Slow Cooker Barbecue Pulled Chicken – Cranberry Sherry BBQ Sauce

Slow cooker barbecue pulled chicken is irresistible! You’ll want to drink the cranberry sherry barbecue sauce that this chicken is cooked in.

This post is in partnership with Holland House – thank you for supporting Rachel Cooks by reading about brands I use in my own kitchen!

Everyone ready for cranberry season? I sure am. I have a bag of fresh cranberries waiting in the fridge ready for a new variety of cranberry sauce. Last year we did orange cranberry sauce with cardamom and cinnamon apple cranberry sauce. Have you ever tried roasting cranberries? We love this roasted cranberry sauce with apples, grapes, and shallots.

And I just know that we’ll be digging into my two ingredient cranberry salsa again this year because people can’t resist it.

This slow cooker barbecue pulled chicken is a total hit in our house. I put it in the slow cooker in the morning and it’s ready by supper time.

It’s a perfect make ahead meal, too. It freezes well, or keeps in the fridge for up to three days.

The barbecue sauce is a winner and you’ll find it’s not your standard barbecue sauce. Discover the layers of flavor in this sauce: the sweet and tangy cranberry, tomato acidity, the citrusy orange, and Holland House Sherry Cooking Wine, which adds more depth of flavor and an extra boost to this recipe.

It’s kind of hard to describe the taste of sherry cooking wine. Holland House describes it as having “a light golden color and sweet aroma. With a mild dry sherry wine flavor, it also has hints of nut and caramel.” You’ll be adding it to a variety of dishes because sherry cooking wine adds a subtle flavor that’s all its own. I love it in vinaigrettes or sprinkled on a dish of roasted vegetables. 

PS: I top these slow cooker barbecue pulled chicken sandwiches with my healthier coleslaw. Barbecued meat and coleslaw make a perfect sandwich: soft bun, chewy meat, crispy creamy coleslaw, so yummy!

Slow cooker sandwiches

Here’s a few of my favorite recipes:

 

• Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Plum Bourbon Barbecue Sauce
• Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken for Tacos (so easy and great for a crowd)
• Healthy Taco Meat (make it in a skillet, and keep it warm in a slow cooker)
• Mango Bourbon Pulled Pork
• Slow Cooker Spicy Buffalo Chicken
• Slow Cooker Pork Tacos
• Slow Cooker Cuban Pork (Mojo Pork)

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Slow Cooker Barbecue Pulled Chicken - Cranberry Sherry BBQ Sauce

Yield: 10 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 4 hours

Additional Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes

This slow cooker barbecue pulled chicken is irresistible! You'll want to drink the cranberry sherry barbecue sauce.

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Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 1/2 – 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 1 cup finely diced red onion (about 1/2 large red onion)
• 1 can (14 oz) jellied cranberry sauce
• 1½ cup ketchup
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup Holland House Sherry Cooking Wine
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoon cornstarch + 3 tablespoons water
• For serving: buns and coleslaw

Instructions

1. Add chicken breasts and chicken thighs to the bottom of a large (6 or 7 quart) slow cooker. Add onions, cranberry sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, Holland House Sherry Cooking Wine, orange juice, and brown sugar.
2. Cover, and cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours.
3. Remove chicken to a plate and shred using two forks. Return to slow cooker.
4. In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and water using a fork until there are no lumps. Slowly stir the cornstarch mixture into chicken and sauce until combined. Cook on high with lid slightly ajar for 20 minutes, or until sauce thickens.
5. Serve on toasted bun with slaw.

Notes

• I used a combination of boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs. You could also use all breasts or all thighs.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1 of 10
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 445Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 189mgSodium: 848mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 21gProtein: 52g

RachelCooks.com sometimes provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as they are not calculated by a registered dietician. Please consult a medical professional for any specific nutrition, diet, or allergy advice.

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