Keto Chicken Schnitzel
Published January 5, 2020 • Updated March 9, 2026
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I bread thin chicken thighs in almond flour and ground pork rinds, then fry them in avocado oil until the crust crisps up and shatters when you bite in. This keto chicken schnitzel has just 1.7g net carbs per serving.
I keep a short list of recipes that never leave my weekly rotation. My blackened chicken, boursin chicken, and this chicken schnitzel are the ones I come back to constantly.
Traditional schnitzel is a German dish where breaded, thinly sliced meat gets fried in oil until the outside is shatteringly crispy. For my low-carb version, I swap regular breadcrumbs for a combination of almond flour and ground pork rinds (pork panko). The almond flour gives the egg wash something to grip, and the pork rinds do all the work on crunch. I tested coconut flour as a substitute for anyone avoiding nuts, and it works fine, though the coating comes out slightly thinner. The whole breading process takes maybe 5 minutes once you have your three dipping stations set up.
I use chicken thighs instead of breasts because thighs hold their moisture through pounding and frying. Breasts dry out fast, especially when you slice them thin. If you only have breasts on hand, they still work. Just watch your cook time closely.
The technique that made the biggest difference is something I stumbled on after making this dozens of times: once the chicken hits the hot avocado oil, shake the pan back and forth over the burner. This sends hot oil up over the edges and top of the breading, crisping areas that would otherwise stay soft. It sounds small, but the difference in the final crust is real.
I fry in avocado oil because it handles high heat without smoking, though ghee works too if you prefer the flavor. The oil is ready when a small pinch of the breading sizzles immediately on contact.
This is one of those meals my family requests by name. My kids don’t care that it’s keto. To them it’s just a crispy chicken dinner, which is the whole point. If you’re feeding a crowd or want leftovers for the week, make a double batch. The coating does get soft in the fridge overnight, but 10 minutes at 400 degrees in the oven or air fryer brings the crunch right back. I reheat leftovers this way at least once a week.
If you like breaded chicken dinners, my chicken divan takes thighs in a completely different direction with a creamy broccoli sauce.
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Ingredients
1.5 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs or chicken breast cutlets -
½ cup almond flour or coconut flour
-
2 eggs
-
1 ½ cups ground pork rinds
-
avocado oil or ghee for frying
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Season & prep the chicken
Season each chicken thigh with salt and pepper. To get thinner cuts of thighs, place the thigh in a ziploc bag or between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Using a mallet or rolling pin, pound the meat until the chicken is ¼ inch thick.
- Chicken thighs
- Salt
- Pepper
Prepare the coating
Place almond flour in a shallow dish. Place eggs and 1 tablespoon of water in another shallow dish and beat. Place ground pork rinds in a third shallow dish.
- Almond flour
- Eggs
- Water
- Ground pork rinds
Dip the chicken
Dip each chicken thigh in almond flour bowl to evenly coat with a light dusting of flour.
Dip in egg wash
Dip the floured chicken thigh in the egg mixture.
Coat in pork rinds
Finally dip the chicken in the ground pork rinds.
Add oil to skillet
To a large skillet, add ½ inch of avocado oil or ghee. Heat over medium high heat. The oil is hot enough when a small piece of the breading mixture sizzles in the skillet.
- Avocado oil (or ghee)
Add the chicken
Add 2-3 chicken thighs to the skillet. Only add in enough chicken to allow for even cooking. Have about ½ inch room around each thigh. You will have to cook the thighs in batches. Shake the pan back and forth over the burner to allow for the hot oil to slide over the edges and top of the coated chicken. This gets the edges crispy.
Cook till golden brown
Cook the thighs until golden brown, turning halfway through. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate when done.
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 make this in the air fryer?
I have tested the air fryer multiple times and I still can't get the same crispiness you get from pan-frying in hot oil. The pork rind coating needs that direct oil contact to really shatter. That said, the air fryer is great for reheating leftovers. I set mine to 400 degrees for about 8 minutes and the crust crisps right back up. If you figure out a method that works from raw, I genuinely want to know (annie@ketofocus.com).
What sides go well with schnitzel?
I usually keep sides simple because the schnitzel itself is the star. A quick cucumber salad with vinegar works perfectly. Steamed green beans with butter is my go-to on weeknights. I've also served this alongside roasted sheet pan veggies (just the veggies, skip the extra protein). When I want something more filling, cauliflower mash rounds it out nicely.
Can I freeze the leftovers?
I freeze these all the time. Let the cooked pieces cool completely, lay them in a single layer on a sheet pan, and freeze for about an hour. Once solid, transfer to a freezer bag. They keep well for about 2 months. When I'm ready to eat them, I go straight from frozen into the oven at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes. No thawing. The coating won't be quite as crispy as fresh, but it's close enough that my family doesn't complain.
Can I use pork chops or veal instead of chicken?
Traditional schnitzel is actually made with veal, so that swap works beautifully. I have made this with thin-cut pork chops too and the breading holds up the same way. The key is getting your meat to about 1/4 inch thickness before breading. Pork chops might need a few extra minutes in the pan depending on thickness. Veal cooks about the same as chicken thighs.
Is this the same as a chicken cutlet?
Basically, yes. A chicken cutlet is just a thin piece of chicken breast or thigh. Schnitzel is what happens when you bread and fry that cutlet. I use thighs because they stay juicier, but you can use store-bought chicken cutlets (breast) and skip the pounding step entirely. My cilantro lime chicken is another way I use cutlets when I want something without breading.
What dipping sauce goes with schnitzel?
I squeeze fresh lemon juice over mine most of the time because it cuts through the richness of the fried coating. For something more indulgent, I make a quick mushroom cream sauce (sauteed mushrooms, heavy cream, garlic, salt). A garlic aioli works too. My kids prefer ranch, which I can't argue with. Traditional German schnitzel is served with a jager sauce, and you can make a keto version with mushrooms and beef broth thickened with a little xanthan gum.
What is schnitzel made of?
Schnitzel is traditionally thinly pounded meat (veal in Austria, pork in Germany) that gets breaded and fried. For my version, I use boneless chicken thighs pounded to 1/4 inch, coated in almond flour, dipped in egg wash, then pressed into ground pork rinds. The pork rinds give it that signature crunch without any wheat flour or regular breadcrumbs. I buy Pork Panko by Bacon's Heir because the grind is consistent, but you can pulse regular pork rinds in a food processor.
How many net carbs are in this recipe?
My version comes in at just 1.7g net carbs per serving. Regular schnitzel made with traditional breadcrumbs can hit 20g or more. The almond flour and pork rind coating is what keeps the count so low. I have tested coconut flour as a substitute for the almond flour (for anyone with nut allergies) and the carb count stays about the same.
My teenager watched me crush pork rinds for the coating and made a face. She ate two pieces at dinner and said it tasted like the schnitzel from this Austrian place we used to go to. The crust does soften as it sits, so pull it straight from the pan.
Oil temperature makes or breaks this one. First try I went in too soon and the pork rind crust just peeled off in chunks. Bummer, because the chicken underneath was perfect. Waited until the oil was shimmering on attempt two and it locked on and shattered exactly the way schnitzel should. Also swapped coconut flour for almond flour in the dredge. Lighter, crispier. I'm into it.
I mixed about two tablespoons of finely grated parmesan into the ground pork rinds before coating and the crust came out way more substantial, closer to an actual Wiener Schnitzel crust than I expected. The parmesan browns faster so I had to keep the heat a touch lower, but the payoff is real. One more thing I figured out: letting the coated cutlets sit for five minutes before they hit the oil keeps the coating from sliding around and you get way fewer bare spots.
Parmesan in the pork rinds, hadn't thought to try that. The lower heat makes sense, parmesan scorches fast. And that rest before frying, bare spots have driven me crazy on this recipe.
Made this for Sunday dinner and my teenager, who treats every keto swap with maximum suspicion, took one bite and got quiet in a way that only means he was actually eating it. The pork rind crust shatters when you bite in, not soft and gummy like breadcrumb coatings can get, and I think that texture is what caught him off guard. I'm giving it 4 stars because I want to try it thinner next time and see if the crust ratio gets even crispier, but this is going in the regular rotation regardless.
Quiet eating is the best review. Going thinner works, just watch your pan temp - thinner pieces overcook fast and the crust goes from shatter to something tougher. I stay around 1/4 inch and pull them the second the edges go golden.
I've tried every keto breaded chicken situation there is. Straight almond flour? Tastes like health food. Pork rinds alone? Good crunch but slides right off. The combination here is the thing I didn't know I was missing. That crust actually shatters when you bite through it, not in a crumbly falling-apart way but in a 'this is what schnitzel is supposed to do' way. I've made this three times in the last month and I keep thinking I'll go back to my old version but I never do. The almond flour layer under the pork rinds is doing something and I can't fully explain it, it just holds everything together differently. Switching to avocado oil made a real difference too.
Yeah, the almond flour is basically what makes the egg wash stick. Without it the pork rinds have nothing to grip. They just slide. Avocado oil handles the heat better too, doesn't break down the way other oils do at that temp.
First time making schnitzel of any kind and I was not expecting the pork rind crust to hold together the way it did. The crunch was real. Do you think chicken breast cutlets would stay as juicy as the thighs, or is that where the fat does most of the work?
Added a little smoked paprika to the pork rinds before coating and the crust had this whole extra layer I wasn't expecting. It was already crispy and good but the paprika made it something else. Not going back.
I do paprika in the almond flour but not the pork rinds. The crust is where you want that smokiness so that actually makes more sense. Adding this.
My son has been on a mission to catch me using pork rinds ever since he figured out what they are. Made this schnitzel last week without saying a word about the coating. He ate every bite and asked when I was making it again. Didn't notice. Didn't care. That crust speaks for itself. Making it again Sunday.
That crust doesn't need defending. Mine lost interest in the ingredient list after the second batch.
My grandmother made Wiener schnitzel every Sunday, pounding the cutlets thin, frying them golden in her cast iron pan. I figured that was just gone for me on keto. But the pork rind crust here surprised me. It shatters when you bite in. Almond flour never pulls that off. Four stars because I want to try it once more before I settle, but I already know this is going to be my Sunday thing again.
Grandmother schnitzel is a serious benchmark. Pork rinds are the one coating I've found that actually cracks the same way, almond flour won't get there. Hope round two settles it.
The pork rind crust has this crunch that actually shatters when you bite in and it stopped me mid-bite. Four stars because my first few pieces lost their coating in the oil (I think I crowded the pan), but the ones I gave space came out perfect. If your coating is sliding off, try fewer pieces at a time.
Yeah, that first sear is everything. Crowd the pan and the temp tanks before the coating can bond.
Get your avocado oil to 350 before the first piece goes in. Too cool and the pork rind crust drinks up oil instead of crisping, and you lose that shatter. I use a probe thermometer now, no guessing. Also press the ground pork rinds in hard when you coat, don't just dip. The coating stays put a lot better that way.
Yeah, the press is something I didn't do early on and it showed. Coating just wasn't bonding the same way. 350 is non-negotiable for the shatter.
How fine do the pork rinds need to be ground? Never used them as a coating before and really want that crust right.
Fine enough that they look like coarse breadcrumbs, not big chunks. I pulse mine in the food processor about 15-20 seconds. Too coarse and the coating gaps in spots and doesn't stick evenly to the egg wash.
Fourth or fifth time making this and I still get a little surprised when the pork rind crust sets up the way it does. There's a moment halfway through frying where it goes from pale and kind of unassuming to this golden, crackling thing, and I always end up watching it longer than I need to. Was nervous about the shallow-frying part before the first batch. Don't really think about it anymore.
That pale-to-golden flip happens fast. The crackling sound is the real signal for me - I pull it about 30 seconds after I start hearing it.
My kid took one bite and asked why we don't just have this every week instead of regular schnitzel. Couldn't argue with that.
Ha. The pork rind crust shatters in a way regular breadcrumbs just don't. Once they taste that they stop caring which version it is.
Made this Sunday with chicken thighs and the pork rind coating held together better than I expected during frying. My son kept pulling the crust off his pieces to eat it separately, which I first thought was him being difficult, but he was doing it because the coating is genuinely good on its own. Found out later he'd gone back and picked the leftover breading out of the pan. Doubling the batch next time.
Picking the breading scraps out of the pan is the highest compliment. My kids do the same thing.