BBQ Chicken

Like everyone else, I have weeks when I know I'm not going to be home long enough to cook much. Those are the weeks I try to make something that will last several days so I can live on leftovers. This is one of my favorite easily fixed/easily reheated recipes.

The BBQ sauce recipe came from my pastor's wife at the church I attended from college until very recently. She always brought meatballs with this sauce to all the carry-ins, and I don't think she often took any home. I'm kind of picky about BBQ, and this is the best recipe I've ever found (at least for my tastes). I've also used it in a small slow cooker with little sausages/hot dogs as a party appetizer.

Since the season of busyness AND parties has arrived, I thought maybe this was a good one to share with you now!

Recipe:

1 whole chicken (thawed)
2 cups ketchup
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Put whole chicken in slow cooker for 8 hours on low (adjust time as necessary until thoroughly cooked). Pull chicken from bone and place in large bowl. Mix together ketchup, brown sugar, liquid smoke, garlic powder, and onion powder until sugar is dissolved. Pour over chicken and mix up well. Serve warm.

****PLEASE NOTE**** The BBQ sauce recipe will make more than you need for a chicken, unless you like a lot of sauce. I usually cut the recipe in half.

My sister introduced me to the slow cooker liners, which are AMAZING. You can find them in the grocery store near the plastic bags/foil/wax paper. Whenever you're making a messy slow cooker recipe, you can line your cooker with these bags to make a MUCH simpler cleanup. When you're done cooking, just gather up the bag, tie it, and toss it! Totally worth the money in my opinion.

Here is another of my favorite kitchen gadgets. My former roommate, Angela, gave this to me for Christmas one year, and it is wonderful. KitchenArt.com makes these spice/candy carousels. There are basic models, but mine is the elite model, which not only stores the spice, but has an auto-measure on it too. I keep my most frequently used spices in this so I don't have to dig through the cabinet every time I cook. it spins around, and when you find the one you want...

...you can use the 1/4 teaspoon measure feature on the bottom and save using a spoon! You just rotate the end cap, and every click is 1/4 teaspoon.

Okay - on to the actual recipe. I usually end up freezing the chickens when I buy them, and then I thaw them out in the refrigerator for a couple of days before I actually cook them. And in case you've never before cooked with liquid smoke...a little goes a long way.

Here is the chicken straight out of the packaging. I don't even add water - since it's packed in water. I usually put it in to cook when I leave for work in the morning....

...and by the time I come home, it's done cooking! I use a thermometer to check it - just to make myself feel better. The thermometer has a poultry reading on it, so I measure it against that.

I just put my bowl beside the slow cooker and use a fork to pull the meat from the bone. It's HOT, so be careful!

Once I have all the meat in the bowl, I pick through it to shred it and to check for any pieces of bone.

See? Smaller pieces.

Just a little bowl will work for the BBQ sauce ingredients. This is the half recipe. If you make enough meatballs to fill a full 5 quart slow cooker, you'll need the full recipe.

TA-DA!!! I just put the lid on the bowl and stick it in the refrigerator until I'm ready to eat, and then I warm up enough for one sandwich.