Keto BBQ Chicken Casserole Recipe
This BBQ Keto Chicken Casserole Recipe is going to become a family favorite. So delicious and easy to make, you will add this to your keto meal plan regularly!
KETO BBQ CHICKEN CASSEROLE RECIPE
Years ago, we used to order a meal at Chili’s Restaurant that included a chicken breast smothered in bbq sauce, bacon, and cheese. Since we’ve started following a keto/low carb lifestyle, I thought it would make a fabulous dinner. So, last weekend when my in-laws were in town, we went to Chili’s for dinner. I was so excited to order this again, but to my dismay, it’s no longer offered on the menu. Looking back, it is probably a good thing since regular BBQ sauce is so high in carbs.
Instead, our waitress was happy to oblige and asked the kitchen to make me something similar without BBQ sauce. Although it was yummy, BBQ sauce would have made it amazing. Since then, I have worked on a new recipe for a low carb BBQ Sauce using my family’s original recipe that I tweaked. It made such a huge difference.
This BBQ Keto Chicken Casserole with Bacon & Cheese turned out incredibly delicious, and it was so easy to make! My entire family loved it. You can find the recipe for my homemade low carb BBQ sauce here.
Ingredients:
- Boneless, skinless, chicken breast – I prefer to use chicken breasts, but you could substitute chicken thighs instead.
- Sugar-Free BBQ Sauce – You can buy sugar-free BBQ sauce at the grocery store, but remember to check the ingredients for hidden sugars. Or, better yet, make your low-carb BBQ sauce from my recipe using the link below.
- Monterey Jack And Sharp Cheddar Cheeses – These cheeses will need to be grated. If you want to save a few minutes off prep time, feel free to purchase pre-grated cheese. Keep in mind that pre-grated contains added fillers that can increase the carb count.
- Bacon – Use cured or uncured, but make sure there are no added sugars whichever brand of bacon you choose. You might see sugar as an ingredient, but it is generally used in the curing process. The key is looking for 0 carbs in the nutritional info.
- Spices – The BBQ sauce will provide quite a bit of flavor to this tasty dish, but you will want to add garlic seasoning, salt and pepper for your preferences, and a teaspoon of parsley.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Making Keto BBQ Chicken
Step 1: Cook the boneless chicken breasts in a slow cooker for either six hours on the low setting or three hours on high. If you prefer, you can cook it in the instant pot for an hour. I like to add garlic, pepper, and salt with a little chicken broth. But you can season it however you prefer. Make sure to check out this post on how to make shredded chicken in the crockpot.
Step 2: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare an 8×8 baking dish by greasing it. Then take the chicken out of the slow cooker or instant pot and chop it up. Try to cut it into large pieces.
Step 3: Place the chicken pieces in the bottom of the greased casserole dish and sprinkle garlic seasoning on top.
Step 4: Then, pour your choice of low carb BBQ sauce on top of it. I prefer my homemade recipe, but you can find sugar free bbq sauce options at the grocery store.
Step 4: Crumble the cooked bacon on top of the BBQ sauce. Then, cover it with the cheeses. Feel free to sub out different kinds of cheese such as Pepper Jack, mozzarella, white cheddar, etc.
Step 5: Bake the casserole in the 350-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cheese has completely melted. If you like to brown the cheese, place it on the top rack for two minutes.
Step 6: Take the casserole out of the oven and sprinkle parsley on top as a garnish. Enjoy!
Does it matter what kind of chicken is used?
For keto BBQ chicken, it won’t matter too much which type of chicken you use. Breasts are the most common and easiest to use, but other cuts will work just as well if you prefer them. Chicken thighs will add fat to the recipe since breasts are a leaner cut. When they are cooked in the slow cooker or the instant pot, the chicken will become tender, and you will cut it up into large pieces to make the casserole.
Ways to Enjoy the Best BBQ Chicken Casserole
I roasted asparagus in the oven to go with our Keto BBQ Chicken Casserole, and it was such a delicious meal. It’s relatively easy to make and complementary of many of your favorite Keto sides. But it is also good as a stand-alone dish, especially if you need something to take to a potluck or bring-your-own-dish event. You can bake it ahead of time and know you have at least one great-tasting keto-friendly dish. Southern Green Beans is a nice side, or you could pair the Keto BBQ chicken casserole with other Keto-friendly vegetable side dishes such as air fryer broccoli. You may also serve this alongside my easy keto coleslaw!
Can this be made ahead of time?
Sure, preassemble the casserole ahead of time and place it in the fridge. When you are ready to bake it, take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking to give it time to come to room temperature. Your baking time might be slightly increased since it has been refrigerated.
Check out These Other Keto-friendly Casseroles
- Low Carb Cheesy Mexican Casserole
- Cheesy Keto Philly Cheesesteak Casserole
- Keto Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole with Broccoli
- Keto Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli Bake
If you aren’t already following my Easy Keto/Low Carb Recipe Page on Facebook, where I post all my new recipes, and follow me on Pinterest.
Other Low Carb Chicken Recipes:
- Chicken Lombardy
- Chicken Pot Pie
- Low Carb Chicken Philly Cheesesteak
- Cheesy Ranch Chicken & Broccoli
- Cheesy Mexican Skillet
- Keto Chicken Pot Pie
- Keto Chicken Fajitas
- Slow Cooker Chicken with Bacon & Cheese
- Keto Crockpot Bacon Ranch Chicken
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Zucchini Boats
- Keto Chicken Salad
If you are just getting started following a keto diet and would like more information, there are tons of fantastic resources. Amazon has several excellent books you may want to check out here.
Sometimes it is hard to believe that we can eat like this and still lose weight.
Keto BBQ Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 1/8 cup sugar-free bbq sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic seasoning
- 1 cup Monterey Jack Cheese, grated
- 1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 6 pieces bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 3/4 tsp parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook boneless skinless chicken in slow cooker 6 hours on low or 3 hours on high. (I always add garlic pepper seasoning and salt then cover with chicken broth or water, but feel free to season your favorite way or use a rotisserie chicken.)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease an eight by eight baking dish. Remove the chicken from slow cooker and chop into large pieces.
- Place chicken in bottom of greased casserole dish and sprinkle garlic seasoning on top.
- Pour homemade sugar-free BBQ sauce on top of the chicken. You could also use your favorite store-bought variety.
- Crumble cooked bacon on top of the chicken and bbq sauce.
- Cover with a mixture of Monterrey Jack and Cheddar cheese.
- Bake in a 350-degree oven for approx 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- You can place the casserole dish on the top rack for 2 minutes if you'd like the cheese to brown. Sprinkle the parsley on top and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
How many carbs per serving?
The nutritional information is located at the bottom of the recipe card. The top of the recipe card shows the number of servings. The nutritional info is based on the dish being divided evenly into the number of servings.
This recipe is easy to make and delicious ious. However, according to Carb Manager, it came out to 5g net carbs per serving. -I used 1 tsp each of salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasonings and only 1C G. Hughes Sweet and Spicy BBQ sauce. Totally worth 5g carbs per serving. My family really enjoyed this.
The carbs will always depend on the exact ingredients you use in your kitchen. I used my homemade bbq sauce in this recipe instead of the G Huges. Not sure the carb count on that, but mine might be less. Also, spices have carbs so the more you use the spices will add to the carb count. I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
That looks so good!
I am getting ready to make this but I have a question, what do you use as a garlic seasoning?
That info is included in step 3 of the recipe instructions.
Can you use a rotisserie chicken To save time?
Sure! It would save a lot of time.
This can’t really have 265kcal/serving, can it?
I’m not sure why it adds the k to the cal. It is 265 calories per serving.
I believe it does that because the full name of the calorie is the kilo-calorie. Anyways, have you tried or do you have any advice on using cauliflower with this recipe to make it a one pan meal? I’d like to try that.
Could you make ahead and freeze and reheat in oven?
Yes, there are instructions in the post. Look for the header that says “Can I make this ahead of time” for the info.
My family loves this. So good!
Fantastic. So glad you all loved it.
I’ve been making one of your recipes every night, main dish to desserts all low carb and we love all of them! Thanks for sharing!!
Wow! That is amazing. I’m so glad you have enjoyed my recipes.
This is a delicious low carb/low calorie easy weeknight meal. I cook the chicken using my instant pot. This has become one of our favorites!
Fantastic! So glad you loved it.
This was delicious!! I subbed the parsley for lots of fresh cilantro. One of my new favorites! 🙂
Awesome. I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
Delicious! Another great way to use BBQ Chicken is to layer some over one half of an avocado, then drizzle some reduced Balsamic vinegar on top…YUM! I use a rotisserie chicken, so it’s a no-bake dinner, so easy!
Glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for the idea.
Question: when you cook chicken in the crockpot, what do you use for broth? Every brand that I see either has nasty canola oil
Or something else unpleasant.
I used water and it was perfectly fine. I added some seasoning to the water and it came out great.
How do cook chicken in an instant pot for an hour and it not be completely dried out (not critiquing at all, trying to understand how to do it)?
Hey Elliott. The Instant Pot is one of my kitchen faves. It speeds things up on the days when I just don’t have time to wait for the chicken to cook. Add 1 cup of water or chicken broth to the Instant Pot. Place the chicken breasts on the trivet and cook. You should get tender, juicy chicken after 8-12 minutes, depending on wether fresh or frozen chicken. I hope this helps!
Made this for supper today since I had some leftover rotisserie chicken. My husband who doesn’t usually like casseroles said “delicious, you should make this for our friends during football season, best casserole I have ever eaten”. His comments went on but you get my drift.
Awe thanks! So glad y’all enjoyed it!!