Chicken Fries (Carnivore)
Four simple ingredients, about a half an hour and voila! You have a delicious meal or snack that suits your carnivore/keto diet needs and also happens to satisfy picky eaters! Do I hear shouts of joy?
This recipe came from a Carnivor TikTok account and that quick video made this seem like a super simple recipe. It is simple, but like with everything else it seems, there is some nuance and you do have some decisions to make.
For example, what kind of chicken do you use? I first tried this recipe with the canned chicken from Aldi. There were some ingredients in that product that I didn’t love (modified food starch, sodium phosphates and natural flavors), but it’s what I could get quickly. Because my family really enjoyed these chicken fries, I decided to try to make them a little healthier. I started with fresh ground chicken breast, cooked that, then proceeded with the recipe. The result was not nearly as good as with the canned chicken. And naturally, it took longer to prepare.
Then I set out to find a cleaner canned chicken. I found it at Thrive Market, but the cost was pretty high. A five ounce can of organic canned chicken (only chicken and salt for ingredients) costs $4.99. That’s a lot! I need four of those cans to make one recipe of these chicken fries and my family will eat all of those with no leftovers. Alternatively, I can buy the large 12 ounce cans of chicken from Costco for $2.50/can. That’s $5 vs. $20. That’s a huge difference. Honestly, for this price difference, and considering the fact that we don’t eat canned chicken daily or even weekly, I’m going to buy the cheaper option next time. You have to decide what’s right for your family and your budget.
That was quite the preamble, I know, but I do feel that part of my job here is to educate and so I wanted to explain a little of the behind the scenes of creating this recipe.
If you’ve been following a carnivore or low carb diet and are getting a little bored with plain meats, this recipe should feel like a real treat! Make a yummy sauce or buy a sugar free one and enjoy!
Chicken Fries (Carnivore, Keto)
Ingredients
- 2 12 ounce cans cooked chicken breast drained
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp. salt more or less to taste
- pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, seasoned salt, other seasonings of your choice
- 1/4 cup almond flour or pork rind crumbs as needed, see instructions
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the drained, canned chicken. I actually give the chicken a squeeze with my hands to remove more of the liquid.
- Break up the chicken with a fork or your fingers.
- Add in the eggs, shredded cheese and seasoning. Mix well.
- Test the mixture to see if you need to add any almond flour or pork rind crumbs as a binder. Pick up a meatball sized amount of mixture and squeeze it together. If it stays together, you're good to go. If it is too wet, add in some of the flour. It's not likely to be too dry, but if it is, add another egg.
- If you've never made this before or are using a different canned chicken than you have used previously, I recommend cooking a little amount of your mixture in a skillet on the stove to taste for seasoning. Some canned chicken is saltier than others.
- Once you're happy with your mixture's consistency and seasoning, form into "fries" or nuggets, your choice. Lay them on the prepared baking sheet.
- Pop this in the oven and bake for 18-22 minutes, until browned and crispy.
- Serve with your favorite sauce. I usually make some sort of honey mustard (mayo, yellow mustard, liquid stevia, onion powder). We also love this with sriracha sauce.