Instant Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken (Or Slow Cooker)

Name: Instant Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken (Or Slow Cooker)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 3 lbs boneless (skinless chicken thighs); 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon paprika; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper; 1 medium red or yellow onion (thinly sliced ); 1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce, divided; 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth; Brioche buns, (coleslaw, pickles)

Savoury, slightly sweet and tangy, this Instant Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken (or slow cooker) is full of complex flavours even though it is incredibly easy to make. Perfect for busy weeknights or to serve a crowd.

Pulled BBq chicken in a bun with coleslaw

Yes, I love to cook. But I also love an occasional break from cooking without sacrificing a good meal. Enter this Instant Pot pulled chicken. Holy. Moly. It is so easy, so fast and soooo good.

If you have a pressure cooker, you can throw together a big batch of this outrageously delicious pulled BBQ chicken in about 30 minutes. Yes, that includes the coming-up-to pressure time. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, a slow cooker will work just as well, you just have to plan ahead a bit.

Table of Contents[Hide]

Reasons To Love This Recipe
Ingredients And Notes
How to Make Instant Pot BBQ Chicken
How to Make Pulled Chicken In A Slow Cooker
Frequently Asked Questions
Serving Suggestions
Make Ahead And Storage Suggestions
More Instant Pot Recipes To Try
Instant Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken (Or Slow Cooker)

Store-bought BBQ sauce does most of the flavour enhancement here. Using spice-rubbed chicken thighs ensures the meat stays juicy and tender without drying out. I’m telling you, the ease and deliciousness of this dish will astound you.

Reasons To Love This Recipe

Versatile and affordable – This dish can be cooked in a slow cooker or Instant Pot and is easily doubled to serve a crowd. We enjoy it just as much tucked into toasted buns as we do piled on top of baked potatoes or wrapped in lettuce leaves.
Great for meal prep – Make this Instant Pot bbq chicken ahead to have for lunches or dinners throughout the week.
Easy and quick to prep – It shouldn’t take you longer than 15 minutes to prep this dish. Can’t beat that for a weeknight or entertaining a large group of kids and adults.
Hands-off cooking – The Instant Pot, or slow cooker are going to do most of the work for you.

Close up of Pulled BBQ chicken in sheet pan

Ingredients And Notes

I have no doubt this easy recipe is going to become your new favourite to serve a crowd or to make on a busy weeknight. The ingredients are so few and straightforward, you might already have them all on hand.

Boneless skinless chicken thighs: Hands down, for this recipe, chicken thighs will be juicier and more tender than chicken breast. That said, if you prefer to use chicken breast see the FAQ’s section below.
Onion: Not essential but some sliced onions add a bit of pungent sweetness to the dish that I really enjoy. You can use a red, white or yellow onion. Alternatively, you can use 1 teaspoon onion powder, if you prefer.
BBQ sauce: Here you can use your favorite BBQ sauce. See FAQ’s for more tips on which bbq sauce to use for this pulled chicken.
Spices and seasoning: A bit of garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper add colour and flavour to the chicken.
Chicken broth (low-sodium): The chicken releases a lot of liquid so we only need to add half a cup of extra liquid. Promise, you will not get the burn notice if you follow the instructions to a T. *Omit chicken broth if using a slow cooker.
Optional toppings: We love this pulled BBQ chicken with a simple coleslaw and some pickles on the side. You can also add some cheese, pickled onions, lettuce, avocado slices, etc.

How to Make Instant Pot BBQ Chicken

For this Instant Pot method, I do not bother browning the chicken, the difference in flavour, if any, is minimal and not worth the time or effort. I do however, recommend you sauté the onions for a few minutes which brings out their sweetness.

This recipe calls for 3 pounds of chicken which serves 8 people. But even if you’re serving less, trust me, you will be so happy to have leftovers.

Here are the easy steps to make it:

Rub the chicken with olive oil, seasoning, and spices.

Using the sauté function, cook the onion slices until just starting to soften, about 2 minutes.
Deglaze the bottom of the pot with the chicken broth, making sure you scrape up any browned bits from the onions. Stir in the BBQ sauce and place the chicken on top. Flip the chicken a few times to coat with sauce.
Cover the Instant pot making sure the valve is in the sealing position. Press manual (high pressure) and set the cook time to 8 minutes.
Allow a natural pressure release of 10 minutes then quick release to the venting position to remove any remaining pressure.

chicken thighs with sauce in instant pot

Transfer the cooked chicken to a baking sheet or cutting board, leaving the liquid behind in the pot. Reduce the liquid by pressing the “saute” button and simmer on high until sauce has reduced and thickened considerably, about 3-5 minutes. Meanwhile, shred the chicken using two forks, then return to the pot once the liquid has thickened. Taste and add more BBQ sauce if needed.
For delicious crispy edges (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) transfer the shredded meat to a sheet pan and place two inches underneath the broiler. Broil for 2-3 minutes, or until crispy, lightly charred spots appear.

To serve with buns: Toast buns on a grill or under the broiler then assemble with pulled chicken on the bottom and top with your choice of toppings. Enjoy!

Pulled BBq chicken in a bun with coleslaw and pickle jar

How to Make Pulled Chicken In A Slow Cooker

Coat bottom of slow cooker insert with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Layer onions then top with chicken. Sprinkle chicken with garlic powder, paprika salt and pepper. Top with 1 cup BBQ sauce and stir to coat.
Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours. Once the chicken is ready, transfer to cutting board or sheet pan and shred it with 2 forks. Place shredded chicken back into the slow cooker and stir in the remaining 1/2 cup BBQ sauce. Let sit for 10 minutes to allow the chicken to absorb some sauce and extra flavour.
For delicious crispy edges (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) transfer the chicken back to a sheet pan and place two inches underneath the broiler. Broil for 2-3 minutes, or until crispy, lightly charred spots appear.
To serve with buns: Toast buns on a grill or under the broiler then assemble with pulled chicken on the bottom and top with your choice of toppings. Enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you freeze bbq pulled chicken?

Yes, you absolutely can. Place the pulled bbq chicken in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.

Can I use boneless chicken breasts?

I strongly recommend chicken thighs which stay juicy and tender and take about 8 minutes to cook. If using chicken breast, add 2 more minutes of cooking time. If your chicken breasts are really thick and don’t seem fully cooked when you shred them, don’t worry. They will continue to cook when placed back in the liquid.

Which BBQ sauce works best for pulled chicken?

A good BBQ sauce will make this dish reliably tasty and delicious. Currently, I have been liking Stubb’s Original or Stubbs Spicy BBQ sauce. Both are pretty basic BBQ sauces (warning, the latter is spicy!) that are easy to find, pretty affordable and don’t contain high-fructose corn syrup. They also have great depth of flavour without being overly sweet or smoky.
If you have a favourite brand of BBQ sauce, please share in the comments. I’m always on a quest for a really good one!

How can I thicken the sauce?

Chicken thighs release a lot of liquid when cooked in an Instant Pot which is why we only add a minimal amount of liquid to the pot. If you have more than 2 cups of liquid left in the pot, remove (and reserve) 1 cup of liquid before you set it to sauté function. This will help the liquid reduce and thicken faster. Don’t worry if it still seems like you have a lot of liquid, once you add the shredded chicken back into the pot, the chicken will absorb a lot of the liquid. Similarly, placing the chicken under the broiler will dry out a lot of the liquid.
Use the reserved liquid to reheat leftovers or to drizzle over the chicken if it seems a bit dry when you serve it.

Can I use frozen chicken?

Yes! Frozen chicken works just as well. Frozen chicken pieces can be placed in a single layer, cook for 15 minutes. If the chicken pieces are still frozen together in a big clump, cook for 20 minutes. Depending on how thick your chicken pieces are, they may not be fully cooked. If this happens, just turn on saute and cook it a little longer.

Serving Suggestions

We love to eat the pulled BBQ chicken with toasted brioche buns and coleslaw as topping. Crunchy pickles of any kind are also a must for us.

If you are avoiding bread, the saucy chicken is also delicious with baked potatoes, tucked into lettuce wraps, with a chopped crispy salad, or with a grain such as quinoa or brown rice.

Make Ahead And Storage Suggestions

Like many braises, the saucy pulled chicken improves overnight which makes it a great dish to make ahead and/or to have for meals throughout the week.

Make ahead: Cook the pulled BBQ chicken up to 3 days in advance; store the cooked and shredded chicken in the refrigerator tightly covered. Store sauce in a separate container. When ready to serve, soak the chicken with sauce and reheat under broiler or in a pan over medium heat on the stovetop.
Leftovers: Store any chicken leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Freeze: Place the pulled BBQ chicken in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.

More Instant Pot Recipes To Try

If you give this Instant Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken (Or Slow Cooker) recipe a try, please feel free to leave a comment and/or a star rating below. We appreciate and welcome all your feedback. Thank you

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