Delicious Rich Diet Coke Chicken - a popular dish that the whole family will dig in and enjoy!!
Diet Coke Chicken
Many many years ago, I would regularly make this sweet tangy Diet Coke chicken. It was a popular dish when I was following the Weight Watchers plan.
The original recipe uses ketchup or sometimes even soy sauce. But is loved by many because of the tender braised pieces of chicken you get from that delicious sauce.
So back in 2009, I just had to adapt the recipe, to my own Slimming Eats version.
The easiest switch was substituting ketchup for tomato paste. I recommend tomato paste (or puree as it's known in the UK), rather than passata because otherwise, you will end up with a sauce that doesn't reduce down as well into the lovely thick sauce you see here.
Diet Coke Chicken or Diet Pepsi Chicken
You can use either pepsi, coke or a store own brand, doesn't need to be specific, either will do the same job.
But what if you like to avoid items that contain aspartame? Most diet drinks, unfortunately have it as an ingredient, there are some that use stevia, but hard to source those everywhere.
So if you would rather use regular cola for this popular recipe, don't be scared to make the switch.
What type of Chicken in Diet Coke Chicken?
Chicken thighs are definitely my preferred cut of chicken I like to use in this Diet Coke Chicken recipes because then stay nice and tender in this method of cooking the chicken.
By all means use chicken breast, if that's what you prefer, but just bear in mind the best results are with chicken thigh as recommend for this recipe.
Don't fancy chicken at all, then piece of pork will work in this recipe also. I use pork shoulder chops, that I remove from the bone and trim any visible fat. They are cheap cuts and are great for this method of cooking.
Diet Fanta Chicken
Many have swapped the cola for something like diet fanta or tango instead, to make a more sweet and sour style dish. It's a great way to get different flavours.
Why is my sauce not thickening for the Diet Coke Chicken?
If your sauce is not thickening then there is a few things to check, have you definitely use tomato puree (paste) and not passata?
Tomato puree is concentrated and much thicker and is what is used in this recipe, passata will not yield the same thick sauce as you see in these pictures.
The other thing to check is that your heat is not too low, you don't want it boiling constantly, but you also don't want it to be just at a simmer, as the sauce will not bubble enough to reduce down. Once you get it to boiling, you want to reduce the heat to medium-high so that it still bubbles away, don't add a lid as that will make it take longer to reduce. If you are worried about the splatters, one of these splatter screens for you pan are perfect.
It really does not take longer than 20 minutes for this sauce to reduce and thicken, so if it's taking longer, you have the heat too low.
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Slow Cooker Diet Coke Chicken
This recipe also works well in a slow cooker for a pulled chicken or pulled pork recipe. I recommend adding in some smoked paprika for that smokey flavour.
As you are not doing the reducing down method as on the stove, If you want the sauce really thick, you can take out the pork or chicken once cooked, shred it with two forks and then add the sauce to a saucepan to reduce down to thicken. Before mixing the sauce with the shredded meat. Perfect!!
Or placing the lid slightly ajar for the last hour works too.
Sides for Diet Coke Chicken?
We love this with my Perfect Oven Baked Chips or just plain rice. If you would rather serve this with a veggie-packed option, you could also go for this Roasted Cauliflower Rice or Egg Fried Cauliflower Rice instead for a healthy alternative.
Vegetables for Diet Coke Chicken
I always prefer to cook my vegetable separately for this and not in the sauce, the sauce is pretty sweet and bbq like, so adding the vegetables into the sauce just makes a plate of food that is too sweet overall.
Cooking the vegetables separately also ensures they are not overcooked and you can actually taste the yummy vegetables.
Some of my favourites to serve with this are:
- Roasted or sauteed broccoli
- Sauteed zucchini (courgette)
- Peppers and onions
- Mushrooms
- Stir Fry Mix
I just cook in a little cooking oil spray with some basic salt and black pepper.
- or a simple mixed salad is perfect too.
Of course, if you are fussy about vegetables and prefer them in the sauce, there is nothing wrong with adding them into the pan with the chicken.
or if you would like more recipe ideas or sides to make with this recipe - head on over to the FULL RECIPE INDEX where you will find over 900 delicious recipes with calories and you can search by meal type, ingredients, course, diet and more..
All recipes on Slimming Eats have estimated nutritional information for your convenience.
What Kitchen Items do I need to make this Diet Coke Chicken?
- Kitchen Scales
- Measuring Spoons
- Measuring Jug
- Santoku Knife (perfect knife for chopping veg)
- Chopping Board
- Large Frying pan
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Diet Coke (Cola) Chicken
Delicious Rich Diet Coke Chicken - a popular dish that the whole family will dig in and enjoy!!
Ingredients
- 8 small boneless skinless chicken thighs, raw (approx 600g/21oz)
- 1 can of diet coke
- ½ cup (120ml) of tomato paste (puree)
- 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup (240ml) of chicken stock (omit if cooking in Slow Cooker)
- ½ tsp of garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to season
- fresh chopped Italian parsley
- optional: add ¼ tsp of cayenne for a bit of heat or ½ tablespoons of smoked paprika for that smokey flavour
Instructions
Stove Top:
- Add the coke, tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, garlic powder and chicken broth to a deep frying pan and whisk to combine.
- Place in the chicken thighs.
- Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat (medium high( and allow to bubble (not simmer) until the sauce reduces down into a thick sauce that coats the chicken. (approx 20 mins)
- Season as needed with salt and black pepper
- Sprinkle with freshly chopped Italian parsley.
- Serve with your choice of sides
- Enjoy!!
Slow Cooker:
- Add all ingredients to the slow cooker
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours
- Once cooked, carefully remove chicken with a slotted spoon
- Add sauce to a pan and bubble on a middle heat to reduce down to desired thickness and then pour over the chicken.
- Season as needed with salt and black pepper
- Serve with your choice of sides.
- Enjoy!!
Notes
Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:
- Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
- WW Points and other Slimming or Weight Loss programs - due to plans regularly changing and updating, we recommend calculating with the official tools you get as a member to those plans to ensure accuracy of values.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 4 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 177Total Fat 5.4gSaturated Fat 1.3gCholesterol 111mgSodium 731mgCarbohydrates 7.4gFiber 1.5gSugar 4.2gProtein 27.9g
Emma says
Hey
Thanks for this website, there's so many gorgeous ideas!
About this recipe, do you use brand name Coca Cola or the cheapy stuff? I just tried to make it now and the sauce didn't seen to be going sticky. It's in the oven now, so hopefully it will be fine!
admin says
Yes I used brand Diet Coca Cola 🙂
sallyann says
just made this it was great all the family loved it thanks for putting it on this site
jayne says
tried this and loved it! only had it as a snack incase no one liked it but i loved it! will have it with SW chips next time and am deffo gonna stick em on a barbie!
marisa says
Going to have ago at the coke chicken tonight! Luv it x
kaye says
just had diet coke chicken with basmati rice mixed with mixed veg. followed by skinny trifle. delicious. dont feel like im on a diet !
Natalie says
I love diet coke chicken and I am making it tonight but I use tomato sauce instead of tomato passata and a cup of South African chutney as well. Yummy!
Cathie says
I like this with Jamaican rice, the sweetness of the chicken with the spicey rice is sooo good. I took some diet coke chicken (I used asda own brand diet coke) to group a few weeks ago and everyone loved it.
Brenda says
Going to try this out with Quorn fillets for my veggie son I'll let you know whether it works or he likes it haha
BeeBee Cavendish says
I love this recipe, for my version though I add peppers, onion, worcestershire sauce and chinese 5 spice to the diet coke before reducing
Gordon Thomas Copeland says
excellent idea
Gordon Thomas Copeland says
excellent idea
anabolic steroids blog says
i love the flavour coke marinade gives to meat
dianabol
Emma Price says
Absolutely gorgeous! Very weird though, it was watery for ages and then suddenly just reduced! Lovely sweet BBQ sauce.
Zoe England says
am making this tonight , never had it before
Steph says
Diet Irn Bru works as well instead of cola - tastes a bit like Sweet n Sour!
Sandra Webster says
I made this tonight, but used regular coca cola, as like you, I avoid stuff with aspartame and like you say it isn't many syns when divided up. I served it with salad and syn free chips and everyone loved it. Thank you so much. I will definitely make this again.
kay kelly says
Just made this for dinner with rice and peas mixed. Superb. Your recipes are so good and certainly doesn't feel like a diet! Thank you. X
Tracey Mckie says
This recipe even made my husband a believer! First tasted it in the UK on vacation... stayed with my husband's family in Hadleigh and they are SW members, so they introduced us to it all. So glad I took the plunge and joined online here in GA.
liz says
This is one of our favourite dishes we've tried quite a few from your web site and they are all delicious I couldn't believe you could eat so well on a diet thank you
Sheila Sears says
Great recipe with delicious flavours, will be making again, thanks xxxx.
I wanted to rate 5 star but would only allow me to rate 4 star. xx
Sheila Sears says
Great recipe with delicious flavours, will be making again, thanks xxxx.
Dom says
Can you freeze left overs of the Diet Coke chicken ? I really liked it but made too much .. soI’m having it for lunch as well today.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Yes this freezes perfectly
Beryl says
Just trying diet coke chicken now used caffeine free coke I avoid caffeine will let you know how it turns out.
Karan Waite says
Absolutely delicious thanks for sharing x
Fwy says
I made this tonight with lean pork. Oh my goodness it was amazing. Served it with lime rice. Sorry no photo as it didn't last long enough!
Sanya says
I made this earlier in the week and the whole family loved it! Added a bag of fresh spinach 5 minutes before serving for some greens.
Served with quinoa, spiced up with some cinnamon and curry spices. 5 stars! Thank you !
Heidi Sneddon says
This is incredible. Cant get enough. This didnt serve 4 ppl though. It was too good to share. Lol
Anna nuttall says
Are you able to use Pepsi Max instead of Diet Coke?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
yes you sure can.
Michelle says
I’m gonna attempt this to try , can I add onions and peppers at beginning as I’m doing in slow cooker whilst I’m at work ?? Or is it best just to have chicken and the ingredients thats listed ??
Danielle says
What changes do you need to make to do it in the slow cooker? I’d love to do it as a pulled chicken style dish in my slow cooker but not sure about quantities & timing?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
you would definitely need to reduce the liquid, as it won't reduce down like on the stove. I would do about 2 hours on high or 4-6 hours on low.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
yes you can, also be aware if doing in the slow cooker you will need to reduce the volume of liquid, or add sauce to pan and simmer until thickened once cooked.
Karen says
I use diet fanta. 5 spice instead of Italian seasoning and add fresh pineapple at the end of cooking...sweet and sour.
I've also used Dr pepper when I didnt have any coke .
Janette says
Love your Diet Coke chicken so easy to make also a winner with the other half so glad I made this.
love this sight.
Janette says
Love this thank you great recipes.
Sam says
I’m making this shortly, can I use passata instead of tomatoes purée?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
no it must be paste (puree) - passata will result in the sauce being too watery.
Jenna says
Oh my god. I have just made this, it is absolutely delicious. So much nicer than the original slimming world recipe. The sauce is gorgeous I could just eat it off the spoon.
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
so glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
Honor says
Hello !
Could I use tomato ketchup instead puree ? I could maybe omit the balsamic vinegar to avoid it being too acidic ?
Thankyou for sharing !
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
You can just be sure to adjust syns/points for whatever plan you follow.
Natalie says
Does the chicken need chopping/browning at all? X
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
nope chicken goes in raw as per the recipe, if you want to slice into smaller pieces you can, but I just put the boneless chicken thighs in as they are, stay nice and tender as bigger pieces.
Paula Chester says
Made this in the week , absolutely delicious, thank you for the fantastic recipes , use your ideas everyday to meal plan x x
Marie Scott says
Hello, Do you think that Diet Ginger Coke would work in this or would the flavours clash. Thank you.
Ian morris says
My go to recipe every time I make it the diet coke chicken gets better every time
Emma says
When making this recipe with Large Chicken Thighs, how do I adjust this recipe?
Do I need to fry the chicken thighs beforehand or simmer for longer?
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
shouldn't make much different the size of the chicken thighs, but if they are really big, just slice in half.
Heidi says
This was really delicious and moist, it was a huge hit in our house and low in WW points for me. Served with jasmine rice and roasted peppers and onion. This one’s a keeper!
Greg says
Made this tonight, absolutely delicious. Thank you.
Milly says
Hi,
I only have cherry coke in the house….would that be too weird to use?
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
no it should be fine, enjoy!!