Last updated on April 23rd, 2018 at 06:10 am
Aaah yes, you heard that right. Crispy Keto Fried Chicken. YUM. When is the last time you ate some fried chicken that didn’t involve either pork rinds, almond meal, baking powder/soda or parmesan cheese? Look no further, because I just made the best fried chicken ever!!
The secret to these succulent crispy chicken thighs? Whey Protein Isolate! I use the NOW brand and love it because it’s much lower carb than normal protein powder.
These days I’ve been trying to make so many recipes keto-friendly by using protein powder and let me tell you something. I am in LOVE! Man, this stuff is amazing. Last week I uploaded some Keto Tempura using whey protein powder, so if you feel like some Japanese food, make sure to make some!
The trick to these bad boys are the eggs. If you don’t coat the chicken with eggs first, the protein powder won’t really stick to the chicken and will fall to the bottom of the pot when deep-fried. So please make sure to add the eggs.
I was thinking about the tempura recipe and how it worked with protein powder, so I tried coating the chicken with it without the egg and it failed miserably, so I added an egg and problem solved! So really don’t forget the egg!!!
If you’d like to try this recipe, but you eat dairy-free, you must try my DAIRY-FREE KETO PALEO FRIED CHICKEN! It uses egg white powder instead of whey protein and it’s just as amazing!!
Crispy Keto Fried Chicken
The BEST fried chicken you'll ever eat. You won't need nuts, pork rinds, or parmesan for this recipe!
Ingredients
- as needed lard or coconut oil, beef tallow
- 1/2 cup whey protein isolate
- 2 eggs
Fried Chicken
- 450 g boneless chicken thighs
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 tbsp paprika powder
- 1/2 tbsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp sage
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp Himalayan salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp celery seeds
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 45 ml unsweetened almond milk
Spicy Ranch Dressing
- 3 tbsp homemade mayonnaise
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika powder
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 tsp Himalayan salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp chili oil
Instructions
Mince the garlic cloves. Cut the chicken thighs into bite size pieces. I prefer to eat the skin, but if you don't like the skin feel free to take it off 🙂
In a bowl combine the chicken with all the spices and the almond milk. Mix until well combined. Add the two eggs to the mixture and mix thoroughly.
Heat the lard (or any frying oil you'll be using) between 140-150C/285-300F.
When the oil is hot, dip each chicken piece, one by one, into the protein powder making sure all the sides are perfectly coated. Once coated, add the chicken pieces to your hot oil and fry 2-3 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. The inner temperature of each chicken bites should register at 65C/150F+ when the chicken is cooked through.
Add the fried chicken on a wire rack or some paper towel to absorb the excess oil.
Eat as is or with some spicy ranch dressing!
Spicy Ranch Dressing
Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl together and serve with the fried chicken 🙂
Recipe Notes
- The chicken can be reheated the next day, but taste better and is crispier the same day 🙂
- The ranch dressing can also be made as a salad dressing.
This recipe does not work in an air fryer. The whey protein isolate needs to activate inside the hot oil in order to crisp up and get flaky.
KetoMontreal says
Game changer – Who knew that by simply dipping chicken in whey protein (no flavour and lactose free) with salt and pepper, deep frying them in coconut oil, you’d end up with superbe chicken tenders. FANTASTIC !!! Hello onion rings and mozzarella sticks 👋 I’m thinking powdered spices grinded into fine powder who’d make for a great fried chicken or pork cutlet as well… even battered fish… Oh! The possibilities
Heather says
Seriously. Probably the best fried anything I’ve ever had! Who would of ever thought this would be so good. It took me a bit to get the oil temp right but after I did it was a breeze. I marinated the chicken during the day and fried it tonight after the family got home. Perfect texture, light, crunchy, juicy! Thank you. Love the videos! Love your blog. Now I just need to learn how to use chopsticks!
Many blessings and thank you for moving past pork rinds!
Alisha says
I have been dying for some fried chicken and I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you so much!
Julia says
We used the batter on fish And it was AMAZING!!
KetoJody says
Wow! The best I’ve had so far! Will go a little lighter on the garlic and more on the onion next time. We like onion more than garlic over here, but this will be my only recipe for fried fish and chicken. Thank you so much!!!
Darcy says
Pinning this. Thank you for the recipe. I can’t visualize stirring in the chicken pieces nor then adding eggs and stirring. I figure it out somehow though.
Greenp4 says
This recipe is a game changer. Five stars for sure. My husband has no objection to this batter on his food in the future and he is non keto. Thanks!!
Mira says
Awesome! Thanks for letting me know!
Jessica says
Do you have to use almond milk? What about heavy cream?
Mira says
That’ll work too 🙂
lora says
Is the nutritional information here including the ranch dressing, or just the chicken?
Mira says
It includes the ranch dressing!
Monica says
Hi Mira,
Thank you for your great recipe! Could we substitute the protein powder for coconut flour?
Monica
Mira says
Sure, it’ll be coconuty though! Egg white powder also works.
Jeni says
I used half protein powder and half coconut. They were great. Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Buttoni says
I’d like to try this. I’ve discovered the wonders of WPI for frying chicken. Really does taste like a traditional flour coating. Your spice blend here sounds delicious!
Jen says
SO FREAKING DELICIOUS! hubby says we need to have it once a week at least lol Thank you SO much for your wonderful recipe!
Anna says
Made these for dinner. They were amazing!!!also occurred to me that this is perfect breading for pop corn shrimp or calimari. Thank you so much for the great recipe!
Brent says
Excellent flavor and crisp. I used egg white protein instead of the whey and it came out perfect. I found a new favorite!
Tammy says
Try with almond milk and an egg substitute you will find that the recipe is just as good and you can make your own pressing you do not have to use store-bought dressing I like the avocado lime dressing with this is phenomenal. There are ways to make it so that it can be vegan.
Marla says
Can this be done in an air fryer? Do any adjustments need to be made to the recipe?
Mira says
Hi Marla, I believe I mention it somewhere in the post. It doesn’t work with an air fryer as the protein powder activates when it hits hot oil!