Crockpot Pulled Chicken

Crockpots are a wonderful invention – they are not only great in the winter for a hearty meal – they are also great for really hot summer days when you don’t want to heat up your kitchen.   And in Buffalo, we had a week or so of really hot and humid weather recently (much like the rest of the country!).  So this was the perfect meal for that occasion – I combined all of the sauce ingredients together the night before and had the chicken in the crockpot in the fridge.  Before I went to work – I mixed the sauce and chicken and set it on low for the day.  When I came home – it was so tender all I had to use was a pair of tongs to shred the chicken.   I served it with a simple salad and a glass of pink lemonade – perfect summer meal.   I love this recipe – definitely going to become a favorite in this house.  We even had leftovers the next day on top of a salad with some guacamole and salsa to mix things up a little :)  Enjoy

Ingredients

• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 3 chipotles in adobo, finely minced, and 2 tsp. adobo sauce
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 3 to 4 Tbsp. honey
• 1.5 Tbsp. smoked paprika
• 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp. chili powder
• 3 lbs. boneless/skinless chicken thighs and breasts (I used 2 lbs. breast 1 lb. thigh meat)
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

1. Whisk together the first 9 ingredients (tomato sauce through chili powder).  [If not using right away – cover and keep in refrigerator]

2. Spray your crockpot liner lightly with oil and then place the chicken inside. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. 

3. Scatter the onions and garlic evenly over the top.  [Set chicken aside in refrigerator until ready to cook.]

4. Pour the barbecue sauce over the top of chicken and stir to combine. Cook on low for 5 –6 hours, until tender.  Shred the chicken with two forks and, if desired, continue to cook for a little bit with the lid off to allow mixture to thicken.

Source Elly Says Opa who adapted from Apple a Day

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