Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken is perfect for meal prep or an easy dinner, made with chicken breast and broth, slow cooked until tender and juicy and shredded in just a few seconds!
This shredded chicken is a staple recipe in my house, made with chicken breast and broth slow cooked until tender, then shredded using an electric hand mixer. It’s the perfect way to prepare chicken for meal prep!
You can use this shredded chicken for tacos, chicken wraps, chicken salad, or add your favorite sauce and serve the chicken in lettuce wraps or over rice. Or use this chicken in burritos, for a shredded chicken sandwich, or for a really quick chicken soup. This will quickly become one of your favorite recipes!
The slow cooker is one of the easiest ways to make shredded chicken! For more ideas on what to do with this recipe, check out Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken for summertime, and Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos for an easy taco night. Also check out another great recipe, Instant Pot Chicken and Potatoes.
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Set it and Forget it! This is a really simple slow cooker recipe, so you can set it up and forget about it until it’s time to eat!
- One Pot: There’s only one dish to clean up when you’re done!
- Gluten Free: Making everything from scratch lets you know that this is entirely gluten free.
- Meal Prep: This makes a good amount of shredded chicken, so you’ll have enough to meal prep lunches ahead of time, with enough left over for a great weeknight dinner.
- Multiple Recipes. This is really great to use for other recipes during the week! Just add a gluten free BBQ sauce, gluten free teriyaki sauce, make chicken salad, or add to a gluten free pasta dish. It’s a simple recipe that gives you a lot of variety.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Chicken. This recipe works best with boneless skinless chicken breast, but you can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
I make this with about 2 pounds of chicken, or 4-6 chicken breasts, depending on how big your pieces of chicken are.
Broth. I make this with chicken broth or chicken stock, but vegetable broth will also work.
Seasoning. I like to make this plain, so I can use it for multiple different meals during the week. That’s why I just use some kosher salt and black pepper.
Kitchen Tools
For this chicken recipe you’ll need a 6-quart slow cooker.
How to Make Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
Time needed: 4 hours and 5 minutes
- Add ingredients.
Place chicken breasts side-by-side in the slow cooker and season with salt and pepper. Pour broth on top and place the lid back onto the pot.
- Cook and shred.
Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 7-8 hours. Once the chicken is fork-tender, use two forks to shred chicken (or use an electric hand mixer, but not if you’re using a crockpot liner). Add additional salt and pepper as needed.
Recipe Variations
- Add some heat by adding a dash of cayenne pepper, hot sauce, or red pepper flakes. You can also add a jar of salsa in the beginning of the recipe.
- You can add anything to this chicken to make multiple different lunches for the week. Try adding some gluten free barbecue sauce, buffalo sauce, fresh salsa, or mix with some seasoning and greek yogurt for a healthy chicken salad.
- Use whatever seasoning you’d like to add more flavor to this chicken. I like to use Ranch Seasoning, or my Homemade Italian Seasoning. Or keep it simple with a little onion powder and garlic powder.
- Make this with my Homemade Taco Seasoning, then serve with corn tortillas and your favorite taco toppings. Or add chicken on top of shredded lettuce for a taco salad.
Recipe Tip! The chicken will shred easily with two forks, but it’s faster and easier to use an electric hand mixer. Set the mixer on low, and be careful for any liquid in the pot that might splash. I do not recommend this if you’re using a plastic crockpot liner.
Frequently Asked Questions
The slow cooker is a great way to cook chicken and have it come out tender and juicy. But you can still over-cook it, and this can result in tough dry chicken. Watch your cook time, and check the chicken once the time is up. Also, don’t skip adding the cup of chicken broth in the recipe to help keep the chicken moist.
It’s also possible that your chicken hasn’t cooked enough if it’s not easily shredding with a fork. Don’t check it too early, either.
Yes, I recommend adding liquid in the slow cooker for recipes like this. The liquid will help the chicken cook evenly, along with adding moisture and flavor to the dish.
More Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
- Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken
Storage
Refrigerate leftover chicken in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze crockpot shredded chicken for 3-4 months in a freezer-safe container. Defrost in the refrigerator.
Cooking Tips
- This recipe works best with boneless chicken breast, but you could also make it with boneless skinless chicken thighs. I like to shred everything with the electric hand mixer, so I don’t use any cuts of chicken with skin or bones for this recipe.
- I don’t like using frozen chicken breasts, because they can release more water when cooking in the crock pot and cause the shredded chicken to have too much moisture.
- If you add more chicken to the slow cooker, you may have to increase the cooking time. Use a meat thermometer to make sure your chicken has reached the right internal temperature.
- If the chicken released a lot of liquid, you can remove the chicken before shredding and use a ladle to remove some of the chicken broth from the pot, leaving about 1-2 cups of liquid. Then shred and add the chicken pieces back in, stirring everything together.
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 Shredded Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken breasts, boneless, skinless (about 4 medium breasts)
- 1 cup chicken broth, gluten free
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
Equipment
- 1 6-Quart Slow Cooker
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts side-by-side in the slow cooker and season with salt and pepper. Pour broth on top and place the lid back onto the pot.
- Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 7-8 hours. Once the chicken is fork-tender, use two forks to shred chicken (or use an electric hand mixer). Add additional salt and pepper as needed.
Notes
- This recipe works best with boneless chicken breast, but you could also make it with boneless skinless chicken thighs.
- Shred chicken with two forks, or with an electric hand mixer (only if you are not using a crockpot liner).
- I don’t like using frozen chicken breasts because they can release too much liquid when cooking in the crockpot.
Nutrition
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