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{Today I’m partnering with Dixie to bring you this easy slow cooker BBQ chicken, it’s my family’s favorite!}
Slow Cooker. BBQ. Chicken. Meaning… no oven – no fuss. Yes, please.
Happy Saturday everyone! Seeing that we are at the height of BBQ season, I wanted to share a special post with you all today. This is one of my family’s favorite BBQ recipes. If any of you happen to know about my family even a little, than you know we have some of the pickiest eaters around as part of our clan. My younger brother, Kai has gone twenty-one years without eating a fresh peach slice or wedge of watermelon, and my mother will not go anywhere near fish (neither will Creighton, Trevor, Kai, or Asher…). So you see, I have some seriously picky eaters to deal with.
When I make a simple (but still delicious) meal like this BBQ chicken all of my family is suddenly at my house and ready to eat. It’s like they the know the days I am cooking “their” kind of food. And when I make cocktails? I swear some of them have a cocktail radar on me. They just know what’s happening down at the barn and the second I finish up shooting, ah wait, scratch that…they’re here long before I finish shooting, just frothing at the mouth, waiting for their drinks. <–yep, my family everyone.
Anyway, on days when the entire family (and friends) show up, that’s when I break out my Dixie Ultra Strong paper plates. Not going to lie, I hate doing dishes like no other, and my Ultra Strong Dixie plates save the day for big summertime family meals outside, and summer BBQ’s with friends. They work especially well when serving up extra saucy foods like this BBQ chicken. Because let’s be real, no one wants to clean twenty plus plates that have been piled high with extra saucy BBQ chicken, slaw, corn, bread, etc.
I mean, right? Ah yeah, most definitely.
This is one of those recipes that I’ve been wanting to share with you guys for some time now, but just haven’t had the chance. It’s a recipe I make at least once a month, one because everyone loves it, and two, because it’s so simple and easy to throw together. While I do make this chicken all year round, I especially love it in the summer months. I know grilling is huge right now, but sometimes I just need an easy dinner that won’t heat up my house and will be ready for eating after a long day hiking or being outside.
Plus, with our big fam, summer parties almost never leave enough room on the grill. Cooking the chicken in the crockpot frees up space for corn, veggies, or whatever else I might be grilling. Love this!
OKok. So I think we all get why a summer slow cooker recipe is a must, but let’s actually chat about why this chicken is SO good.
There are two very important key players to this BBQ chicken recipe.
Key player #1: Homemade BBQ sauce, YUM. But you guys, don’t worry it is so simple and easy. Just mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and DONE. No cooking and almost no time involved. And the best part? It is 110% more delicious than anything you can buy in the store.
Trust me on this.
Key player #2: The spice rub…it’s essential. It’s a rough recipe handed down to me from one of my mom’s friends Mrs. Mooney (whom you may or may not remember from this gumbo). Her secret is using just a touch of cinnamon, which gives the otherwise spicy BBQ chicken a nice warmth that leaves everyone going back for more.
Again, just trust me, it’s delish.
And that’s it. Just toss the chicken in the spice rub, add the BBQ sauce, slow cook for a few hours and you’ll have the most perfect, moist, tender, and extra saucy BBQ chicken.
You can use the shredded chicken to make sandwiches or tacos or spoon the chicken over rice or polenta (my mom’s personal favorite). You can even use the chicken as a topping for pizza and flatbread. Really…the options are endless.
Oh, and a side of grilled corn is kind of a must if you ask me. Just sayin’.
PS. Be sure to check out the #RaisingTheBBQ event today in Kansas city or tune in on Dixie’s Facebook Live feed.
Have a great Saturday!
The Best Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
Servings: 10 servings
Calories Per Serving: 278 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
BBQ Sauce
- 1 1/4 cups ketchup, preferably organic
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons ground mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt and pepper
BBQ Chicken
- 2 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, thighs or a mix of the two
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons chipotle chile powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper
Instructions
- 1. To make the BBQ sauce. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 months. 2. To make the chicken. Place the chicken in the bowl of a crockpot. Add the honey, smoked paprika, chipotle chile powder, garlic powder, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat the chicken. Pour in half of the BBQ sauce. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 4-6 hours. 3. Once the chicken is done cooking, remove it from the sauce and shred with two forks, return the chicken to the sauce and toss, adding more of the reserved sauce as desired. Serve over rice or as sandwiches alongside your favorite sides.
Notes
*4-8 hours cooking time required (depends on settings)
{This post is sponsored by Dixie. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Half Baked Harvest cooking!!}
I love homemade BBQ sauce (just made some recently myself!), and this recipe is seriously making my mouth water!
Ah yes its the best!! Hope you get to try it!
How many people would this feed?
This will feed 8-10 people. Let me know if you have questions. Hope you love the recipe!
Mine is in the slow cooker as i type..the sauce is perfect with a sweet honey molasses and smoky cinammon bite..saw this today and made it..thank you for sharing your recipe!
So happy you decided to make it Mike! I hope you love it! Thank you (:
Thanks for the recipe, I’m on my way to making it, bbq sauce – done and i must say it’s delish, it’s sweet but my family loves sweet bbq. This is going to be a very simple and easy throw together meal, the ones i love the best.
Ooo! Perfect, I hope you guys all really enjoy it! Thanks for making it Jules!
The recipe looks good. I will try it tommorw
Hope you love it, thank you Shirley!
Sounds really good have to try it!
Hope you love it, thank you!
Tieghan! This looks delish! We are going camping with 10 people and I am going to make this! How many sandwiches do you think the 2 1/2 pounds of chicken would yield?? It seems like enough for 10 but I don’t wanna run out!
Hey Nikki! I think this make at least 10 sandwiches, but it you wanted to be safe, you could up the chicken to 3 1/2 pounds. There is enough seasoning and sauce for that amount of chicken. Let me know if you have questions. I hope the chicken is a huge hit!
I have to experience more with my slow cooker, would you recommend this for a party served on sliders and garnished with coleslaw.
Hi! Yes, this chicken served on a slider with coleslaw would be great for a party. Love that idea! Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love the chicken! 🙂
Why only use half of the sauce ?
Hi Linda! The remaining sauce is used at the end of the recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love the chicken!
I use a conversion chart for changing oven time to slow cooker, so it should surely work in reverse.
oven; 15-30min slow; 4-6hr high;2-3hr
35-45min 6-8hr 3-4hr
50-3hr 8-10hr 4-6hr
Hope this helps.
Ooo! Thanks so much for converting the times!
Mmmmm, me like diss!! Haha!! Honestly never thought to make ‘pulled’ chicken before, and I particularly like the sneaky way you’ve made it so that we will all be making some kind off BBQ meat dish within the next 2 months of making this recipe, by only using half of the sauce! Genius ?
YAY!! SO happy you are liking the chicken Tim! Hope you guys love it, thanks !
Love bbq and grilled corn. YUM!!
Thank you!!
Love all that smoky flavor from the paprika and chipotle! I used those same plates for a bbq yesterday 🙂 I made pulled pork, but I”ll be trying this recipe next time.
Sounds so fun and yummy! Hope this one is just as good next time, thanks Lauren!
How can I make this recipe if I don’t own a slow cooker? Can I just cook it on the stove and adjust the cooking time?
Hey Ema! Yes, cooking on the stove will work great! Just add everything to a large pot and simmer over medium until the chicken is cooked through, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, 1-2 hours more or until you want to eat. Let me know if you have questions. Hope you love the chicken!
Perfect as always ! Thank you so much !
So happy you like them as always (: Thank you!