Slow cooker BBQ pulled chicken
Smoky, saucy pulled chicken piled on soft buns with a crunchy tangy slaw, and there’s plenty left to freeze for another night.
- 265 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 6
- About $2.18 a serving
- 520 calories
- Good the next day
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 6 servings.
- ½ yellow onion, sliced
- 2 lb chicken breasts
- 1½ cups bbq sauce, divided
- 3 cups coleslaw mix
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- 6 hamburger buns
- 1 cup dill pickles, sliced (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, divided
- 1 tsp sugar
Each serving has about 520 calories, 40 g protein, 61 g carbs and 12 g fat, and costs about $2.18 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No chicken breasts? Boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenderloins work.
- No coleslaw mix? Green cabbage or red cabbage works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Scatter the onion over the bottom of the slow cooker, lay the chicken on top, and sprinkle it with the smoked paprika, garlic powder, brown sugar and salt.
1 cup of the BBQ sauce with 1 tablespoon of vinegar and pour it over the chicken.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Cover and cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours, until the thickest piece reads 165°F and shreds easily.
Timer: 210 min
Food safety: Chicken and turkey are done at 165°F in the thickest part. A thermometer is the only sure check. Without one, cut into the thickest piece: it should be white all the way through, with no pink.
the chicken right in the pot with two forks, in the rest of the BBQ sauce, and let it sit on WARM for 10 minutes.
Shred. Shredding means making thin strips, either on the big holes of a grater or by pulling cooked meat apart with two forks. Shreds soak up sauce and mix evenly through a dish.
How you’ll know: Cooked chicken pulls apart into strands with little effort, and cheese comes off in long, loose strips.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Timer: 10 min
Dolly’s tip: The chicken soaks up the juices while it sits. That’s what keeps pulled breast meat from tasting dry.the mayonnaise, the rest of the vinegar, the sugar and of salt in a big bowl, then in the coleslaw mix.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Pile the chicken onto the buns and top with slaw and pickles.
Dolly’s tip: To freeze, cool the extra chicken in its sauce and pack it flat in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
