Low-Carb Dinners With 20 g of Carbs or Less per Serving, Compared
21 low-carb dinners with 20 g of carbohydrates or less per serving (estimate), compared on carbs, protein, calories and total time, quickest first.
Published · Updated · 10 min read
Quick answer
The 21 low-carb dinners in this roundup each have 20 g of carbohydrates or less per serving (estimate). Garlic Butter Steak has the fewest, about 1.5 g. Air Fryer Chicken Bites and Pan-Fried Pork Chops with Garlic Butter are the quickest, 22 minutes in total each, and Slow Cooker Chicken Tinga has the fewest calories, about 235 per serving (estimate).
- Recipes featured
- 21
- Quickest
- Air Fryer Chicken Bites (22 mins)
- Average total time
- 2 hrs 12 mins
- Average calories
- 389 per serving
- Reading time
- 10 min
- Section
- Recipe roundups
These 21 low-carb dinners each have 20 g of carbohydrates or less per serving (estimate), going by the nutrition stored on each Savour recipe. Garlic Butter Steak has the fewest, about 1.5 g, and the quickest are Air Fryer Chicken Bites and Pan-Fried Pork Chops with Garlic Butter, both 22 minutes in total. Below, all 21 are compared on carbs, protein, calories and time, grouped by time and cooking method, with the ingredients that carry the carbs, the sides each recipe suggests and each one's fridge and freezer times.
What counts as a low-carb dinner here?
A main course with 20 g of carbohydrates or less per serving (estimate). It is a line for comparing recipes, not a diet: low-carb eating plans set their own limits, and nothing here is nutrition advice. The figures are total carbohydrates. Where a recipe stores fibre, it is a separate figure, and we did not subtract it.
Twenty of the 21 also have 25 g or more protein per serving (estimate), the line Savour uses for high-protein recipes; Paneer Butter Masala, at 23 g, is the exception. For a ranking by protein instead, see high-protein dinners ranked by protein per serving. Eleven are chicken dinners, and more are on the chicken recipes page.
Low-carb dinners compared: carbs, protein, calories and time
Sorted by total time as stored on each recipe (prep, cooking and any marinating, standing or resting time), ties in title order. Carbs, calories and protein are per serving (estimate).
Three totals include a long hands-off wait: the steak's 35 minutes of standing and resting, the adobo's 30 minutes of marinating and the jerk chicken's 240 minutes in its marinade. Eight more include 5 to 15 minutes of resting.
Which low-carb dinners take 30 minutes or less?
Four, and all four are in Savour's quick weeknight dinners collection. Two come in under 10 g of carbohydrates per serving (estimate).
Pan-Fried Pork Chops with Garlic Butter take 22 minutes (5 prep + 12 cook + 5 rest) and have about 2 g of carbohydrates per serving (estimate), the second-lowest in the roundup. Boneless chops are seasoned, seared, then basted with butter, garlic and thyme until the thickest part reads 71°C (160°F). The recipe lists gluten-free; its lightly floured variation is not. More chops are on the pork chop recipes page.
Air Fryer Chicken Bites take the same 22 minutes with about 15 g of carbohydrates, only 1 g of it sugar; the starchy line is the coating of 1 cup panko breadcrumbs. Easy Teriyaki Chicken (25 minutes) also has about 15 g, 12 g of it sugar, with a glaze of soy sauce, mirin, sake and brown sugar or honey. It is Monday's dinner in the 30-minute dinner meal plan with one shopping list.
Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions takes 30 minutes for about 5 g of carbohydrates and 260 calories per serving (estimate). Whole white fish steams over ginger and green onions to 70°C (158°F), then gets hot oil and a tamari sauce; a tip gives 7 to 9 minutes for fillets. The catch: leftovers keep only 2 days in the fridge, and there is no freezer note.
Which other low-carb dinners take under an hour?
Six more take 35 to 52 minutes in total.
Garlic Butter Steak has the fewest carbohydrates of all 21, about 1.5 g per serving (estimate). It also serves only 2, has the most calories here (about 665 per serving, estimate), and its 52 minutes include the steaks sitting out of the fridge for 30 minutes before searing. The recipe gives 63°C (145°F) as government food safety guidance for whole cuts of beef.
Chicken Piccata and the creamy sun-dried tomato chicken both take 35 minutes and start from chicken breasts sliced into cutlets. The piccata is dredged in flour and finished in a lemon, caper and butter sauce (about 7 g of carbohydrates per serving, estimate). The other simmers in cream, parmesan and sun-dried tomatoes (about 9 g) and matches the steak on protein, 44 g per serving (estimate). A variation swaps in 700 g chicken thighs; chicken thighs instead of breasts gives the swap times for it and 10 other Savour recipes.
Juicy Baked Pork Chops (35 minutes, about 5 g) are the oven recipe in this band, with a spice rub that includes 1 tbsp brown sugar; the optional brine in its tips (30 minutes to 4 hours) is not in the total. Crispy Parmesan-Crusted Pork Chops (36 minutes) have the most carbohydrates of the 10 dinners under an hour, about 18 g, with a flour, egg and panko coating. Paneer Butter Masala (50 minutes, about 16 g) is the only vegetarian recipe of the 21.
Which low-carb dinners are roasted, baked or braised?
Chicken Adobo ties with the Italian meatloaf as the quickest of this group, 1 hour 30 minutes (10 prep + 50 cook + 30 marinate): bone-in thighs marinated and braised in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and bay leaves, for about 6 g of carbohydrates and 38 g protein per serving (estimate). The marinade can run up to overnight, and the brown sugar is optional.
Herb Butter Roast Chicken has the fewest carbs in this group, about 3 g, and serves 6: a whole chicken roasted at 220°C (425°F) until the thigh reaches 82°C (180°F). Coq au Vin (about 14 g) braises chicken thighs in a bottle of red wine. Jamaican Jerk Chicken has the most protein in the roundup, about 45 g per serving (estimate), with 9 g of carbohydrates, but it marinates for at least 4 hours before 45 minutes of cooking.
The two oven meatloaves, the Italian one (about 11 g) and the Cheese-Stuffed Meatloaf (about 15 g), serve 8 each and bake to 71°C (160°F).
Which low-carb dinners use the slow cooker?
Slow Cooker Chicken Tinga has the fewest calories of all 21, about 235 per serving (estimate), with 7 g of carbohydrates and 30 g protein. Chicken thighs cook in a blended chipotle and tomato sauce for 4 to 5 hours on LOW or 2 to 3 on HIGH. It lists gluten-free, and the recipe says to check the labels on the chipotles in adobo and the broth.
Slow Cooker Chicken and Gravy is the longest here at 6 hours 10 minutes, with about 9 g. Slow Cooker Meatloaf and Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Chicken have about 17 g each. Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Ham serves 16, the most in the roundup, and sits on the 20 g line; it warms a fully cooked spiral-cut ham on LOW to 60°C (140°F). More are on the slow cooker recipes page, and slow cooker low vs high compares the two settings.
Which low-carb dinner has the fewest carbs per serving?
Garlic Butter Steak, at about 1.5 g per serving (estimate), then Pan-Fried Pork Chops (2 g), Herb Butter Roast Chicken (3 g), and Steamed Fish and Juicy Baked Pork Chops (5 g each). At the other end, the ham has 20 g, the parmesan-crusted chops 18 g, and the slow cooker meatloaf and BBQ pulled chicken 17 g each.
Which ingredients carry the carbs?
The ingredient lists and sugar figures show where the carbs come from:
- A sweet glaze or sauce. The ham has 18 g sugar of its 20 g, from a glaze of 170 g honey, 100 g brown sugar and 120 ml orange juice. The BBQ pulled chicken has 13 g of 17 g (250 ml barbecue sauce), the teriyaki chicken 12 g of 15 g and the slow cooker meatloaf 9 g of 17 g (a ketchup and brown sugar glaze).
- A breadcrumb or flour coating. The chicken bites and the parmesan-crusted chops list only 1 g sugar each of their 15 g and 18 g. Their starchy lines are the coating: 1 cup panko for the bites, and flour and 1 cup panko for the chops.
- Bread, vegetables and wine. The meatloaves use soaked bread or panko, the paneer sauce is tomatoes, onion and cashews, and Coq au Vin adds carrots, onions, flour and red wine.
Which recipes suggest rice, bread or potatoes?
Steamed rice with the teriyaki chicken and the adobo; pasta, mashed potatoes or green beans with the piccata; pasta, rice, mashed potatoes or crusty bread with the creamy sun-dried tomato chicken; naan, roti or basmati rice with the paneer; mashed potatoes, egg noodles or crusty bread with Coq au Vin; mashed potatoes, rice or egg noodles with the chicken and gravy; tostadas and refried beans with the tinga; buns with the BBQ pulled chicken; rice and peas or fried plantain with the jerk chicken. The recipes do not say whether these sides are part of the per-serving estimate.
Which one should you make?
- Fewest carbs: Garlic Butter Steak, about 1.5 g per serving (estimate), for 2.
- Quickest: Pan-Fried Pork Chops with Garlic Butter, 22 minutes and about 2 g. Air Fryer Chicken Bites tie on time at about 15 g.
- Most protein: Jamaican Jerk Chicken, about 45 g per serving (estimate), after at least 4 hours of marinating. With no marinade, the creamy sun-dried tomato chicken and Garlic Butter Steak have about 44 g each.
- Fewest calories: Slow Cooker Chicken Tinga, about 235 per serving (estimate); in 30 minutes or less, Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions, about 260.
- A crowd: the ham serves 16; the tinga, the BBQ pulled chicken and all three meatloaves serve 8.
- Vegetarian: Paneer Butter Masala, the only one.
- Gluten-free: 9 list it: the steak, the pan-fried and baked pork chops, the steamed fish, the paneer, the roast chicken, the tinga, the ham and the BBQ pulled chicken. Check the labels on packaged ingredients such as tamari, chipotles in adobo, barbecue sauce and ham; more are on the gluten-free recipes page.
Which low-carb dinners keep or freeze?
- Fridge up to 4 days, freezer up to 3 months: Pan-Fried Pork Chops, Easy Teriyaki Chicken, Juicy Baked Pork Chops, Chicken Adobo, both oven meatloaves, Coq au Vin, Slow Cooker Chicken Tinga, Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Slow Cooker Meatloaf, Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Chicken and Slow Cooker Chicken and Gravy.
- Fridge 3 to 4 days, freezer up to 3 months: Garlic Butter Steak, and Herb Butter Roast Chicken, which freezes shredded.
- Fridge up to 3 days, freezer up to 2 months: Air Fryer Chicken Bites, Chicken Piccata and Crispy Parmesan-Crusted Pork Chops. The creamy sun-dried tomato chicken has the same times, but its note says freezing is not ideal because cream sauces can separate.
- Fridge up to 4 days, freezer up to 2 months: Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Ham, frozen sliced.
- Sauce only in the freezer: Paneer Butter Masala keeps 3 days in the fridge, and the sauce freezes without the paneer for up to 3 months.
- Fridge only: Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions, up to 2 days.
Fifteen of the 21 reheating notes say to heat until 74°C (165°F), and the tinga, slow cooker meatloaf and BBQ pulled chicken say not to reheat leftovers in the slow cooker. Six are in Savour's freezer meals collection: the adobo, both oven meatloaves, the coq au vin, the slow cooker meatloaf and the chicken and gravy.
Where can you find more low-carb dinners on Savour?
No Savour category groups recipes by carbs. These are the quickest main courses at 20 g of carbohydrates or less per serving (estimate), updated as recipes are published.
Sources
- Safe cooking temperatures canada.ca
Recipes in this post (21)
Frequently Asked Questions
Which of these low-carb dinners has the fewest carbs?
Garlic Butter Steak, at about 1.5 g of carbohydrates per serving (estimate). It serves 2, takes 52 minutes in total (35 of them standing and resting) and has the most calories of the 21 dinners compared here, about 665 per serving (estimate).
What is a quick low-carb dinner for a weeknight?
Pan-Fried Pork Chops with Garlic Butter take 22 minutes in total (5 prep + 12 cook + 5 rest) and have about 2 g of carbohydrates per serving (estimate). Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions takes 30 minutes and has about 5 g.
Are there low-carb slow cooker dinners?
Five of the dinners in this roundup are slow cooker recipes: Slow Cooker Chicken Tinga (about 7 g of carbohydrates per serving, estimate), Slow Cooker Chicken and Gravy (9 g), Slow Cooker Meatloaf and Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Chicken (17 g each) and Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Ham (20 g).
Is there a vegetarian low-carb dinner on Savour?
Paneer Butter Masala is the only one of the 21 that lists vegetarian. It has about 16 g of carbohydrates, 545 calories and 23 g protein per serving (estimate), and the recipe suggests naan, roti or basmati rice with it.
Can you freeze these low-carb dinners?
20 of the 21 recipes carry a freezer note, 15 of them for up to 3 months. The note on the creamy sun-dried tomato chicken says freezing is not ideal because cream sauces can separate, and Paneer Butter Masala freezes the sauce without the paneer. Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions has no freezer note and keeps up to 2 days in the fridge.
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