Making pulled chicken is SO EASY– simply add all the ingredients in your slow cooker and let it do its magic.
A few hours later you will have the tenderest chicken in a tangy and delicious sauce – ready to be served on buns, in wraps, salads or over rice.
Slimming friendly, kid approved, suitable for freezing, great for meal planning and above all delicious! Check out my pulled chicken recipe, video and step by step tutorial.
You will also love my… Pulled Pork recipe
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What is pulled chicken?
The clue is in the name! This recipe is also known as shredded chicken or BBQ pulled chicken and it resembles the family favourite pulled pork… but it is much easier and quicker to make.
In this slimming chicken recipe, skinless chicken breasts are thrown in the slow cooker together with onions, garlic tomato paste and seasonings and slowly cooked until perfectly tender.
Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken Ingredients
Most recipes use an entire bottle of BBQ sauce, but since I have wanted to make this recipe FREE on Slimming World I have replaced with the following ingredients
- Onions and garlic blitzed in mini food processor until finely minced. You can also do this by hand
- An entire tube of tomato purée (140g/ 5oz)
- English mustard or yellow mustard
- Cider vinegar
- Worcestershire sauce
- Salt, garlic powder, Sukrin Gold sweetener (or brown sugar), mild chilli powder, cayenne pepper
- Large skinless chicken breasts – I have used four here but you can use up to six if you like. You can also use skinless chicken thighs if you like
- A little chicken stock or water
HOW TO MAKE PULLED CHICKEN
Take a look at this step by step tutorial – please note you will find the full recipe, including ingredients in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Blitzh the onions and garlic in a mini food chopper. Add the onions, garlic, tomato purée, mustard, vinegar, salt and spices in your slow cooker.
Mix well using a wooden spoon to form a thick paste.
Add the chicken breasts and coat in the sauce.
Cover the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours (or up to 4) on 4-6 hours on LOW. The chicken is ready when you can easily pull it apart using two forks or see notes.
Use tongs to remove the chicken from the cooker and set aside on a cutting board or platter. Use two forks to shred the chicken.
Add the shredded chicken back into the sauce together with a little water or chicken stock – as much as you like depending on how saucy you like your shredded chicken!. Continue cooking on LOW for another hour or until the chicken is warmed through.
Check the seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed and serve.
HOW DO I KNOW WHEN MY CHICKEN IS DONE?
Ideally you should check the chicken with a digital thermometer after two and a half hours. It is ready when the internal temperature is 75C / 165F.
If you don’t have a thermometer, take a breast out of the cooker and slice into the thickest part to check the meat is cooked through with no pink showing.
HOW TO SHRED CHICKEN
You can use two forks to pull the chicken apart which is easy enough… Did you know you can also shred poached chicken in your stand mixer? This works well if you make a large quantity of pulled chicken.
Put the chicken breasts in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on lowest speed setting fo a few seconds until the chicken is shredded. Only downside is that you will have some extra washing up to do!
HOW TO SERVE PULLED CHICKEN
This recipe is so versatile and perfect for a slimming lunch. Here are some serving ideas but feel free to get creative!
- Piled high on burger buns (one 60g wholemeal bun is allowed as an extra on Slimming World) with some coleslaw.
- Served in wraps (try Weight Watchers wraps for a slimming option) with grated cheese, sour cream and all the fajita fixings
- Make enchiladas or quesadillas – I mean, YUM!
- Over rice or mashed potatoes
- With salad – try making a salad bowl with tomatoes, cucumber, shredded lettuce, carrots and black beans
- As a jacket potato (baked potato) filling
- If you have some leftovers make pulled chicken pizza, it is so delicious!
A SLIMMING CHICKEN RECIPE
There’s just under 300 calories and 5 Weight Watchers Smart Points in one portion of slow cooker pulled chicken (without any sides, bread etc.)
It is free on Slimming World (there ARE some negligible sins for the Sukrin which I am choosing to ignore) – make sure you serve with some added veggies or salad.
Please note I am not affiliated in any way with Slimming World or Weight Watchers. These weight loss plans are often updated in line with latest nutritional guidance and may change so for accurate information it is best to join as a member.
FREEZING INSTRUCTIONS
The pulled chicken will keep in the fridge for up to three days. You can also freeze, in portions, for up to three months. Having a few portions stashed in the freezer means you will never be stuck for a slimming meal if you are working late or haven’t had time to shop!
Defrost overnight in the fridge then heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally and adding a little water if needed.
HAVE YOU MADE MY PULLED CHICKEN RECIPE? Post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!
Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 red onions , minced,
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 140 g (5 oz) tomato purée (1 whole tube)
- 1 tbsp English mustard (yellow mustard)
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp brown sugar or Sukrin Gold sweetener
- 2 tsp mild chilli powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 6 large chicken breasts , skinless
- Salt and pepper to season
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) chicken stock or water, more if preferred
Instructions
- Blitz the onions and garlic in a food processor or mince using a grater. Add the minced onions, garlic, tomato purée, mustard, vinegar, salt and spices in your slow cooker.
- Mix well using a wooden spoon until you have a thick paste.
- Add the chicken breasts and coat in the sauce.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours on 4-6 hours on LOW. The chicken is ready when you can easily pull it apart using two forks or when it registers 75C/165F when checked with a digital thermometer.
- Use tongs to remove the chicken from the cooker and set aside on a cutting board or platter. Use two forks to shred the chicken.
- Add the shredded chicken back into the sauce together with 80ml (1/3 cup) water or chicken stock. Continue cooking on LOW for another hour or until the chicken is warmed through. Check the seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed and serve.
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