BBQ Chicken Super Spuds

Last week I made Chicken and Rice Casserole, which hangs out in the oven for an hour.  It raised the temperature in our house noticeably so this week I'm trying to steer clear of the oven (after all it is over 100 degrees outside). I decided to make a variation of a great crock pot recipe I found in Taste of Home magazine last summer.  Love that thing.  This BBQ Chicken Baked Potato recipe is really good, you can check out the original recipe.  I really didn't change much at all. 

Where I live we have this great little BBQ place that has a "Super Spud"....baked potato topped with chopped brisket, spicy sauce, American cheese and onions [only those that know me can appreciate how rare it is for me to find a chopped brisket topping I will eat....there is always too much of the unknown in the typical chopped brisket].  I luv them. 

When I tried this chicken recipe I renamed it in honor of my beloved beef super spud.  Yes, that is overly dramatic.  Even I realize it.  Two out of three of my kids liked this.....major happiness for me.  Again with the drama.  And I officially did not have to turn on the oven.  That's not dramatic.  It's super hot here right now.

When I make this for my family I half the entire recipe except for the BBQ sauce.  And this time I did my potatoes in the microwave to avoid using the oven.  They are definitely a little bit chewier that way, and no crispy potato skin.....but it still works.  You put so much yummy on top that you don't notice. 

I put one package of frozen chicken breasts [I mean completely frozen, I had to fight to get the little paper/plastic drainy thing off the bottom off the chicken] in my crockpot.  I topped it with the garlic salt and the sliced red onion, saving the other half for on top later.  Then I mixed up all the wet stuff including 1 cup of BBQ sauce in a 4 cup Pyrex and poured it over the top. This was about 9:00.  I turned it on high for about 45 minutes because I was a little nervous about the chicken being frozen.  Then I just left it on low for the rest of the morning and afternoon.  After about 6 hours I pulled out the chicken and set it aside.  Then I poured the sauce through a strainer to catch all the little yuckies and the onion pieces.  I used two forks to pull off any additional fat yuckies on the chicken and shred it up.  I returned the chicken to the crock pot, poured the strained sauce over the top and stirred it up good.  Then I just left it on low for a couple more hours, stirring and tasting occasionally - but not because it needed to be stirred and tasted.  I just had a hard time leaving it alone.  This is what it looks like....

I washed five medium potatoes and wrapped them loosely in paper towels.  I cooked them in the microwave for about 12 minutes - 3 in one batch and 2 in the next.  Cook for 5 minutes, squish to see how soft they are and then cook for 5 minutes longer adding a couple more minutes if needed.

To finish the potatoes, split them down the middle and squish the potato soft (you should salt and pepper them here).  Top with a big spoonful of chicken and lots of sauce.  Add grated cheddar cheese and a few chopped red onions if you like that sort of thing.

Well now I'm getting all kinds of ideas....you could use this chicken in quesadillas or on a pizza with some pineapples or on a bun as a Super Sandwich. The possibilities are endless! 

 

BBQ Chicken Super Spuds

adapted from Taste of Home, August 2010

1 package chicken breasts, frozen or thawed

1 tablespoon garlic salt

1/2 red onion, sliced into thick rings

1 bottle (18 ounces) honey barbecue sauce

1/2 cup Italian salad dressing

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup cider vinegar

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

4-6 medium potatoes, baked

Grated Cheddar Cheese and chopped red onion for topping.

Place chicken in a slow cooker; sprinkle with garlic powder and top with onion. Combine 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, salad dressing, brown sugar, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until chicken is tender. Remove chicken, shred meat and return to slow cooker.  Strain sauce and discard onions.  Pour strained sauce with additional BBQ sauce over shredded chicken, keep on low for 1-2 more hours. 
Serve over baked potatoes with cheese and onions if desired. 

One final note; the first time I ever made this I cooked it on low for 6 hours in the evening, shredded the meat and strained the sauce then kept it overnight in fridge and reheated in crockpot on high for about an hour the next morning to be ready for a lunch meeting.