Keto Chicken 65
What is Chicken 65?
If you are Indian and you hear Chicken 65, you can almost picture a seedy bar where patrons are munching down this spicy fried chicken dish along with their alcohol. The origin of this dish Chicken 65 is shrouded in mystery. The most logical explanation is that it was served in an army canteen down in the Southern part of India and was item number 65 on the menu. The army has people from all over the country. A lot of them didn’t speak the language and hence started calling it Chicken 65. Of course there are far more implausible variants on this story. Like it has 65 ingredients or takes 65 tries to get right, none of which sound believable.
I must admit, this is a dish I would avoid like the plague at restaurants due to it being flammable (really spicy). Most of you know I cannot handle spicy food. It does however have an incredible flavour to it and without that excessive heat, it was definitely a treat. I was introduce to this by my wife Deepti who really loves this and Kerala beef fry along with a cold glass of beer. Invariably this was ordered multiple times and I was coerced into tasting it and eventually I did end up making it on the show. It was for a metal festival called Big 69 and I named my version ‘Chicken Big 69′. This of course was a non keto version and now I’ve got a Keto version of this dish for you.
Tips & Tricks!
I did a bunch of trials for this recipe (mainly the deep frying component) as I wanted to get the perfect crispy fried chicken. I tried blends between Psyllium husk and coconut flour and just coconut flour. The winner was clearly just the husk on it’s own. In the video I added the husk directly to the bowl of chicken but if you want the maximum crunch I would recommend individually dipping each piece in the husk so the coating is nice and even. If you do it in the bowl like I did, it can turn out to be a bit clumpy and scattered.
As I also mentioned in the video you can eat it as is just after deep frying because you will lose some of the crispiness in the 2nd fry. But this is kind of how the dish is made. That batter absorbs all that tadka and the yogurt. Either way it’s a truly delicious dish to have on a rainy day (or any other day for that matter).
Nutrition Info (Per serving)
Nutrition Info (Per serving)- Calories: 291
- Net Carbs: 2g
- Carbs: 7g
- Fat: 13g
- Protein: 33g
- Fiber: 5g
This recipe makes 3 servings. Get this recipe on myfitnesspal.
Keto Chicken 65
Ingredients
- 450 grams Boneless Chicken Leg and Thigh Meat
- 80 grams Full Fat Greek Yogurt
- 2 Tsp Ginger Garlic Paste I recommend this one
- 1/2 Tbsp Vinegar I recommend this one
- 3 Dried Red Chillies Buy Online
- 1/2 Tsp Cumin Seeds Buy Online
- 1/2 Tsp Mustard Seeds Buy Online
- 2 Tsp Curry Leaves Buy Online
- 1 Egg
- 1 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper I recommend this one
- 2 Tsp Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder I use this one
- 1 Tsp Coriander Powder I recommend this one
- 1/2 Tsp Garam Masala Powder I recommend this one
- 3 Tbsp Psyllium Husk I use this
- 1 Tbsp Ghee I recommend this one
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into small cubes/bite size pieces. Marinate with the salt, pepper, half the red chilly powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, 1 tsp of chopped curry leaves, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste and vinegar.
- The coat the chicken with the egg and psyllium husk and deep fry. You can add both to the bowl and give it all a good mix or set it up like a breading station and dip the chicken into the egg, then the husk and then deep fry. This will ensure a more 'even' coating.
- Next mix the remaining chilly powder with the yogurt and set aside
- Heat the ghee in a pan and add in the mustard seeds and cumin seeds along with the dried red chillies
- Once the mustard seeds start to pop add in the curry leaves followed by the ginger garlic paste and finally the yogurt with the chilly powder.
- Once it's all incorporated together add in the deep fried chicken and cook till there is no liquid left in the pan.
- Serve it along with a nice cup of Keto tea or coffee and enjoy!
Sahil, I am salivating! This looks so delicious. But I don’t see the macros, can you add them to the recipe?
Oh, nevermind. I skipped past the macros when I was looking for the recipe. I can’t wait to make this.
Hey Sahil!
Will this recipe work with paneer? Also what oil did you use for frying?? Please do reply!
Thanks, a big fan
Dhvani
Yes will easily work with paneer. I used a mix of olive oil and bacon fat to fry. You can use coconut oil.
Is normal sunflower oil ok too
No, hydrogenated vegetable oils are not good for you. SO no sunflower oil.
Thank you so much Sahil! You’re a star!
I am wondering about the dried red chillies in this dish. Are they dried Kashmiri chillies? I live in the United States in a small town where the grocers do not have dried Kashmiri chillies. Are there appropriate substitutes or should I order dried Kashmiri chillies online?
Yes they are the dried Kashmiri chillies, worth ordering if you can get them otherwise you can skip it no worries.
Thank you.
I recommend trying to find an Indian grocery, if possible. Best place to find all you need in one place. I was even able to find fresh curry leaves at mine!
Just found your blog. And, daaamn! I love it.
Is ghee a good oil for deep frying? And, can this recipe be used for a keto gobi 65? Thanks Sahil, great stuff on here!!
Hi Annika, the answer is yes on both counts. Most people find ghee to be expensive so they would avoid deep frying in it. I personally find bacon fat mixed with a cooking olive oil and a ghee is what I like to use whenever I do deep fry. As you can see in the video itself I generally try and use as little as I can to deep fry (I don’t have one of those giant deep fryers)
Hi,
I’m new to keto so curious to know – is he oil that’s used for deep frying not counted in MyFitnessPal pal? Or do we have to log that in seperately?
Amrita I count 1 tablespoon of oil in the macros. Honestly as long as you count it in a ball park figure you are fine. If you are someone with serious OCD then you can weigh the oil itself before frying and then after frying and whatever the difference is you can add that after you also weigh the paper which you strain the chicken on. It’s quite a process to count how much oil you actually end up consuming when you deep fry foods.
Awesome thank you!
Hi. I made this last night and WOW! The flavor is on point! So delicious!…BUT…after deep frying, I started everything in the wok like the recipe says, then when I added the yogurt (I used Fage Full Fat 5% plain), it curdled, and didn’t stay creamy. I’m figuring this is probably because of the heat (it didn’t specify in the recipe or video what heat level the wok should be on, so I figured maybe a medium to medium-high?) and/or maybe the chili powder. I didn’t have the Kashmiri chili powder, so I looked online and it said you can sub 3 parts paprika and 1 part cayenne. Is there a certain type of yogurt you’re using that doesn’t curdle, or was my heat maybe too high or something? I loved the dish and it still tasted great, but would prefer that creamy sauce all over it instead of curdled milk bits :/ Thanks!
Ah in that case avoid the yogurt, maybe you can sub with heavy cream for a more creamier sauce.
I made it earlier, had the same issue. I was using Chobani full fat greek yogurt on a medium burner with a medium to low flame and it just curdled. I think what is available in India for yogurt is quite different to the U.S. . If you watch the video, you’ll see that Sahil’s yogurt has some of the liquid on the top (before mixing) and while mixing it becomes like a creamy mayo and even pouring is like a cream. Mine (and probably yours?) came out as a pretty solid/singular blob and I atleast had to use a whisk to break it up.
As for the heat used it seems like he would be using a small burner with medium heat. This is assuming you have the normal american cooktop which has 3 different burner sizes (large, medium small).
For the Kashmiri, you can order it online. Paprika + cayenne seem like it could work but keep in mind Kashmiri is between 1000 and 3000 scolville while Cayenne Peppers themselves are 30k -> 50k. It’ll be much hotter than kashmiri. So probably could work in a pinch but you definitely want to get actual kashmiri as it has a unique flavor that paprika+cayenne won’t give.
So how many servings in your recipe? It says 2 in one place and 3 in another …
It’s 3 I fixed the error.
Hey Sahil,
Horsn up \m/,
This will be the second recipe of yours that i will be trying. Can I bake the chicken instead of frying?
Yes you can bake it no problem.
Hi Sahil which oil did you used for deep frying? I have refined organic coconut oil can I use it?
I use a mix of ghee, olive oil and bacon fat. You can use coconut oil.
Hey. And then this used oil. Which we used to fryinh chicken. Can we store that oil for later? And for how long can we reuse it.
( Also, Olive oil is not for so high cooking. Which one do u use?)
I saw this the day you posyed the video to YouTube , but had to wait until the chillies and fresh curry leaves arrived from Mumbai–it took a couple of weeks–to make it. Imagine, Chicken 65 in Ohio!
What an unbelievable dish! And what a fantastic lunch we had today because of this, for us, exotic dish!
Sahil , do you know what you are !
I love you Man , just keep doing what you doing, you are a SUPER KETO CHEF !
I don’t re use oil if that’s used for frying. Generally using olive oil and coconut oil for shallow fry and sunflower for deep fried. I seen your comment about sunflower oil is not good for us. Is there any cheaper alternative for deep fry ? Or else it would be too expensive to throw olive oil once it’s used for frying.
Hope to hear from you! Ok enough jibber jabber
Cheapest option is to buy that air fryer if you like fried foods because that saves you the trouble of using these massive amounts of oil. That’s the reason I hate deep frying because so much oil is used and because most of the Keto coatings are very different in nature they can burn faster and the oil gets coloured much quicker so yeah air fryer is the best solution or just find the smallest vessel you have an use that.
Can I use 1/2 teaspoon yoghurt instead of vinegar while marinating chicken pieces? I think it can tenderize and make more juicy as compare to vinegar.
you can use yogurt but they both serve different purposes. Yogurt won’t make the meat more or less juicy, that’s all in the cooking process and the quality of the meat itself. Yogurt will add a slightly different taste compared to the sourness of vinegar.
Sahil, can batches of Chicken 65 be kept warm in a slow cooker while other batches are waiting to be made?
I’m sure it can yes.
I’d like to serve this at a church gathering in a month or so.
Another question. I have not been able to find chicken leg meat where I live, but I see that I can use chicken thighs as well for this dish. Would I need to use a meat hammer to flatten the chicken thighs?
You can if you like but I don’t think it’s required at all. You can just cut the chicken, no need to flatten the chicken thighs.
Thank you.
Hi. Can i use dry curry leaves insted? Because I dont have fresh leaves here where I live.
Yes that’s fine.
Geez I’ve been going keto for a while now and this is the first meat dish I’ve had that hits the spot and has no sugar in it. The flavours were heavenly. I’ll never underestimate psyllium husk again….lol…Anyway my question is about oils. Do you know whether avocado oil can be heated to high temperatures or at least hot enough o shallow fry. I shallow fried mine and turned out beautiful.
Anyway please don’t ever stop jibber jabbering and can’t wait for your next recipe.
hey glad you enjoyed it Tracy and it’s perfectly fine to heat avocado oil to high temps. It has a high smoke point. Cheers!
what do you think of instead of marinating chicken in spices add spice mixture to the psyllium husk and egg mixture.
You can do that but I feel this way the flavour really gets into the meat.
Hi Sahil!
Could you help with the airfryer temperature & time settings if I want to airfry the chicken instead of deep frying?
Never used an air fryer ever.
I heard the name comes from the year the dish was first invented – 1965. 🙂
Can’t wait to try this out. Looks really good.
Hi Sahil,
Is it possible to make paneer/gobhi 65 w/o using eggs? Any alternative for egg?
Am afraid you cannot do the coating without the egg.
Tried this today, and came out great! Thank you!
Will homemade dahi work out instead of yogurt
Yes, it’s the same thing.