This Crock Pot Sugar Free Keto BBQ Chicken Recipe is the best way to feed a crowd or enjoy an easy Low Carb Keto meal! Slow cooker or instant pot cooking methods included!
Easy Pulled Barbecue Chicken Recipe
I love nothing more than to make a crock pot recipe in the morning and come home to smell a fantastic dinner waiting for us. Little effort equals big reward. Those are my kind of meals! These chicken thighs can be served one of two ways.
Enjoy as is coming right of the crock pot full of all this amazing barbecue sauce and tender chicken.
Add a simple side and dinner is done. Or shred the chicken thighs as you would for a pulled pork recipe and some Italian style coleslaw you've got a delicious low carb meal the whole family will love. You might also enjoy adding some Keto Fathead Rolls to this delicious pulled chicken meal.
Sugar Free BBQ Pulled Chicken
I did just that when I made this for my family. My recipe for the sugar free BBQ came from my Crock Pot BBQ Baby Back Rib recipe.
I knew it would be fantastic on chicken thighs so I went ahead with the idea for easy pulled chicken in the crock pot. Did the kids love it? Absolutely! Did the picky hubby who doesn't love sugar free much love it? Oh yes he did!
Keto BBQ Pulled Chicken & Side Dishes
There are many different ways to enjoy this keto chicken recipe!
One of the easiest way to serve this easy recipe is over a bowl of Italian Style keto coleslaw.
I made if for the kids in a little low carb tortilla wrap as a burrito. My oldest, the picky teen, let me put some coleslaw in the burrito because I told him how incredible the crunchy slaw with the tender chicken would be.
You could also make bbq chicken sandwiches by serving in a low carb bun or another great option is with keto cornbread or even over cauliflower rice.
My oldest ate it but wasn't a fan of the slaw. However you decide to enjoy this crockpot bbq chicken, this is a great keto low carb crowd pleaser recipe!
Kids right? They will love different foods as they age I guess, just as I did. I didn't care much, more slaw for me and the hubby! So tasty and no guilt, all low carb and sugar-free!
My favorite way to serve this juicy chicken is in a bowl like this above worked and I'd eat it like that all day long.
This recipe was originally posted in April of 2015 and I decided to bring it out of the archives for the summer with a brand new video to showcase this awesome recipe!
STORE-BOUGHT SUGAR FREE KETO BBQ SAUCE AND SUGAR FREE KETCHUP
If you want to skip all the seasonings and ingredients for the low carb BBQ sauce, you can certainly just buy it on Amazon or your local grocery store.
Just be sure to check the ingredients for added sugar and inflammatory oils like canola oil or soybean oil.
If you don't have time to make my homemade sugar free ketchup recipe for this easy sugar free barbecue sauce recipe then the best option is to buy a good brand that uses great ingredients.
I recommend Primal Kitchen Sugar-Free BBQ sauce and Ketchup as the best store bought option and they also have lots of great condiments and dressings with a great ingredient list of good quality oils.
Swapping Sugar Free Low Carb Sweeteners
I used clear liquid stevia for this recipe, but you can use any low carb sweetener you like.
Allulose would be another option, but again it isn't as sweet as using the Better than Sugar sweetener. Allulose comes in a liquid, and granulated form.
I've found this product that combines Allulose and Monk Fruit Sweetener and it does have a brown sugar sweetener, though I've not tested this product in this low carb sauce.
My updated Sweetener Conversion chart will provide you the ultimate guide into all the natural sweeteners to use as opposed to artificial sweeteners and this will be your guide to look up the different low carb sweetener options that you may want to swap in my recipes.
Why do you add cocoa powder?
Chocolate is one of the main ingredients in Mexican mole sauce since it helps to balance out the spices used. It also adds a nice rich dark color and in my opinion just enhances all the flavors for the barbecue sauce.
This easy pulled bbq chicken has undeniable delicious flavors and I think the secret ingredient is to use cocoa powder just like I used in my keto chili recipe.
More Keto BBQ Recipes
Low Carb Hamburger Bun Recipes
Cottage Cheese Cloud Bread Rolls
Crock Pot Sugar Free BBQ Pulled Chicken
Crock Pot Sugar Free BBQ Pulled Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
BBQ Sauce Ingredients
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup sugar free ketchup
- 1 teaspoon maple extract
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder unsweetened
- ½ teaspoon clear liquid stevia or see notes above for using a brown sugar substitute
Instructions
- Place the chicken on a baking sheet.
- Whisk the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper together.
- Rub the dry seasonings onto the chicken on both sides. Set aside.
For the BBQ Sauce
- Pour the water, apple cider vinegar, and ketchup into the bottom of the crock pot.
- Stir until combined then add the remaining ingredients to the crock pot.
- Stir well then add the chicken thighs to the crock pot.
Slow Cooker Method
- Cover and cook on high 3-4 hours or low 8-10 hours.
- Uncover when finished cooking and shred thighs with 2 forks.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Follow the same preparing of the chicken and sauce but instead of placing sauce into slow cooker, place into instant pot. Stir well then add thighs to the pot.
- Cover and set to manual, high pressure for 25 minutes.
- Natural release for 5 minutes, then manually release pressure.
- Enjoy shredded bbq chicken over coleslaw or in a low carb tortilla as a burrito.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
Adrienne
Hello this sounds delicious I want to try it! I am not crazy about Stevia do you think I could replace the maple extract and Stevia with Primal Kitchen BBQ sauce?
Brenda
Sure!
Emma
Really good recipe! I changed it up a little bit though. I put in a tsp of liquid smoke and only half a tsp of the cocoa powder came out great! Eat it over rice cauliflower. I think next time I'll add some Worcestershire sauce too.
vicki
Looks great, Thanks!
TJ
I prefer Splenda - approximately how much Spenda equalsnthe sweetness used in this recipe? I do not use or like Stevia, so I have no idea... hope to make this tomorrow, and to hear back in time! Thanks.
Brenda
I would suggest using just 1/2 cup of Splenda, but taste and decide if you need more.
Debbie
Do you think I could use a diff sweetner? I have swerve or xylitol , I can grind them fine I don't care fir stevia
Brenda
Of course, you can use whatever you like.
Monique
Typos in this one sorry
Monique
I just made this and OMG it was deicious! I'm currently on a sugar free cleanse and was desperately missing BBQ sauce. This hit the spot and I won't make BBQ sauce with high content sugar again!