Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
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Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken is an EASY summer dinner, made with chicken breast slow cooked in a sweet and tangy barbecue sauce and shredded. Perfect for BBQ chicken sandwiches!
This is one of my favorite summertime recipes, perfect for game day or a potluck. It’s really easy to make, and requires almost no effort to throw together. This can also be called pulled chicken, because when it’s done cooking, you can shred it with a fork. Serve this with gluten free hamburger buns, coleslaw, and a fresh summer salad. You can also serve this over baked potatoes or sweet potatoes.
Another recipe that I like to make when I’m having family and friends over is Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos. Another set-it-and-forget-it weeknight dinner that usually has leftovers. Along with my Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes, which is one of my husband’s favorite meals.
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Minimal Prep Time: This is a dump-and-go recipe, meaning you just dump all of the ingredients into the slow cooker and forget about it until it’s time to eat!
- One Pot: There’s only one dish to clean up when you’re done! If you get a crockpot liner, you won’t even need to do that!
- Gluten Free: Homemade BBQ lets you know that there’s no chance of this not being gluten free. I’ve included my BBQ sauce recipe below, just in case you want to try making this entirely from scratch.
- Leftovers: This makes a good amount of pulled chicken, so you’ll always have some leftovers for lunch the next day.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Chicken. I use boneless skinless chicken breast for this recipe. You’ll need about 3 pounds of chicken, which is 3-4 medium chicken breasts. This recipe will also work with boneless skinless chicken thighs.
BBQ Sauce. The type of barbecue sauce you use will have a big impact on the flavor of this dish. Make sure you like how the sauce tastes before you use it.
I like to make my own Gluten Free BBQ Sauce. If you use store-bought sauce, gluten free can vary by brand.
If you’re using this to meal prep, keep some extra barbecue sauce for when you reheat the chicken.
Italian Dressing. This adds a nice tangy flavor to the chicken, that goes great with the bbq sauce.
Worcestershire Sauce. This adds a deeper savory note to the chicken, which helps balance the sweetness of the sugar. Make sure your Worcestershire sauce is gluten free, because it can vary by brand for this ingredient.
Brown Sugar. This is added to balance out the savory and spicy notes in the bbq sauce.
Spices. You don’t need much in this recipe, because the bbq sauce is already very flavorful. I just like to add a pinch of garlic and smoked paprika. If you have granulated garlic instead of garlic powder, double the amount you use. Also, save kosher salt and black pepper to taste at the end, you may not even need it.
Kitchen Tools
For this recipe you’ll need a 6-quart slow cooker.
How to Make Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
Time needed: 4 hours and 5 minutes
- Add the chicken.
Place the chicken breasts in the slow cooker. Pour the Italian dressing evenly over the chicken.
- Mix the sauce.
In a small bowl, whisk together the BBQ sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and spices.
- Add the sauce and cook.
Pour the BBQ sauce mixture over the chicken evenly. Turn the chicken breasts to coat in the sauce. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 7-8 hours, or until chicken is cooked through and shreds easily with a fork.
- Shred the chicken.
Once done, remove the chicken breast from the slow cooker and shred with two forks. Return the meat to the slow cooker and stir together with the sauce before serving.
Recipe Variations
- Make this slow cooker barbecue chicken spicy by adding a dash of cayenne pepper, hot sauce, chili powder, or red pepper flakes.
- Make this BBQ chicken recipe sweeter by adding more brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
- Use this to make other recipes, like BBQ chicken nachos or a gluten free BBQ chicken pizza. If you like to meal prep, serve the chicken over rice for bbq bowls.
Recipe Tip! To make this faster, you can also use an electric hand mixer to shred the chicken. Set the mixer on low, and be careful for any liquid in the pot that might splash. Do not use this method if you’re using a plastic crockpot liner.
Frequently Asked Questions
If your chicken is too tough to easily shred with two forks, it could be because it’s not finished cooking. Check the internal temperature of the chicken breast to make sure it’s done.
If your chicken is cooked through, it could be that it’s over-cooked. If chicken breast cooks too long, it can get tough and dry, so watch your time closely. Different crockpots can also vary in temperature. For this type of recipe, I like to check it around 3 1/2 hours (on high) to see if the chicken is finished and adjust the cooking time as-needed.
I am almost always using a 6-quart slow cooker. This would also work in a 7-quart slow cooker, but you can use a smaller one if that’s what you have.
More Slow Cooker Recipes
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
- Slow Cooker Taco Meat
- Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
- Crockpot BBQ Chicken Thighs
Storage
Refrigerate leftover crock pot BBQ chicken in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze leftover crockpot bbq chicken for 3-4 months in an airtight freezer-safe storage container. Defrost in the refrigerator.
Cooking Tips
- I don’t recommend making this with frozen chicken breasts, because it will release too much water when cooking. It can also cause food-borne illness because it takes too long to come to temperature.
- I’m not adding any additional chicken broth, because the sauce is enough to keep the chicken moist as it cooks.
If you loved this recipe, be sure to leave a 5 Star review below, and tag me with a photo of your finished recipe on Instagram @Jacqui_DishingDelish!
Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chicken breast, (about 4 medium breasts)
- 1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce, gluten free
- 1/2 cup Italian dressing, gluten free
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, gluten free
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Equipment
- 1 6-Quart Slow Cooker
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts in the slow cooker. Pour the Italian dressing evenly over the chicken.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and spices.
- Pour the barbecue sauce mixture over the chicken. Turn the chicken breasts to coat evenly in the sauce. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 7-8 hours, or until chicken is cooked through.
- Once done, remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred with two forks. Return the meat to the slow cooker and stir together with the sauce before serving.
Notes
- Make sure the Worcestershire sauce is gluten free, as this ingredient can vary by brand.
- I don’t recommend making this with frozen chicken breasts, because it will release too much water when cooking. It can also cause food-borne illness because it takes too long to come to temperature.
Nutrition
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