The recipe is super easy since all you do is mix all the barbecue sauce ingredients, pour it over the chicken and bake until it falls apart and fork tender.
Of course, if you prefer another part of the chicken besides the breast meat just make sure it's boneless when baking.
One other way to make this recipe is in a slow cooker just dump in the ingredients and let it cook on high for around 4 to 6 hours.
Shredded chicke are the perfect leftovers for topping nachos, lunches piled high in a roll or even in a taco for Taco Tuesday!
Scroll down to our easy printable recipe and also check out our other cooking easy methods below.
Easy Steps for Baked Pulled Barbecued Chicken
- preheat the oven and grease a baking pan
- mix all the barbecue sauce ingredients together
- pour over chicken breasts
- baked until the internal temperature is 165 degrees in the thickest part
- see the many serving suggestions below
Ingredients You Will Need
- chicken breast boneless
- tomato sauce and paste
- barbecue sauce or make it homemade
- smoked paprika, chili powder, granulated garlic, and fresh garlic
- molasses and brown sugar
- see the recipe card for the complete list with measurements
Leftover Pulled Chicken Serving Suggestions:
- flavored tortilla hot pocket or wraps
- on top of salads
- in artisan bread
- use in a panini
- a filling for stuffed pizza rolls
- topping for french bread pizza
- Leftovers are great to toss in cooked pasta or topping rice
- soft or hard taco shells
- over a barbecued chicken baked potato or as a topping for making garbage fries
- nachos or a Frito casserole with cheese topped and shredded chicken
- used in a southwest bean filling
- added to your favorite Chili recipes
Garnish Suggestions
- blue cheese dressing
- ranch dressing
- lettuce
- crumbled cooked crispy bacon
- tomato slices
- chopped onions
- diced jalapeno peppers or other peppers
- cayenne pepper for extra heat
- thickly sliced or shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- sliced olives
- pickle slices
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Other Cooking Methods
- Slow cooker: combine all the sauce ingredients and add them to a slow cooker place the whole boneless chicken into the cooker and make sure both sides are coated with the sauce place the slow cooker on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for around 6 to 8 hours
- Air Fryer: oil spray the chicken breast then add to the air fryer basket. Set the air fryer to 400 degrees for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through. Take the chicken out of the fryer with tongs and let it sit for 4 minutes the chicken rest for 5 minutes. Using kitchen scissors cut up the chicken and shred it into small pieces. Add the bbq sauce that's been heated and toss the chicken into the sauce
Best Leftovers for Many Other Dinner Meals
This recipe makes a lot of pulled chicken, so you can use the leftovers the next night for a different meal as it can be added to a barbecue-flavored chili recipe or even piled high on top of tortilla chips with melted cheese.
The meat also freezes well for another meal and is great for lunches just check out all our suggestions above if you missed any.
Just remember you can repurpose pulled chicken in tacos, and several other toppings with pasta and rice to have a whole new meal ahead for the week.
Baked Pulled Barbecued Chicken
Yield: 12
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 55 MinTotal time: 1 H & 5 M
This makes a large amount of barbecued shredded chicken perfect to feed a hungry crowd, especially at a family gathering or game day sporting event.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of boneless chicken breast
- 3 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- 1 can (15-ounce size) tomato sauce
- 1 can (small can 6 ounces) tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl evenly together.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a baking dish with cooking oil spray.
- Place the chicken breasts in the prepared pan.
- Pour the sauce on the chicken.
- Bake in a 350-degree preheated oven until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the breast is at 165 degrees (I use an instant-read thermometer).
- This takes around 55 minutes or more.
- Shred the chicken with two forks.
- Serve on hard rolls, over baked potatoes, topping nachos, steamed rice, or cooked pasta.
- Garnish with ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Notes
Leftover Pulled Chicken Serving Suggestions:
- flavored tortilla hot pocket or wraps
- on top of salads
- in artisan bread
- use in a panini
- a filling for stuffed pizza rolls
- topping for french bread pizza
- Leftovers are great to toss in cooked pasta or topping rice
- soft or hard taco shells
- barbecued chicken topped baked potato or as a topping for making garbage fries
- nachos or a Frito casserole with cheese topped and shredded chicken
- used in a southwest bean filling
- added to your favorite Chili recipes
Other Cooking Methods
- Slow cooker: combine all the sauce ingredients and add them to a slow cooker place the whole boneless chicken into the cooker and make sure both sides are coated with the sauce place the slow cooker on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for around 6 to 8 hours
- Air Fryer: oil spray the chicken breast then add to the air fryer basket. Set the air fryer to 400 degrees for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through. Take the chicken out of the fryer with tongs and let it sit for 4 minutes the chicken rest for 5 minutes. Using kitchen scissors cut up the chicken and shred it into small pieces. Add the bbq sauce that's been heated and toss the chicken into the sauce
Garnish Suggestions
- blue cheese dressing
- ranch dressing
- lettuce
- crumbled cooked crispy bacon
- tomato slices
- chopped onions
- diced jalapeno peppers or other peppers
- cayenne pepper for extra heat
- thickly sliced or shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- sliced olives
- pickle slices
Pin for later
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Slow Cooker Cheesecake
Slow Cooker Cacciatore
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