & boneless- sliced into bite sizes
Slicing the chicken rather than dicing makes it easy to use chopsticks.
- Olive oil – or oil of your choice.
For the stir fry
- Garlic -minced
- Ginger minced
- Broccoli- chopped
- Red bell pepper- sliced
- Celery- sliced at an angle for easy chop-sticking.
For the Hunan sauce
- Chicken broth
- Soy sauce
- Fish sauce
- Rice wine vinegar * white will work too
- Allulose * or preferred sugar substitute for the signature Chinese takeout “sweetness”.
- Chili paste
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum * for thickening.
Topping
- Sesame oil – only drizzle over the stir fry after the heat is OFF.
Heat destroys the taste of sesame oil. PLEASE do not use sesame oil to stir fry.
Optional toppings – Garnish
- Green onion sliced
- Cashews
- Sriracha
- Avocado
- Cilantro
Instructions
The most time consuming part of this recipe is the chopping. Make sure you have a sharp knife.
- Make the Hunan sauce by whisking all the sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
- Slice the chicken into bite sized pieces. This makes it easy to use chopsticks if desired.
- Add the about half of the olive oil to the wok and set over medium heat. Stir fry the chicken until just under-cooked. Remove the chicken from the pan.
- Add the remaining oil and extra if needed. When hot, add all of the vegetables and fry for several minutes. Cook until tender crisp and the broccoli is bright green. Add the chicken back to the pan, and pour in Hunan Sauce. Let it bubble and thicken for a few minutes, before removing it from the heat.
- Drizzle sesame oil over the finished dish.
- Add toppings as desired for serving.
- Eat as is or serve over cauliflower rice or shirataki noodles.
- Check out our fried cauliflower rice recipe if you want to do a whole “take-out” experience. It’s excellent.
Hint: Make sure you get the wok nice and hot before adding the meat/veggies to keep the veggies from getting overcooked and soggy.
Substitutions
You can switch this recipe up to keep it fresh.
- Protein – instead of chicken, try subbing in shrimp, pork or beef.
- Veggies – don’t skip making this if you are missing an ingredient. You can sub in low carb veggies of your choice. Think zucchini, mushrooms, a small amount of carrots, green bell pepper, etc.
- Vegetarian – the chicken can be substituted for tofu- if you eat tofu. Yes, my idea of Keto includes tofu….I’ll die on that hill.
Nutrition info:
Is Hunan chicken low carb? It is the way we make it.
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 248kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 18g | Sodium: 903mg | Fiber: 2g | Net Carbs: 6g | Fat Ratio per Serving: 65.32% | Protein Ratio per Serving: 24.19% | Carb Ratio per Serving: 9.68%
Variations
Want ideas to switch it up for YOUR tastes?
- Spicy – add chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish.
- Deluxe – add sliced avocados on top for extra fiber and healthy fat.
- Kid friendly – make some rice on the side or air fry some frozen egg rolls. Kids love those.
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Cast iron heats up slower than metal woks, and also retains heat for longer. I find cast iron to be easier to cook with but its really a personal preference thing.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. And reheat in the microwave or on the stove-top in a skillet or wok.
These ingredients don’t stand up well to freezing. You could freeze it but it’ll be watery when you thaw it and may be mushy too.
Top tip
Make sure to use chicken thighs in this recipe. Chicken Breasts will be dry in this recipe…
That’s it for the Low Carb Hunan Chicken. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions or comments about this recipe. Cheers!
More Low Carb Recipes to Love:
Low Carb Hunan Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 lb chicken thighs * skinless & boneless- sliced into bite sizes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For the stir fry
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1.5 inch ginger minced
- 3 cups broccoli chopped
- 1 red bell pepper sliced
- 2 stalks celery sliced at an angle for easy chop-sticking.
For the Hunan sauce
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar * white will work too
- 2 tablespoon allulose * or preferred sugar substitue
- 2 tablespoon chili paste
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum * for thickening
Topping
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil only drizzle over the stir fry after the heat is OFF
Optional toppings
- green onion sliced
- cashews
- sriracha
Instructions
- Make the Hunan sauce by whisking all ingredients together. Set aside.
- Slice the chicken into bite sized pieces. This makes it easy to use chopsticks if desired.
- Add the about half of the olive oil to the wok and set over medium heat. Stir fry the chicken until just under-cooked. Remove the chicken from the pan.
- Add the remaining oil and when hot, add all of the vegetables and fry for several minutes. Cook until tender crisp and the broccoli is bright green. Add the chicken back to the pan, and pour in Hunan Sauce. Let it bubble and thicken for a few minutes, before removing it from the heat.
- Drizzle the sesame oil over the finished dish.
- Eat as is or serve over cauliflower rice. Check out our fried cauliflower rice recipe if you want to do a whole "take-out" experience. I'll drop the link in the post or you can use search to find it. It's excellent.
Notes
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Nutrition
Food safety
We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that new home chefs may not. Check out some kitchen basics….
- Cook chicken to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don’t leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
