Have you ever taken a bite of a new food and declared that it “tastes like chicken”?
There’s a reason we use chicken as a frame of reference when talking about other foods…it’s one of the most popular meats in the world!
Many countries rank chicken as their top meat of choice, but is chicken a healthy option for diabetics to eat?
Let’s explore the nutrition facts and options.
Chicken Nutrition Facts
If you’ve ever been on a diet, you’ve probably stocked up on staples like boneless skinless chicken breast.
Chicken is rich in micronutrients like vitamins B12 and B6, phosphorus, selenium, zinc and choline.
It’s also high in protein but relatively low in calories and fat. What’s not to love?
Here are the nutrition facts for 100g of boneless skinless chicken breast (equivalent to a 3-4 oz standard serving):
- Calories: 165
- Protein: 31g
- Fat: 3.6g
- Carbs: 0
- Fiber: 0
Skinless chicken breast is known for being an ultra-lean cut of meat, with just 20% of calories coming from fat and the remaining 80% from protein.
While all chicken is relatively lean compared to red meat, different cuts of chicken still have a variety of protein-to-fat ratios.
Chicken Nutrition Comparison Chart
Here’s a comparison of different chicken cuts and products:
You’ll notice that the skinless chicken breast is lower in calories, cholesterol, and fat, than the chicken breast with skin. Fat contains more calories per gram than protein does, so as the cuts get fattier, the calories tend to increase as well.
We want to highlight that there is absolutely nothing wrong with choosing a fattier cut of chicken!
A skinless chicken breast, for example, isn’t inherently more healthy than a chicken thigh is; it all depends on your personal goals and tastes.
Keeping the skin improves the flavor profile of the chicken, ups that satisfying “crunch” factor after cooking, and also boosts the fat content, including mono-unsaturated fats like oleic acid.
The only kind of chicken you really want to avoid are the bottom three options on the chart.
Notice what they have in common?
The Best (and Worst) Type of Chicken
You guessed it: the worst type of chicken is that uber-processed, breaded, deep-fried type (aka: junk food chicken).
This category includes any conventionally breaded and fried snacks like chicken nuggets, chicken tenders, sandwich patties, orange chicken, etc.
Those super-savory fast foods are coated with high-carb breading and fried in a bath of inflammatory vegetable oils. They sure do taste good, but they’re not worth it!
Even a thin layer of traditional breading on a piece of chicken can really increase the carb count.
If you glance back at the nutrition chart, you’ll see that the unbreaded patty contained just 1.2 g of carbs (from various seasonings) while the breaded patty racked up 16.5 g of carbs!
Outside of the highly processed options, most chicken is very healthy.
If meat quality is very important to you, free range organic chicken tends to be raised on higher quality feed and is exposed to fewer chemicals and antibiotics.
But if organic chicken isn’t in the budget, conventionally raised chicken is still a great low carb, protein-rich food to give you energy and help manage blood sugar levels.
Now let’s get to the tasty part…
5 Ways to Prepare Chicken
Due to its mild flavor, chicken is versatile and can be used in countless recipes for any type of meal. We’ve got a few ideas to get you started.
1. Chicken & Pasta
Adding chunks of chicken to your favorite low-carb pasta dish bulks up the protein and adds flavor.
For a low carb twist on an Italian classic, try this Olive Herb & Chicken Spaghetti recipe.
2. Baked Chicken
Chicken is a pretty low-maintenance meat that bakes well in the oven.
A basic baked chicken with veggies is always a great dinner option, but if you want to take a chance on something different, check out this Tray Bake Chicken Pizza recipe that only requires 5 ingredients.
3. Slow Cooker Chicken
Chicken thighs or even a whole chicken can be placed in the slow cooker for an easy meal, soup, casserole or stew.
Imagine simply prepping a few ingredients and tossing them into the crock pot before heading out the door. A few hours later you come home to a hot meal that’s ready to be enjoyed – yep, we love slow-cooking!
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4. Chicken Salad
We couldn’t make a whole list of chicken-based recipes without mentioning a healthy, low carb staple: chicken salad!
It’s so easy to add some chopped or shredded (cooked) chicken to your cobb, low carb Caesar (nix the croutons), Greek, or spicy taco salad.
5. Chicken Curry
If you’re a fan of Indian cuisine, then we’ve saved the best recipe for last…
This Chicken Massaman Curry is incredibly easy (just 5 main ingredients), incredibly creamy, and incredibly fun to eat.
This easy curry is a recipe you’ll want to make again and again!
**Download our food list below to learn more about the best foods to eat!
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