Looking for an easy slimming chicken recipe? This Diet Coke Chicken (a.k.a Cola Chicken / Crockpot BBQ chicken/ Shredded Chicken) is diet friendly, mega tasty and so easy to prepare in your slow cooker, Instant Pot or the stove. No one will ever suspect this pulled chicken is ‘diet food’ – that’s our little secret 😉
You will also love my Slimming Chicken Stroganoff
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So what’s Slimming World all about?
When I first joined Slimming World back in January I was a bit perplexed by ‘food optimising’ and ‘syns’. For the uninitiated, the SW plan involves eating a wide variety of ‘FREE” foods such as lean meat, fish, eggs, most fruit and vegetables and even pasta, potatoes and rice.
There’s no calorie counting (yay!) and no food is off limits (double yay!) but some food which slow down weight loss are given Syn values (for ‘synergy’ not for ‘sin’!) and can only be consumed in moderation. Women are allowed 15 Syns a day, lucky men are allowed 20 and if you are going for Extra Easy SP you can have 10.
Most members will quote Slimming World Cola Chicken as one of their favourite recipes – it’s a great low calorie meal that the whole family can enjoy. My version has been kid approved and they are the harshest critics!
Ingredients
- Lean chicken: chicken breasts or skinless chicken thighs. See tips for cooking with frozen chicken breasts.
- Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi are SYN FREE. You can also use full fat cola for only a handful of extra syns if you prefer or need to avoid aspartame.
- Large onion and garlic – either grated by hand or whizzed in a food processor until pulpy.
- Passata and tomato purée (or paste)
- Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce (use Tamari if you are avoiding gluten)
- Cider vinegar
- Sweetener (Sukrin Gold is my preferred sweetener) or brown sugar for 9 syns
- Salt, Garlic and onion granules, smoked paprika, chilli powder
- Green bell pepper – used for flavour in the slow cooker version then discarded
Cola Chicken
Cooking with soft drinks is not new or limited to diet foods – check out my coke pulled pork recipe. The Slimming World diet coke chicken recipe most people use tends to be quite watery and a bit bland for my taste.
I have kept the main ingredients – chicken, coke, passata, tomato purée – the same but tweaked the quantities to create a recipe that’s full of flavour and very versatile.
Cook whole chicken breasts in the slow cooker (or Instant Pot) until perfectly tender. Shred the chicken and mix into the sauce to create a BBQ pulled chicken that can be served in tacos, over rice, in jacket potatoes, with salad or in wraps. It’s great for office lunches and tastes even better as leftovers!
I love the CrockPot version because it’s incredibly low effort – a dump and start recipe that’s ready in only 2-3 hours if cooked on the high setting. You can also cook this Diet Coke Chicken recipe on the stove using diced skinless chicken thighs if you prefer.
Slow Cooker Instructions
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
STEP 1. Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, Worcestershire and soy sauce in the slow cooker.
STEP 2. Mix together to combine.
STEP 3. Add the chicken breasts nestling them in the sauce.
STEp 4. Add a diced green pepper and passata and turn the chicken over to coat in the sauce. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours or LOW for 3-4 hours.
STEP 5. Open the slow cooker and remove the chicken breasts into a bowl.
STEP 6. Use two forks to shred the chicken breasts.
STEP 7. Mix the shredded chicken back into the sauce to coat. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste.
STEP 8. Serve over rice with plenty of vegetables, in tacos or wraps, with salad or in lettuce boats.
Make it on the hob
Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, passata, Worcestershire and soy sauce to a deep pan and stir together to combine.
Add the chicken and bring to a rolling simmer. Reduce the heat and cook on a low simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the pan gets a bit dry then add a little hot water.
Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste. Serve with your choice of sides.
Instant Pot Instructions
Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, Worcestershire and soy sauce in the Instant Pot. Stir to combine.
Add the chicken breasts and diced pepper nestling them in the sauce. Pour in the passata, do not stir. Cook for 15 minutes on High Pressure, allow for 5 minutes natural release then release steam manually.
Discard the pepper. Remove and shred the chicken then add back in the sauce. If the sauce needs reducing then cook on Sauté until it has thickened to your liking.
Serving Suggestions
My kids enjoy eating this shredded chicken on tacos or in wraps topped with grated cheese, diced onions and sour cream.
I like to serve this pulled chicken as a ‘protein bowl’, with brown rice, black beans, shredded lettuce, sugarsnap peas and tomatoes. I sometimes allow myself some sliced avocado too. Avocados are sadly high in syns (14 in a whole one) but it’s the one thing I really miss from my pre SW days!
Serve over cauliflower rice, mashed swede or with salad for an Extra Easy SP option.
DTIPS & FAQs
- The best way to check chicken is cooked properly is to test internal temperature with a digital thermometer. Cook until the chicken reaches 75C/165F on a digital thermometer.
- Can I use frozen chicken breasts? This recipe can be made with frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot and pressure cooker. In a slow cooker, add the chicken in the sauce and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 4. You don’t have to make any adjustments to cook frozen chicken in the Instant Pot, it will simply take longer for the machine to come to pressure.
- You can make a diet coke pork version by using pork shoulder steaks trimmed of all visible fat. Pork is not as lean as chicken, even with fat removed. If you really want to remove most of the fat, cool the pork and then chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Any fat will solidify and you can skim it off.
- For Syn Free Diet Coke Chicken: Use Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Diet Pepsi or Pepsi Max. If you use full fat cola, it’s only additional 3 Syns for the whole recipe so negligible per serving.
POPULAR SLIMMING WORLD RECIPES
Browse all my delicious slimming recipes HERE. In the meantime can I tempt you with these amazing dishes?
Cajun Chicken Pasta
Spicy Prawn Pasta Arrabbiata
Classic Spaghetti Carbonara - slimming-friendly
Diet Coke Chicken (a.k.a Cola Chicken / Crockpot BBQ chicken)
Ingredients
- 6 large chicken breasts or 8 skinless chicken thighs
- 120 ml | ½ cup Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi see notes
- 1 Large onion , finely grated or whizzed in a food processor until pulpy
- 2 large garlic cloves , minced
- 4 tbsp tomato purée (or paste)
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp granulated sweetener Sukrin Gold
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion granules
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 green bell pepper roughy chopped
- 120 ml ½ cup Passata
- Salt and pepper to season
Instructions
Slow Cooker Method
- Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, Worcestershire and soy sauce in the slow cooker. Mix together to combine.
- Add the chicken breasts nestling them in the sauce.
- Add a diced green pepper and passata and turn the chicken over to coat in the sauce. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours or LOW for 3-4 hours.
- Open the slow cooker and remove the chicken breasts into a bowl.
- Use two forks to shred the chicken breasts.
- Mix the shredded chicken back into the sauce to coat. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve over rice with plenty of vegetables, in tacos or wraps, with salad or in lettuce boats.
- Stovetop Method
- Used diced chicken for the stovetop version, do not shred.
- Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, passata, Worcestershire and soy sauce to a deep pan and stir together to combine.
- Add the diced chicken and bring to a rolling simmer.
- Reduce the heat and cook on a low simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the pan gets a bit dry then add a little hot water.
- Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste. Serve with your choice of sides.
Instant Pot Method
- Add the diet coke, minced onion, garlic, sweetener, cider vinegar, salt and spices, tomato purée, Worcestershire and soy sauce in the Instant Pot.
- Mix together to combine.
- Add the chicken breasts and diced pepper nestling them in the sauce.
- Pour in the passata, do not stir.
- Cook for 15 minutes on High Pressure, allow for 5 minutes natural release then release steam manually.
- Remove and shred the chicken then add back in the sauce.
- If the sauce needs reducing then cook on Sauté until it has thickened to your liking.
Video
Notes
- The best way to check chicken is cooked properly is to test internal temperature with a digital thermometer. Cook until the chicken reaches 75C/165F on a digital thermometer.
- Can I use frozen chicken breasts? This diet coke chicken can be made with frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot and pressure cooker. In a slow cooker, add the chicken in the sauce and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 4. You don’t have to make any adjustments to cook frozen chicken in the Instant Pot, it will simply take longer for the machine to come to pressure.
- You can make a diet coke pork version by using pork shoulder steaks trimmed of all visible fat. Pork is not as lean as chicken, even with fat removed. If you really want to remove most of the fat, cool the pork and then chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Any fat will solidify and you can skim it off.
Jane says
Why does it say discard pepper?
Lucy Parissi says
Sorry Jane that must be a mistake – ignore
Jennifer says
So good! I’m planning to add this to my meal plan next week as it’s such a versatile recipe.
Cindy Gordon says
Pinning this for later! Looks like such a fun, delicious and easy recipe!
Suzy says
I am really loving the flavor of this but what tip I love the most is that I can make this from frozen chicken breast! Perfect for when I need to throw something in and go!
Sapana says
Woah, this looks amazing! Thanks for the recipe.
Mary says
Love how healthy this is!
Julia Frey says
This cola chicken looks absolutely delicious and so easy to make! Saving it for later!
Lucy Parissi says
I know you will love it Julia xxx