Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken uses flavorful chicken thighs, cooked in the slow cooker with a 3-ingredient bbq sauce until they practically shred themselves. The chicken can be eaten on its own – or turned into many different meals.
If there’s one thing I’m (finally) starting to figure out as a working mom, it’s that a few nights a week, I need meals that are partially prepped and that can come together quickly. Otherwise, by the time we put Demi down for bed, I’m feeling too tired to start a whole meal that takes 45 minutes – or let’s be real, even 20 minutes is too much sometimes!
As I’ve mentioned before, we are still trying to figure out how to have dinners as a family, and meals like the ones I’m going to share today, make that reality one (mini!) step closer. I also know that while our dinner schedule is tricky to figure out now, 7pm bedtimes won’t last forever and we’ll eventually find something that works for us.
I love the concept of cooking once and eating a few times, but because I don’t LOVE leftovers, recipes like this are the perfect balance between the ease of leftovers and the excitement of a new meal.
So similar to my simple turkey sauce + 3 turkey meals, I started with a meaty, comforting base but this time one that could all be done in the slow cooker and with everyone’s favorite weeknight protein: chicken! Chicken thighs (my favorite cut of chicken) are cooked in the slow cooker with a 3-ingredient bbq sauce until they practically shred themselves. And while it’s ready to eat after a few hours in the slow cooker, bbq chicken can be used for so many different meals:
BBQ Chicken Sandwich. Top buns with bbq chicken, an easy coleslaw and red onions. Choose a whole-grain bun if you can find one.
BBQ Chicken Pizza. Top pizza crust with bbq chicken, shredded cheese and slices of red onion. Bake and top with chopped cilantro before serving. Drizzle with a little extra bbq sauce if desired.
BBQ Chicken Rice Bowls. Top rice with bbq chicken, black beans, corn, shredded lettuce, green onions and a creamy cilantro dressing or extra bbq sauce. This also makes a perfect make-ahead lunch.
All easy, all satisfying. And just what we need this time of year.
Enjoy the holiday season with loved ones (and delicious food, of course!) – I’ll see you after the new year!
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Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 5 mins
- Yield: 7 cups 1x
- Category: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Chicken
Description
Four ingredient easy BBQ Chicken, all made in the slow cooker.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups bbq sauce (use your favorite)
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 lbs chicken thighs (skinless and boneless)
Instructions
- Mix together first three ingredients.
- Place chicken in slow cooker and pour sauce over chicken.
- Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
- Shred chicken and serve as desired.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3/4 cup
- Calories: 257
- Sugar: 21 g
- Sodium: 700 mg
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 23 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 31 g
- Cholesterol: 110 mg
Mercedes
OMG you are speaking to me with this post! I will be making this as a great make-ahead option and adding it to a pizza as well. BBQ Chicken is my favorite homemade pizza flavor!
Mercedes
Did I miss the actual BBQ sauce recipe somewhere?
Emily
Ok, “recipe” is back up! For some reason it disappeared on me. So glad you let me know. 🙂
sarah k @ the pajama chef
7pm bedtime + being a working mom is tough. i feel you!! i try to make meals on the weekends that are easy to eat during the week that don’t feel like leftovers…like soup or fajitas! this is a great idea too. 🙂
Emily
I’ve been doing lots of soups lately, though I like to take those to work for lunch! Fajitas are such a good idea, and a staple in my house growing up…probably for good reason! Do you prep things before and cook meat the night of?
sarah k @ the pajama chef
yep, that’s exactly what i do! i love this recipe – http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/02/oven-fajitas/ and omit the sugar/salt. i also use olive oil instead of vegetable oil. i like to double this and make it all on a sheet pan. i think it reheats really well and doesn’t have that “leftover” taste. actually planning a blog post about this soon, ha! 🙂
i serve it with mexican rice that i make on the weekend (reheats beautifully https://thepajamachef.com/2013/05/28/mexican-rice/) or black beans or a salad. usually 2 out of the 3.
for leftovers, i like to make “fajita bowls” with the rice & beans & fajita mixture… and fajita salads – same concept, you get the idea 🙂
Emily
I have seen those oven fajitas, glad to hear they are good, will try them soon! And my mom always served fajitas with mexi rice too, so I’ll have to add your recipe to our fajita meal, thanks for sharing!
Lori Rice
Love all these ideas! BBQ chicken is one of my favorite things to make in the slow cooker. Such great images, too!
Emily
Huge compliment coming from YOU! Thanks, Lori!
Kristi M
Don you have a favorite bottled BBQ? I usually make my own because it’s so hard to find one without all the junk.
Emily
Well I’m sure your homemade one is better than anything from the store! We have a variety of them in the fridge, but I used Trader Joe’s All Natural BBQ sauce for this recipe. The ingredients aren’t terrible – and it uses sugar instead of HFCS.
Haiku
Just found this blog – its fantastic! Loved the lemon vinaigrette for the quinoa and arugula salad and never thought to add lemon juice to quinoa. Yummy! Merry Christmas!
Emily
Thanks so much for stopping by! Merry Christmas to you, too! 🙂
Jill
How could I convert this to an instant pot recipe?
★★★★
Emily
Here’s how I do my buffalo chicken (very similar!): Cook on poultry mode or 10 minutes High Pressure. When the cooking time is done, let the pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes and then quick release the remaining pressure. Shred chicken.