Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken – Gluten Free, Dairy Free
This shredded BBQ Chicken has so much flavor and can be enjoyed in so many different ways!! You can make this BBQ Chicken in the slow cooker or Instant Pot making it a super easy dinner option!
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I absolutely love BBQ food!
It probably has something to do with growing up around Kansas City, Missouri and constantly being surrounded by amazing BBQ restaurants.
One thing that all of the different BBQ restaurants are known for are their distinct BBQ sauce flavors.
My favorites of course were always the sweeter BBQ sauces. I was never a huge fan of the “make you sweat when you eat” sauces.
I’ve always wanted to figure out how to make my own BBQ sauce at home, but figured it was really hard to do.
Most of the kinds you can get from the store are full of refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and all kinds of other unhealthy ingredients that just aren’t necessary.
So I finally decided to give it a try and found a recipe that had great reviews online.
After a few changes to make it just right for my family, I realized it was actually going to be super easy to make homemade BBQ sauce.
I was very excited to test it out!
All you do is add all of the ingredients to a sauce pan, heat to a boil, and then lower the temp and let it sit for about 15 minutes to thicken up.
So easy and oh my goodness it was so tasty!! Once I tasted it, I knew the first recipe I wanted to make with it was slow cooker BBQ chicken.
All you do is throw the chicken in the slow cooker (or pressure cooker) and cover it in the BBQ sauce.
Then cook on low for 8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. If you are using a pressure cooker, you can have it ready in as little as 30 minutes!
I absolutely love how delicious and easy it was to put together this BBQ chicken and that included making a homemade BBQ sauce!
Of course if you already have a favorite BBQ sauce then you can just use it to make an even quicker meal.
So let’s talk about how to make this slow cooker BBQ chicken!
INSTANT POT / SLOW COOKER BBQ CHICKEN RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
- Chicken breast: I like to use boneless chicken breast for this recipe.
- BBQ sauce: You can use the homemade BBQ sauce recipe below or just use your favorite store bought BBQ sauce
Homemade BBQ Sauce Ingredients
- Ketchup
- Coconut sugar: Brown sugar can be used instead.
- Honey: Maple syrup can be used as well.
- Apple cider vinegar
- Yellow mustard
- Minced garlic
- Worcestershire sauce: Make sure your Worcestershire sauce is gluten free. I use “Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce“.
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Cayenne pepper
- Salt
HOW TO MAKE INSTANT POT BBQ CHICKEN:
- Prepare the Sauce: Add all of the BBQ sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and stir to combine. Heat sauce to a slight boil and then reduce to low heat for 15 minutes.
- Add Ingredients to Instant Pot: Add the chicken and sauce to the pressure cooker. Stir to coat the chicken.
- Cook Chicken: Close the lid and make sure you are NOT venting. Select the Poultry setting which should be pre-programmed to cook for 20 minutes.
- Shred BBQ Chicken: Once the pressure has released, remove the chicken from the Instant Pot and use two forks to shred.
- Stir to coat in sauce: Return the chicken to the slow cooker to coat in the sauce. Serve.
HOW TO MAKE SLOW COOKER BBQ CHICKEN:
- Prepare the Sauce: Add all of the BBQ sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and stir to combine. Heat sauce to a slight boil and then reduce to low heat for 15 minutes.
- Add Ingredients to Slow Cooker: Once the sauce has thickened, add the chicken and sauce to a slow cooker. Stir to coat the chicken.
- Cook Chicken: Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 8 hours.
- Shred: Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and use two forks to shred.
- Stir to coat in sauce: Return the chicken to the slow cooker to coat in the sauce. Serve.
HOW TO FREEZE BBQ CHICKEN AND COOK LATER:
- Prepare BBQ Sauce: Add all of the BBQ sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and stir to combine. Heat sauce to a slight boil and then reduce to low heat for 15 minutes.
- Store: Once the BBQ sauce has cooled, combine the BBQ sauce and chicken breast in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag and freeze for up to to three months.
- Thaw: When ready to cook, thaw overnight in refrigerator.
- Cook: Follow cooking directions in the recipe below.
That’s all there is to it!
What are some of your favorite recipes to use BBQ sauce in?
I can’t wait to hear about it and hope you love this BBQ chicken and BBQ sauce as much as my family does!
Don’t forget to leave a comment below if you give this recipe a try!
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BBQ Shredded Chicken – Gluten Free & Dairy Free
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 3 hrs
- Total Time: 3 hrs 15 min
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 – 2 lbs chicken breast
- 2 cups BBQ sauce (I use the homemade BBQ sauce below)
Homemade BBQ Sauce Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup Apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp yellow mustard
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp gluten free Worcestershire sauce (I use “Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce”)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Add all of the BBQ sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and stir to combine.
- Heat sauce to a slight boil and then reduce to low heat for 15 minutes.
- Once the sauce has thickened, add the chicken and sauce to a slow cooker, stir to coat the chicken, and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 8 hours. If cooking in an Instant Pot, add the chicken and sauce to the pressure cooker, stir to coat the chicken, close the lid and make sure you are NOT venting. Select the Poultry setting which should be pre-programmed to cook for 20 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the slow cooker/Instant Pot and use two forks to shred. Then return the chicken to the slow cooker to coat in the sauce.
To Freeze and Cook Later
- Add all of the BBQ sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and stir to combine.
- Heat sauce to a slight boil and then reduce to low heat for 15 minutes.
- Once the BBQ sauce has cooled, combine the BBQ sauce and chicken breast in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag and freeze for up to to three months.
- When ready to cook, thaw overnight in refrigerator.
- Follow cooking directions above.
SHOP THIS RECIPE:
Here are some of the items/ingredients needed for this recipe:
Instant Pot | Slow Cooker | Gluten Free Worcestershire Sauce | Coconut Sugar
How do you serve this, and with what sides? We live in TX, but I’m not from here, so BBQ is not my strength. Trying to explore some homemade options for the husband!
Hi Jayme, you can serve this on buns to make sandwiches, on nachos, or on a salad. For sides you could serve it with BBQ baked beans, coleslaw, or pasta salad. You can do a search using the search bar at the top of the page for any of those recipes. I hope you enjoy! 😊
Just a little note that Lea and Perrins is only gluten free in the US. For UK people, it is not safe as it contains barley
Hi Adina, thank you so much for letting me know! Do you know of a gluten-free brand in the UK that can be used instead?