How Many Carbs Are in Roast Chicken? An In-Depth Look

Roast chicken is a delicious and versatile low-carb option that can be a staple of a healthy ketogenic diet But exactly how many carbs are in roast chicken? As a low-carb dieter, it’s essential to understand the carb content of the foods you eat so you can accurately track your macros and stay in ketosis In this article, we’ll take an in-depth look at the carb count of roast chicken and discuss how it fits into a low-carb lifestyle.

Defining Roast Chicken

First, let’s clearly define what we mean by “roast chicken.” Roast chicken refers to a whole chicken or chicken pieces (such as breast, thighs, or drumsticks) that are seasoned and cooked in an oven. This method of dry-heat cooking yields chicken with crispy, golden skin and tender, juicy meat. The seasoning is up to the preferences of the cook but usually consists of a simple blend of salt, pepper, herbs, and oil or butter. Roasting allows the natural flavors of the chicken to shine through.

Roast chicken can be purchased pre-cooked at grocery stores like Whole Foods or made from scratch at home. For our carb count analysis here, we will use nutritional data for a homemade roast chicken without sauce or other additions.

The Many Benefits of Chicken in a Low-Carb Diet

Before getting into the nitty gritty carb counts, let’s overview why roast chicken can be a smart choice for low-carb, ketogenic diets:

• High in protein – Chicken is an excellent source of protein without too much fat, which makes it ideal for meeting your daily protein target to maintain muscle mass on keto. A 6 ounce serving of roast chicken breast contains around 43 grams of protein with only 3 grams of fat.

• Rich in nutrients: Besides protein, roast chicken has many important micronutrients, such as selenium, phosphorus, zinc, and B vitamins.

• Easy to use—Roast chicken can be eaten by itself or in soups, sandwiches, wraps, salads, casseroles, and more. It’s an endlessly versatile ingredient.

• Satisfying – With its savory flavor and juicy texture, roast chicken is very satisfying and can help curb cravings for unhealthy high-carb foods.

• Cost-effective: One of the cheapest ways to buy meat is to buy a whole roast chicken and cut it up yourself. Chicken thighs and legs are also very economical.

Total Carbs in Roast Chicken

The USDA FoodData Central database says that the following cuts of roast chicken have the following amounts of carbs in 3-ounce servings:

• Roast chicken breast: 0 grams net carbs

• Roast chicken thigh: 0 grams net carbs

• Roast chicken drumstick: 0 grams net carbs

As you can see, plain roast chicken without breading, batter, sauce, or other additions contains only trace amounts of carbohydrates. A 3-ounce serving of any cut of roast chicken can generally be considered zero carb.

There are some minor differences in total carb counts:

• Roast chicken breast: 0.57 grams total carbs
• Roast chicken thigh: 0.72 grams total carbs
• Roast chicken drumstick: 0.68 grams total carbs

But the fiber content is the same or slightly higher, making the net carb count zero grams.

Typical Roast Chicken Serving Sizes

While a 3-ounce portion is a standard reference size, most people eat more than 3 ounces of chicken in a single meal or recipe. Here are some more realistic serving sizes and their carb content:

• 1 roast chicken breast (172g): 0g net carbs
• 1 roast chicken thigh (176g): 0g net carbs
• 1 roast chicken drumstick (123g): 0g net carbs
• 1 cup diced roast chicken (140g): 0g net carbs

Again, we see the pattern that roast chicken has a negligible impact on carbohydrate intake, even in larger serving sizes of 4-8 ounces that we would eat at dinner.

Does the Skin Make a Difference?

For roast chicken, most of the fat and calories are concentrated in the skin. But does leaving the skin on significantly affect the carb content?

The carb count increases only minimally with the skin included:

• 3 oz roast chicken breast with skin: 0.9 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs
• 3 oz roast chicken thigh with skin: 1.02 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs

So while the skin adds fat and calories, it does not contribute many additional carbohydrates. You can enjoy roast chicken with or without the skin without worrying about carbs. Those on a keto diet should be aware of calories from fat when eating the skin.

Roast ChickenNutrition Per Calorie

We’ve seen that roast chicken is low in carbohydrates by weight and by typical serving size. But how many net carbs are in roast chicken per calorie?

Here is the nutrition breakdown for every 100 calories of roast chicken:

• Roast chicken breast: 0g net carbs per 100 calories
• Roast chicken thigh: 0g net carbs per 100 calories
• Roast chicken drumstick: 0g net carbs per 100 calories

Again, this confirms that roast chicken provides zero or trace net carbs per calorie. It’s an optimal keto food choice regardless of what metric you use to assess carb content.

Does Cooking Method Matter?

In this article, we have focused specifically on roast chicken. But what about other cooking methods like grilling, baking, or poaching?

The cooking method has minimal impact on total carbohydrate content. Plain chicken cooked with dry heat or moist heat contains no carbohydrates. Deep frying adds trace carbs via the batter or breading, so lightly breading and pan-frying would result in slightly higher carbs.

The takeaway is that as long as you don’t add high-carb ingredients like flour, batter, or sugary sauce, plain chicken contains zero net carbs regardless of cooking method.

Carbs in Rotisserie Chicken

Rotisserie chicken is a popular prepared chicken option at many grocery stores like Costco and local delis. Since it’s already cooked, it’s a quick and convenient low-carb protein source.

The nutrition stats for rotisserie chicken are very similar to homemade roast chicken:

• 3 ounces rotisserie chicken breast: 0.5 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs
• 3 ounces rotisserie chicken thigh: 0.6 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs

Rotisserie chicken tends to be slightly higher in fat due to the skin and cooking process, but the carb content is still negligible.

Be mindful of any sauces or glazes added to rotisserie chicken, which could contain sugar and add a few grams of carbs. Whenever possible, opt for plain rotisserie chicken.

Carb Count in Other Chicken Dishes

We’ve focused on whole roast chicken and rotisserie chicken so far. But what about if you enjoy chicken wings, chicken salad, chicken soup, or other chicken dishes?

Here are the carb counts for 3-ounce servings of popular chicken recipes:

• Chicken wings: 0.5 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs
• Shredded chicken salad: 0.5 grams total carbs, 0g net carbs
• Chicken noodle soup: 5 grams total carbs, 2 grams net carbs
• Chicken parmesan: 8 grams total carbs, 5 grams net carbs
• Chicken teriyaki: 17 grams total carbs, 14 grams net carbs

Plain chicken wings or chicken salad are negligible in carbs like our roast chicken. But once you add high-carb ingredients like noodles, breading, or sweet teriyaki sauce, the carbs add up. Be careful of hidden carbs when enjoying chicken dishes.

How Roast Chicken Fits Into a Keto Meal Plan

We’ve determined that roast chicken is an essentially zero-carb food. But how much can you eat while staying in ketosis? Here are some tips:

• 3-8 ounces of roast chicken is a perfect keto protein serving size for dinner or meal prep. This provides 25-60g protein.
• Focus the rest of your meal on low-carb veggies like broccoli, asparagus, or leafy greens.
• Pair your chicken with a high-fat side like butter, olive oil, cheese, or avocado to balance your meal macros.
• Watch out for condiments like barbecue sauce, honey mustard, and sweet chili sauce which can add sugars.
• Use roast chicken in a keto chicken salad wrap or atop a low-carb salad.

As long as you combine roast chicken with other low-carb ingredients in reasonable portion sizes, it’s a healthy keto diet addition.

The Takeaway: Roast Chicken Has Virtually Zero Net Carbs

Baked chicken generally contains 0 grams of carbohydrates.