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Looking for a great weeknight chicken recipe? My Crockpot Spicy Pulled Chicken Recipe is the perfect 5-ingredient meal! Cooked in a slow cooker, it’s sweet and spicy and perfect by itself or made into pulled chicken sandwiches!
EASY Shredded Spicy Chicken in the Crockpot
My daughter always tells me I make 5 things for dinner and they’re all the same: some version of chicken and vegetables. And, I mean, she’s not wrong: we eat chicken a few times a week and usually I do serve it with some sort of vegetable, like green beans or carrots. I will admit that sometimes I get on the lazy train and just make simple grilled chicken with a boring vegetable and I’ll admit, it is boring.
Jordan’s a bit picky with her flavors (as am I) but one flavor she’s always liked is barbecue. When she was little we’d make (boring) grilled chicken and she’d dip it in barbecue sauce and I often make a baked BBQ chicken that’s to die for. Lately I’ve been relying on my crockpot more because I love do-ahead meals I can set and forget, and that’s how this spicy pulled chicken was born.
Typically you see pulled pork as a crockpot dish, but we’re not huge pork eaters. I like it okay, but I prefer chicken. BBQ pulled chicken like this can totally be made into pulled pork by just substituting pork shoulder or some other similar cut of meat.
Crockpot Spicy Pulled Chicken has just 5 ingredients and is made in the slow cooker. It’s great alone or over rice, or served on Hawaiian rolls!
5 ingredient Spicy Pulled Chicken
- Chili Sauce: Use the kind in the condiment aisle
- BBQ sauce: When it comes to barbecue sauce, use your favorite. I love Sweet Baby Ray’s but I also use Kraft or whatever is on sale. Just make a note – since we’re adding spicy chili sauce you don’t want to start with a spicy BBQ sauce or it might be too spicy for your family.
- Onion: For extra flavor
- Chicken: I used boneless skinless chicken breasts. You can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
- Root Beer: Don’t use diet soda – the artificial sugars will condense and not taste good.
How to make Crockpot Spicy Pulled Chicken
- Simply mix the wet ingredients: chili sauce, BBQ sauce and root beer, and pour it over the chicken and onions in the crockpot.
- I always like to start with onions or some other vegetable on the bottom of my slow cooker. Adding thinly sliced onions to this add nice flavor and go perfect if you’re making pulled chicken sandwiches.
- Whenever I’m cooking with a crockpot I also like to use a liner for easy clean-up (you can see it in that photo). I just love how easy it makes the crockpot to clean – like lining your cookie sheets before baking. Reynold’s makes Slow Cooker Liners you can buy with all the other plastic wrap and foil, but you don’t have to use them if you don’t want to.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 2-4 hours or low for 4-6 hours. You want to check your chicken after 2 hours to see if it’s done. Boneless chicken gets dry if you cook it too long, so start checking after 2 hours.
- Once your chicken reaches 165°F (internal temperature) it’s done cooking. Use an instant read thermometer for easy temperature checks.
- Remove it and shred it, then you can return it to the slow cooker and stir, then keep it on warm.
Serving Suggestions
- Make sandwiches with any kind of buns (you could even make your own homemade potato rolls or pretzel rolls to serve these on). There’s not much better than a pulled chicken sandwich for dinner or as an appetizer, is there?
- Turn into a chicken salad
- Serve with a side of coleslaw
- We often just serve this with a side vegetable, like broccoli or green beans because we’re boring.
Tip From Dorothy
Expert Tips
- I don’t find the need to add extra salt and pepper, but you can do that to taste after the chicken is done cooking.
- How to avoid dry chicken in a crockpot: The key to making sure your chicken is done but not overdone and dry is to check the internal temperature after 2 hours on high. I know it’s called a slow cooker but if you’re using boneless breasts you really can’t let them go that much longer or they’ll be like rubber.
- Cooking time will also depend on how much chicken, the size of your crockpot, and how big the breasts are.
- You can shred your chicken with 2 forks by hand or place chicken breasts in a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (add a little chicken broth or the liquid from the slow cooker) and run the mixer until the meat is shredded.
- Storage: Store leftover pulled chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also freeze leftovers for up to a month in the freezer.
Crockpot Spicy Pulled Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts see note
- 1 large yellow onion sliced thin
- 18 ounces barbecue sauce use your favorite
- 12 ounces chili sauce such as Heinz
- 8 ounces root beer
Instructions
- If desired, use a crockpot liner (i.e. Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners) for easy cleanup.
- Slice the onions into thin wedges. Place the onions in the bottom of the crockpot liner.
- Place the chicken on top of the onions.
- Mix remaining ingredients in a measuring cup or bowl. Pour over chicken. Cover crockpot.
- Set on HIGH for 3 hours. After 2 hours, check the chicken temperature. Once it's at 165°F it's done cooking. (May only take 2 hours; mine is usually done after 2 hours but it depends on your slow cooker.)
- Alternately, cook on LOW for 5-6 hours, checking after 4 hours to check the temperature of the chicken.
- Shred chicken by pulling it with two forks. Serve alone, on a bed of rice, or make sandwiches with Hawaiian or other rolls.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- If you want to use more chicken, you can use up to 2 pounds. Make sure breasts are uniform in size and place in a single layer or the cooking time will be affected.
- How to avoid dry chicken in a crockpot: The key to making sure your chicken is done but not overdone and dry is to check the internal temperature after 2 hours on high. I know it’s called a slow cooker but if you’re using boneless breasts you really can’t let them go that much longer or they’ll be like rubber.
- Cooking time will also depend on how much chicken, the size of your crockpot, and how big the breasts are.
- You can shred your chicken with 2 forks by hand or place chicken breasts in a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (add a little chicken broth or the liquid from the slow cooker) and run the mixer until the meat is shredded.
- Storage: Store leftover pulled chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also freeze leftovers for up to a month in the freezer.
Recipe Nutrition
Crockpot Spicy Pulled Chicken is perfect for tacos or sandwiches and is a great make ahead weeknight meal!
Favorite Chicken Recipes
Last Updated on January 18, 2024
I, too, do not like dark meat. I often cook chicken breasts in my crockpot (especially during the summer-to keep my kitchen cooler). I love Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce and use it all the time. I’ve never thought to put a layer of sliced onions on the bottom of the crockpot, but I will now. I love onions!
Does this have the flavor of root beer when finished? It looks delicious but I dislike the taste of root beer.
I don’t taste it – but you can also use coke or dr. pepper in place.
I received so many compliments! Was so unbelievably delicious and easy! I made sandwiches with Hawaiian bun rolls. I used 2 large pieces of chicken and it fed 3 adults and 2 children (all hungry and ate multiple multiple sandwiches). I cooked on high for 3 hours then let it sit in warm.
Can you use frozen chicken breasts or should they be thawed…
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