Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

This easy Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken is a delicious and simple pulled chicken recipe. It only needs a handful of ingredients to make and is very customizable. Use this crockpot BBQ chicken for tacos, burritos, salads, sandwiches, and more.

This slow cooker shredded BBQ chicken is one of those recipes that almost don't need a recipe! You pretty much just dump everything into your slow cooker and call it a day! It really cannot be any easier.

Why You'll Love This Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken Recipe

• This recipe only requires seven ingredients! You can probably use even less if you want to use the store-bought BBQ as is. I like to adjust it a bit with some extra seasoning. It's up to you.
• This is a freezer friendly recipe. So you can double recipe and freeze half of it for later.
• Shredded chicken is so versatile. You can use this slow cooker pulled chicken as taco filling, burrito filling, rice bowl, sandwich filling, burger filling, and more!

Ingredients You'll Need

• BBQ Sauce — I use a store-bought BBQ sauce to keep things easy.
• smoked paprika — if you prefer a sweeter flavour, you can use sweet paprika.
• chili powder — American style chili powder, not powder made up of ground spicy chiles!
• garlic powder — you can use fresh minced garlic if you prefer.
• light brown sugar — to add a little sweetness to the pulled chicken.
• Worcestershire sauce — this adds a little extra umami to the sauce.
• chicken breasts — I use boneless skinless chicken breasts. You can swap for chicken thighs if you prefer dark meat.
• cornstarch — this is an optional ingredient for if your BBQ sauce needs to be thicken.

How To Make This Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Chicken Recipe

• Combine the BBQ sauce, smoked paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Mix until combined.
• Add chicken breasts to the slow cooker.

• Cover the chicken breasts with half of the mixed sauce. Use tongs to turn the chicken so it is fully coated.
• Add the rest of sauce on top of the chicken.

• Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or HIGH for 3-4 until chicken is tender enough to shred.
• When done, remove the chicken to shred before adding it back to the slow cooker to coat with sauce.

Recipes Variations

• Make this spicy with the addition of cayenne pepper or a dash of hot sauce.
• Make this sweeter with extra brown sugar.
• Make the shredded chicken crispier by transferring the shredded chicken to a sheet pan and broil in the oven for 2-5 minutes on the middle rack, keeping an eye on it throughout. Be sure that the shredded chicken has bbq sauce on it to prevent it from drying out. 

Tips and Notes

• If your BBQ sauce is thick to start, I suggest adding ½ cup water to the mixed sauce before adding to the slow cooker. If your BBQ sauce is too thick, it might end up burning.
• Make sure all of the chicken breasts are covered in the BBQ sauce before slow cooking.
• Slow cooker liners help make clean up easier.
• If the BBQ sauce is not as thick as you'd like to coat your shredded chicken with at the end, you can make a cornstarch slurry with 1 tbsp cornstarch with 1 tbsp cold water and add it to the BBQ sauce. Stir to combine and let the slow cooker run on HIGH so the slurry can combine with the sauce. Stir until thickened to your liking.

Recipe

Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken

This easy Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken is a delicious and simple pulled chicken recipe. It only needs a handful of ingredients to make and is very customizable. Use this crockpot BBQ chicken for tacos, burritos, salads, sandwiches, and more.

4.62 from 57 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 4 hours hours

Total Time: 4 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 5 servings

Equipment

• Slow Cooker

Ingredients

• 1½ cups BBQ Sauce
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ⅓ cup light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• cornstarch, optional: to thicken if needed

Instructions

• Combine the BBQ sauce, smoked paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce. Mix until combined.
• Add chicken breasts to the slow cooker and cover with half of the mixed sauce. Use tongs to turn the chicken so it is fully coated.
• Add the rest of sauce on top of the chicken.
• Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or HIGH for 3-4 until chicken is tender enough to shred.
• When done, remove the chicken to shred before adding it back to the slow cooker to coat with sauce.

Notes

OPTIONAL: If the BBQ sauce is not as thick as you'd like, you can make a cornstarch slurry with 1 tbsp cornstarch with 1 tbsp cold water and add it to the bbq sauce. Stir to combine and let the slow cooker run on HIGH so the slurry can combine with the sauce. Stir until thickened to your liking. 

OPTIONAL: For crispy shredded chicken, you can transfer the shredded chicken to a sheet pan and broil in the oven for 2-5 minutes on the middle rack, keeping an eye on it throughout. Be sure that the shredded chicken has bbq sauce on it to prevent it from drying out. 

TO MEAL PREP: Allow the shredded chicken to cool and transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave. 

TO FREEZE: Allow the shredded chicken to cool and transfer to a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to three months. Thaw fully before reheating.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 313kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 1044mg | Potassium: 604mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 538IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 1mg

Course: Slow Cooker

Cuisine: American

Author: Carmy

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