Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken Sliders
Sweet and tangy pulled barbecued chicken is served up on little Hawaiian rolls and topped with pickle slices and thinly sliced red onion. These sliders make a perfect hearty, party appetizer.
I know it’s old school, but I must admit that I still love using my “unfashionable” slow cooker (aka crock pot). Even though the snazzy Instant Pot is the new darling of the slow cooker culinary world, I always find myself reaching for that trusty crock pot instead. In fact, that trusty slow cooker is what I used to make these delicious pulled chicken sliders.
There seems to be a little debate on whether or not you should cook boneless skinless chicken breast in a slow cooker. Because the breast has very little fat and connective tissue, prolonged cooking can cause the muscle fibers to tighten, making the chicken tough, chewy, and dry. When making the pulled chicken for today’s sliders, I found that if you set the crock pot on low heat, add enough liquid, and cook them to the appropriate temperature, the breasts shred easily, and the finished pulled chicken is juicy, tender, and flavorful.
Let me show you how to make these delicious sliders using the “old-fashioned” slow cooker. Start by adding three large (about 8 ounces each) boneless skinless chicken breasts to the bottom of the crock. For food safety reasons, the chicken breasts should be fully thawed before adding them to the slow cooker. Because bacteria flourish at temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees F, you want raw chicken to be out of that temperature danger zone as soon as possible.
Cover the breasts with a simple sauce made of apricot jam, your favorite bottled barbecue sauce, brown sugar, cider vinegar, chili powder, and dry mustard. If you don’t have apricot jam, peach jam makes a fantastic substitute.
Next, add the chopped onion and minced garlic. Cover, set the heat to low, and walk away. For the best results, shred the chicken breasts when they’ve reached an internal temperature of a 165 degrees F. Using a digital meat thermometer, start checking the temperature of the breasts about 1 1/2 hours into the cooking process. As slow cookers vary slightly, so do cooking times. Reaching that 165 degrees F mark could take anywhere from 1 1/2 to 3 hours.
Once the chicken breasts are ready to shred, remove them from the crock and place them on a cutting board. Using two forks, pull apart and shred the breasts into bite-size pieces.
Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and give it a good stir. Cover with the lid and allow the pulled chicken to cook for an additional 20 minutes.
Finally, add the salt and pepper. I find adding these seasonings at the very end enhances all the wonderful flavors in this savory pulled chicken.
These sliders make a great appetizer for summer potlucks and backyard barbecue parties. To assemble one, place some pulled chicken (a 1/4 cup will do) on a little slider bun (I love using the small King’s Hawaiian Original Sweet Rolls) and top with a couple pickle slices and thinly sliced red onion. These sliders may be small in size, but they’re definitely big in flavor.
To your health,
Darlene
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SLOW COOKER PULLED CHICKEN SLIDERS
Yield: 16 servings
Serving Size: 1 slider
Prep: 15 minutes
Ready: 2 hours 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
3/4 cup apricot jam (or peach jam)
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
16 slider buns (such as King’s Hawaiian Original Hawaiian Sweet Rolls)
32 bread and butter pickle slices (about 1 3/4 cups pickle slices)
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
DIRECTIONS
Place chicken breasts in the crock of a slow cooker.
In a bowl, whisk together jam, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, chili powder, and dry mustard. Pour sauce over chicken and top with onion and garlic. Cover and cook on low for 1 1/2 to 3 hours or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a chicken breast registers 165 degrees F.
Remove chicken breasts from slow cooker and shred into bite-size pieces. Return shredded chicken to slow cooker, stir to coat chicken with sauce, cover, and cook an additional 20 minutes.
To assemble sliders, place a 1/4 cup of pulled chicken on a slider bun and top with pickle slices and red onion slices.
Nutrition Information per Serving
213 Calories, 3 g Total fat, 1 g Saturated fat, 0 g Trans fat, 42 mg Cholesterol, 267 mg Sodium, 33 g Total carbohydrate, 0 g Dietary fiber, 20 g Total sugars, 19 g Added sugars, 13 g Protein, 0 mcg (0%) Vitamin D, 38 mg (2%) Calcium, 1 mg (6%) Iron, 174 mg (4%) Potassium
© 2025 RECIPES MADE HEALTHY BY DARLENE ZIMMERMAN, MS, RD LLC
