BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

This BBQ pulled chicken makes the most amazing sandwiches. Piled on a bun and topped with crisp lettuce, sliced red onion and fresh jalapeños, it’s a little savory, a little sweet, and a little spicy.

Feb 27, 2024

For today’s pulled chicken sandwiches, I used a very simple cooking method to prepare the chicken breasts – poaching. Poaching is a moist-heat cooking method that merely simmers food in liquid until it’s cooked through.

When done properly, ultra lean chicken breasts will be moist, juicy, and easy to shred. From a health standpoint, shredded poached chicken breast is a great alternative to using store-bought rotisserie chicken, which can be rather high in sodium.

For tender and succulent chicken breasts, follow these poaching tips.

Arrange chicken in a single layer in a large saucepan or pot. It’s fine if the pieces overlap slightly.

Add enough cold water to cover the chicken by one inch. Avoid adding the chicken to boiling water. This causes the poultry to tighten up quickly, resulting in a tough texture.

For extra flavorful chicken, add aromatics to the pot. Aromatics include garlic cloves, bay leaves, peppercorns, onion, carrots, celery, fresh ginger slices, orange or lemon peel, or fresh rosemary or thyme sprigs. You can even add white wine (about one cup) to the poaching liquid.

As soon as the water begins to simmer, reduce the heat to low and cover. Using an instant read thermometer, begin checking the chicken after 8 minutes. It’s done when the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 degrees. Depending on the thickness of the meat and whether it has a bone, the total cooking time is typically 10 to 15 minutes.

If you’re planning to use the poaching liquid to make soup or a sauce, it’s nice to skim away the white foam that often develops on the surface of the water as the chicken cooks. If you’ll be discarding the poaching liquid, it’s fine to let that foam dance around the pot as the chicken cooks.

To your health,

Darlene

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BBQ PULLED CHICKEN SANDWICHES

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: 1 sandwich

Prep: 20 minutes

Ready: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon neutral oil (such as canola or avocado oil)
1 cup diced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken breast
4 hamburger buns, whole-grain preferred
1 to 2 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
1 jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS

Add oil to a saucepan and over medium heat, sauté onion and garlic until onion softens; about 3 minutes.
Add salsa, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, salt, and black pepper and stir to combine. Add shredded chicken, stir to coat, and bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
To serve one sandwich, place a 1/2 cup pulled chicken on a bun and top with shredded lettuce, red onion, and jalapeño slices.

Nutrition Information per Serving

386 Calories, 7 g Total fat, 1 g Saturated fat, 0 g Trans fat, 48 mg Cholesterol, 799 mg Sodium, 52 g Total carbohydrate, 5 g Dietary fiber, 30 g Total sugars, 20 g Added sugars, 25 g Protein, 0 mcg (0%) Vitamin D, 128 mg (10%) Calcium, 2 mg (10%) Iron, 353 mg (8%) Potassium