Keto Sesame Chicken
Published September 27, 2020 • Updated March 2, 2026
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I make this keto sesame chicken in my Instant Pot whenever I want that sticky-sweet takeout flavor without leaving the kitchen. The sauce thickens into a glaze that coats every shred of chicken, and it tastes even better the next day.
This is the recipe I come back to when I want takeout-level sesame chicken without actually ordering takeout. The Instant Pot does all the heavy lifting. Eight minutes of pressure cooking, a quick shred, and the sauce thickens into this sticky, sweet coating that clings to every piece of chicken. It has that salty-sweet balance that makes takeout addictive, just without the sugar and cornstarch.
The secret is sugar-free maple syrup mixed with liquid aminos and sesame oil. I know that sounds like a lot of condiments, but they come together into something that actually tastes like the sauce from a Chinese restaurant. The first time I made it, I thought the sauce amount was fine. The second time, I doubled it. That’s what I recommend now. Double the sauce. It keeps in the fridge all week, and you can pour it over cauliflower rice, use it as a dipping sauce, or toss it with leftover chicken the next day.
I shred the chicken straight in the pot liner using an electric mixer. Two forks work, but the mixer gets it done in about 30 seconds and gives you those perfect shreds without transferring anything to a cutting board. The chicken practically falls apart after pressure cooking, so it barely takes any effort. If you like this method, I use the same approach for my shredded chicken base recipe, which is great to keep in the fridge for quick meals.
One thing I’ve learned: don’t skip the arrowroot powder step. It’s only a teaspoon, but it’s what takes the sauce from thin and watery to that thick, sticky glaze you want. Hit saute, stir it in, and give it five minutes. You’ll see it transform right in front of you.
If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can still make this. One of my readers, Kirsten, used the sauce as an overnight marinade and baked the thighs at 400 degrees for about 20-30 minutes, flipping halfway. She swapped in monkfruit sweetener and skipped the arrowroot. I’ve tried the oven version since, and it’s a solid backup, though the pressure cooker gives you more tender, shreddable results. If you want a stovetop Asian dish instead, my chicken stir fry comes together fast.
I serve this over cauliflower rice most nights, but it’s also great on its own. If you’re into keto Asian flavors, try my teriyaki chicken for a similar weeknight dinner, my sesame ginger meatballs when you want something different, or my butter chicken if you’re craving something creamy.
This is a low carb dinner that actually gets requested in my house. My family asks for more sauce every time, so now I just always double it.
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Ingredients
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs -
1/2 cup sugar free maple syrup
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5 tablespoons liquid aminos or soy sauce
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1/2 teaspoon onion powder
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1/4 cup sugar-free ketchup
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2 tablespoon sesame oil
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2 garlic cloves, minced
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1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
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1 teaspoon arrowroot powder
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Season chicken
Add chicken to the liner of the Instant Pot and season both sides with salt and pepper.
Make sauce
In a small bowl, whisk together sugar-free maple syrup, liquid aminos, onion powder, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic and red pepper flakes.
Add sauce
Pour sauce over chicken.
Pressure cook
Pressure cook on high for 8 minutes. Let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes before releasing the rest of the pressure by hitting the quick release button or turning the valve.
Shred chicken
Shred chicken with two forks or using an electric mixer straight in the instant pot. Add arrowroot powder and hit ‘sauté’ function. Sauté on high for 5 minutes or until sauce thickens.
Serve
Serve over cauliflower rice.
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
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Get My Macros + Recipes →Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use chicken breasts instead of thighs?
I've made this with both. Chicken thighs give you more flavor and they shred better after pressure cooking, which is why I default to them. Breasts work, but they cook faster, so I drop the time to about 5-6 minutes on high. Check for 165 degrees internal temp and shred while they're still warm.
What can I substitute for sugar-free maple syrup?
I've tested a few swaps here. My go-to backup is mixing a tablespoon of monkfruit sweetener with a couple tablespoons of water to get a similar consistency. Erythritol works too, but it can re-crystallize as the sauce cools. The maple syrup gives the best sticky texture, so I always come back to it.
How should I store leftover sesame chicken?
I keep mine in a glass container in the fridge and it's good for 3-4 days. The sauce actually gets thicker and stickier as it sits, which I prefer. I reheat in a skillet over medium heat so the edges get a little crispy again. You can also freeze for up to 3 months. Just thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Can I make this without an Instant Pot?
I've done the oven version and it works well. Marinate the thighs in the sauce for at least an hour (overnight is even better), then bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway. You won't get the same fall-apart shred that pressure cooking gives you, but the flavor is right there. For another keto dinner from the oven, my chicken katsu is a favorite.
Can I prepare this as a freezer meal?
I prep this as a freezer meal all the time. Toss the chicken thighs and all the sauce ingredients into a freezer bag and lay it flat. When you're ready to cook, thaw overnight in the fridge or add it straight from frozen. If cooking from frozen, add 1/2 cup of water to the bottom so nothing scorches, and increase the cook time to about 12-15 minutes on high.
Should I double the sauce?
I double it every single time now. The original amount works fine, but once I started making extra, I couldn't go back. Just double everything in the sauce: maple syrup, liquid aminos, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic, red pepper flakes. The extra stores in a jar in the fridge for 5-6 days. I use it all week on reheated chicken, scrambled eggs, even drizzled on egg roll bowls.
Is there a way to make this spicier?
I add extra red pepper flakes and a splash of chili garlic sauce when I want more heat. The sweet-spicy combo works really well with this dish. Start by doubling the red pepper flakes from the recipe and adjust from there. If you like spicy keto dishes, try my bang bang chicken next.
If you crave Chinese takeout on keto, this sesame chicken is for you! Most dishes at a Chinese food restaurant are not low carb. But with your Instant Pot, you can satisfy those cravings in minutes.
This sesame chicken is easy to make in a pressure cooker. Add all of your ingredients to the Instant Pot and pressure cook on high for 8 minutes. To thicken the sauce into a sticky glaze, add a hint of arrowroot powder and hit sauté on the Instant Pot.
This sesame chicken is incredible poured over a cup of cauliflower rice and topped with sliced green onions and more sesame seeds. Your family will love this keto dinner and you’ll love that it takes less than 30 minutes to make!
ok this is exactly what the takeout place tasted like
Annie, your sesame chicken won me over on something I was skeptical about. Sugar-free ketchup in a sesame sauce sounded wrong, but I made it anyway on a weeknight when I didn't want to heat up the kitchen, and three batches later I'm not questioning it. Whatever that ketchup does to the glaze, it works.
It adds body and cuts the pure-sweet so the glaze tastes layered instead of just maple syrup. I almost dropped it during testing and now I won't touch the ratio.
Thought it was just adding more sweetness, not cutting it. That explains a lot.
been craving sesame chicken so bad lately, this is it!!
swapped liquid aminos for coconut aminos, cleaner finish
Coconut aminos is slightly sweeter, less salty edge. Makes sense it'd clean up the finish on something with maple syrup already in it.
Threw in a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger with the garlic because I had some to use up. Worth it. The sauce came out brighter than I expected, more complex in a way that's hard to describe. Not a sweetness or salt thing, more like depth. Used a microplane so it grated fine enough to dissolve completely during pressure cooking, no chunks. That part matters. Ginger pieces in the final dish would be a mistake. Planning to try a small splash of rice vinegar next batch.
Ginger does that to sesame sauces. The microplane is the only way. Anything coarser and you'd taste it in what's supposed to be a smooth glaze. For the vinegar, I'd go half a teaspoon to start, maybe less. That sauce concentrates under pressure way more than you'd expect.
Sesame chicken was the thing I ordered every week from the place two blocks from my old apartment, and when I started keto I just told myself that chapter was done. Six months later I found this recipe and almost didn't try it because I assumed it would be one of those keto versions that misses the whole point. It's not. The sauce, the liquid aminos plus the sugar-free maple syrup I was so skeptical about, thickens up in the Instant Pot into something sticky and real. Genuinely the thing, not some approximation. I kept checking on the chicken while it was shredding because I couldn't believe the smell was right. Had it cold the next morning straight from the container and I think that was the better version. I don't know what I expected keto to look like long-term but it wasn't this.
Cold from the container the next morning is when you know it actually worked. Mine gets stickier overnight and I genuinely prefer it that way. Never lasts past day two at my house.
First time making takeout at home and I went with this on a whim. Had chicken thighs to use up. The sauce thickened into a proper glaze when I hit sauté after shredding and I just stood there watching it coat the chicken thinking, okay, this actually works. Took leftovers to work twice and it was somehow better cold, which I didn't see coming. Used liquid aminos instead of soy sauce (already had it) and couldn't tell the difference. Only thing I'd change is more sauce per serving, probably why I landed at 4 stars instead of 5. Do you think doubling the arrowroot makes it too stiff, or is there a trick to getting more glaze without wrecking the consistency?
Double the sauce, not just the arrowroot. Extra arrowroot without more liquid goes gummy fast. I do the whole thing: maple syrup, liquid aminos, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic. Way more coating.
I've had my Instant Pot sitting on the counter for six months doing absolutely nothing, and this was the first real meal I made in it. Eight minutes and that sauce came out glossy and thick, coating every piece of chicken like actual takeout. I was fully expecting to mess something up but it just worked. Four stars only because I'm still figuring out the Instant Pot. Do you think this holds up if I make it ahead and reheat the next day, or does the sauce lose that coating texture?
It holds up fine. The skillet reheat matters though - microwave makes the sauce go watery. Two minutes over medium and it's back.
Added an extra half teaspoon of arrowroot because I wanted more of that sticky glaze texture, then hit the saute button after shredding and let it bubble a couple minutes. Sauce got really thick, coated everything. Closer to actual takeout than I expected from a pressure cooker. First time using arrowroot and I had no clue what I was doing, but watching it thicken like that made it click.
That sauté step with the extra arrowroot is what gets it actually sticky. I skip it when I'm in a hurry but yours sounds better than mine.
First time using my Instant Pot for actual cooking and the sauce came out better than I thought it would. Does the glaze thicken more if you use the saute function after, or is that glossy coating just what you get from the pressure cook?
Arrowroot does the work. Hit saute for 2-3 minutes after if you want it stickier, but I usually skip it.
Made this on a Tuesday night and my husband, who treats keto cooking as my thing and not his concern, stopped mid-bite to ask if I'd ordered it from somewhere. I had to show him the Instant Pot still on the counter. The glaze is the thing (it gets genuinely sticky and shiny the way takeout does, not watery or thin) and I think the sesame oil is what sells it. Now he asks for it by name, which never happens. Four stars because I want to try doubling the red pepper flakes next time, but that's on me.
Ha, the Instant Pot still on the counter is such a good reveal. Double the red pepper flakes, they hold up fine.
Made this for a spring girls' night and the sticky sesame glaze had everyone convinced I'd ordered in until they saw the empty Instant Pot on the counter.
That glaze fools people. The arrowroot thickens it right at the end and it coats the chicken exactly like takeout sauce.
Batch cooking this every Sunday now for about six weeks, and the discovery that made it a permanent rotation item was how much the sauce improves overnight. The arrowroot thickens up in the fridge and you get a proper glaze on day two and three instead of the looser consistency right out of the pot. I shred it straight in the Instant Pot liner, divide into four containers, and lunches are sorted for the week. One tip if you're scaling up: double the sauce.
Six weeks of Sundays is a good track record. The arrowroot thing is real, I noticed the same on day two, that glaze quality is different from fresh out of the pot. Your shredding-in-the-liner trick saves a dish.
I've tried at least four different keto sesame chicken recipes trying to get that sticky-sweet takeout flavor right, and this is the first one where the sauce behaves the way it's supposed to. The glaze actually clings to the chicken instead of pooling at the bottom like the others. Four stars because I'd go heavier on the red pepper flakes for my taste, but the base recipe finally gets the texture right.
That's the arrowroot powder at work. Go heavy on the red pepper flakes, or add a splash of chili garlic sauce if you want real heat.
Six batches in and I'm nowhere near bored of this one. Around batch three I started adding a teaspoon of freshly grated ginger to the sauce before pressure cooking, and it was such an obvious improvement that I can't imagine making it without it now. The ginger doesn't fight with the sesame at all, it just gives the glaze that brighter, sharper edge you'd expect from actual takeout. Watching the arrowroot tighten everything up when you pull the lid is one of my favorite kitchen moments. Made it on a snow day last week and served it over cauliflower rice, and we all just sat there quietly eating until the pot was gone. The chicken thighs shred so perfectly in that glaze, I won't even consider switching to breasts. Next batch I'm doubling the red pepper flakes.
Ginger makes sense in that sauce, it can handle the brightness. And yeah, 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper was always on the cautious side. Double it.