Yes, you can make a fresh meal with the help of your slow cooker! These Honey BBQ Chicken Bowls are made using juicy slow cooker chicken that gets added to all of summers fresh veggies for a refreshing meal you can't beat!
Why are bowl meals popular?
You may be seeing lots of recipes on Pinterest or Instagram that show you the latest meal in a bowl. Is this really revolutionary? Or just a silly trend?
I think the idea is to truly simplify meal time and give you all the nutrition you need in one simple bowl without a lot of thought, effort or fuss.
These Honey BBQ Chicken Bowls are simple because you use your slow cooker to make your protein. It's so easy to throw your chicken in a slow cooker and add some sauce. Let it cook then shred when done and use the chicken for any number of meals. Add your favorite grains and veggies and you have a complete, simple and tasty meal.
Ingredients
For the chicken you'll only need two things to add to it to make it delicious.
First, grab a delicious BBQ sauce. I like to find one with less added sugar. Not only is it healthier, but it won't burn as easily in the slow cooker.
Next up, honey! This will add some sweetness to the sauce without the overly processed sugar. I prefer raw honey because it still contains most of it's nutrients and antioxidants.
How to make BBQ chicken in the slow cooker:
- add raw chicken breasts (boneless and skinless) to the slow cooker
- top with the honey and bbq sauce mixture
- let cook all day on low or half the day on high
- remove and shred
- add back as much of the juice from the slow cooker as you'd like and discard the rest
Tips for shredding chicken...
If your chicken won't shred easily, it may simply need to cook longer. Move it around in the slow cooker to ensure that all parts are soaking in the juices and let it cook until it shreds easily with a fork.
While you can simply use 2 forks to pull apart your chicken by hand but I also love using my hand mixer and placing the chicken in a large bowl and running the mixer through it. It makes it quick and easy and gives the chicken a finely shredded consistency.
How to Serve Shredded Honey BBQ Chicken
The options are truly endless here! What's great about this chicken is that you can make a double or triple batch and freeze the extras. Then simply thaw and serve in these bowls or in any number of different ways!
Tacos, salads, wraps and pizzas come to mind for simple and easy dinners or lunches.
I like to make it a complete meal in a bowl by cooking up some:
- farro or another grain (or chickpea rice for grain/gluten-free)
- my favorite fresh chopped veggies like artisan lettuce and baby tomatoes
- top it off with fresh avocado slices and my favorite zesty lime ranch.
Similar recipes you may love...
- Slow Cooker Jalapeño Peach Chicken Bowls
- Slow Cooker California Chicken Bowls
- Slow Cooker Pork Enchilada Bowls
- Slow Cooker Cuban Chicken Bowls
Slow Cooker Honey BBQ Chicken Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
- ½ cup BBQ sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 cup farro
- 6 ounces mixed lettuce greens (I like the artisan style baby lettuce that comes in a 4-pack)
- 8 oz grape tomatoes
- handful of fresh cilantro
- 2 avocados
- 8 tablespoons zesty lime ranch dressing
Instructions
- Add chicken to slow cooker
- Whisk together BBQ sauce and honey and pour over chicken
- Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8
- Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred
- Add additional BBQ sauce if desired
- Cook farro according to package directions
- Wash and chop salad greens and cilantro and slice grape tomatoes
- Cut avocados in half and remove pits then slice and remove from skin
- Divide among 4 bowls and serve drizzled with zesty lime ranch or as desired
Notes
- You'll want to use a 3-4 quart slow cooker for this recipe
- You can make the chicken up to 2 days in advance and refrigerate and reheat or you can freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw and heat before serving.
- Choose a BBQ sauce with minimal sugar to prevent burning in the slow cooker
- Use any fresh veggies you prefer and let your family serve up their own custom bowls
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