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Low-Carb Chicken & Bacon Pâté

Naomi ShermanUpdated 29 September 2023★★★★★4.5 (66 ratings)

Ready in 2h 30m
1.6 g net carbs
171 kcal
Serves 12

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Keto Chicken & Bacon Pate (low-carb, primal)

Pate. That smooth flavourful dollop of lovely.

I’ve always loved pate, as a small child when my parents were entertaining, I would sneak into the trays that my mother had laid out for guests and help myself. Sorry Mum!

This pate is so easy to make yet packs a punch in the flavour stakes. Make it for your next party (watch out for your kids) make it for your friends, or just make it for yourself.

It’s a tasty way to introduce nutrient-dense keto foods like liver and other types of offal into your keto diet. Organ meat are very high in nutrients, inexpensive and can be prepared in many different ways.

I used mild-tasting chicken livers which are low in carbs and keto friendly. When you follow the ketogenic diet and keep your carb intake low, watch out for other types of liver such as goose or beef. Compared to chicken liver that is almost zero carb, goose liver has the highest content of carbs (6 grams of carbs per 100 grams or 3.5 ounces of raw goose liver).

This liver pate makes a great appetiser, especially when served with grain-free crackers or low-carb bread. Enjoy!

Step-by-step

Trim the chicken livers of any sinew.
Melt butter in frying pan and add onion, sauté gently until translucent. Add bacon and herbs and cook until bacon is done.
Place livers in pan and cook over a gentle heat until cooked. You want the livers to be just slightly pink in the centre but without any fluids seeping out. You will get juices in the pan, but this is normal, just make sure that they’re not oozing out of the liver still. Don't overcook them or they'll be grey and the texture will be grainy.
Once cooked, remove from heat and sit aside to cool. Add the orange or Cointreau and stir through, along with your salt and pepper.
Once cool, transfer the mixture to a food processor and blitz until smooth. Pass it through a sieve, for a super smooth finish.
Place the finished pate in the blender with about ¹/₄ cup of pouring cream and blend well, tasting and adding more cream as required, for a lighter tasting and fluffier textured finished pate. Season with salt to taste (or skip).
Refrigerate for approx. 2 hours to firm the pate up. You can also add a layer of melted ghee to seal the top. This will keep the pate fresh for longer.
Serve with crispy vegetables, as a dip with Keto Crackers, or spread on top of Keto Bread!
Store, well covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Can also be frozen.

Low-Carb Chicken & Bacon Pâté

Recipe

Low-Carb Chicken & Bacon Pâté

★★★★★4.5 (66 ratings)

Creamy chicken liver pate flavoured with smoked bacon, fresh herbs, garlic, onion and orange zest. The perfect ...

Hands on: 30m
Overall: 2h 30m
Servings: 12

1.6 g
Net carbs: 5.3 g
Protein: 15.8 g
Fat: 171
kcal

Ingredients makes 12 servings

Instructions

Trim the chicken livers of any sinew.
Melt butter in frying pan and add onion, sauté gently until translucent. Add bacon and herbs and cook until bacon is done.
Place livers in pan and cook over a gentle heat until cooked. You want the livers to be just slightly pink in the centre but without any fluids seeping out. You will get juices in the pan, but this is normal, just make sure that they’re not oozing out of the liver still. Don't overcook them or they'll be grey and the texture will be grainy.
Once cooked, remove from heat and sit aside to cool. Add the orange or Cointreau and stir through, along with your salt and pepper.
Once cool, transfer the mixture to a food processor and blitz until smooth. Pass it through a sieve, for a super smooth finish.
Place the finished pate in the blender with about ¹/₄ cup of pouring cream and blend well, tasting and adding more cream as required, for a lighter tasting and fluffier textured finished pate. Season with salt to taste (or skip).
Refrigerate for approx. 2 hours to firm the pate up. You can also add a layer of melted ghee to seal the top. This will keep the pate fresh for longer.
Serve with crispy vegetables, as a dip with Keto Crackers, or spread on top of Keto Bread!
Store, well covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Can also be frozen.

Nutrition per serving, 2 heaped tbsp/ 45 g/ 1.6 oz

Carbs 4%Protein 13%Fat 83% of calories

Net carbs: 1.6 g
Total carbs: 2 g
Fiber: 0.4 g
Sugars: 1.1 g
Protein: 5.3 g
Fat: 15.8 g
Saturated fat: 8.8 g
Calories: 171 kcal
Sodium: 115 mg · 5.01% RDA
Magnesium: 8 mg · 2.11% RDA
Potassium: 104 mg · 5.18% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per 2 heaped tbsp/ 45 g/ 1.6 oz	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Liver (chicken), raw	0.2 g	3.5 g	1 g	25
Butter, unsalted, grass-fed	0 g	0.1 g	8.4 g	75
Bacon, streaky (high fat content), organic	0 g	1.4 g	2.5 g	28
Onion, brown (yellow), raw	0.8 g	0.1 g	0 g	5
Garlic, fresh	0.2 g	0 g	0 g	1
Sage, fresh	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Thyme, fresh	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Oregano, fresh	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1
Orange peel (zest), fresh	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pepper, white, spices	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Cream, heavy whipping, pouring, full-fat (30-40% fat)	0.3 g	0.2 g	3.8 g	37
Salt, sea salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Total	1.6 g	5.3 g	15.8 g	171

Serving size 2 heaped tbsp/ 45 g/ 1.6 oz

Gluten free
Egg free
Nut free
Nightshade free
Avocado free
Coconut free
Fish free
Shellfish free
Beef free

Comments & ratings (9)

4.566 ratings

5 ★43
4 ★17
3 ★4
2 ★2
1 ★0

Karen16 January 2021
I love this recipe. Last night I substituted full fat coconut milk for the cream. It was good...cream better but it worked. I find liver pate is a wonderful thing to have in my fridge to snack on! Thanks for the recipe!
1. Martina @ KetoDietAuthor19 January 2021
  Thank you Karen, it's good to know it works with coconut milk too! ❤️
Andrea Morgan25 May 2019
How would this be if I left the cream out, do you think? I'm dairy free (except for ghee). Or could I substitute? Maybe coconut cream would be the wrong flavor. Stir in more butter, maybe?
1. Martina @ KetoDietAuthor21 June 2019
  Hi Andrea, the cream makes it smooth and creamy but you can substitute it with some ghee (or butter) or simply add a dash of chicken stock. I hope this helps!
Christina20 October 2018
I've finally managed to get my hands on pasture raised chicken livers, bought the orange essential oil you linked to in the instructions, and the other ingredients. I was about to start cooking when I came up with a few of questions.
1 Does the bacon have to cook before starting the liver?
2 I've never used essential oils in cooking before. Do I need to dilute it before adding it? If so, in what?
3 Is the tbsp measurement only for the orange peel or does it still apply to the oil/mixture.
I love the idea of using essential oils. My body doesn't react well to alcohol, so extracts can be problematic. And I'm excited to make my own pate.
1. Martina @ KetoDietAuthor31 October 2018
  Hi Christina, you can use raw or cooked, unsmoked or smoked bacon, or even crisped up bacon. It depends on what you like. I like the option with smoked bacon.
  Good point! If you are using orange oil, only add a drop or two - that should be more than enough. Or you can use orange extract (I'd say 1/2-1 teaspoon). I hope this helps.
Diane★★★★★1 September 2018
I made this for lunch today and it was seriously good!! I think the bacon and orange just worked so well. I don’t normally eat offal, and liver in Pâté is about all I can manage. The only thing That I did differently was that I didn’t strain it, but I gave it plenty of time in the food processor...it had texture, but was quite smooth.
I will certainly be making this again. It was yummy!
1. Martina @ KetoDiet1 September 2018
  Thank you for your kind words! For me chicken pate was what made me fall in love with offal and discover other meat cuts that may be a little weird but so delicious! This one is my favourite: Oxtail & Tongue Stew with Rich Red Wine Sauce
Laura27 May 2018
Oh this looks soooo good! I am making this tonight!