Slow Cooker Rauchbier Pulled Chicken
Try this easy and flavorful recipe for Slow Cooker Rauchbier Pulled Chicken for a cozy meal.
Try this easy and flavorful recipe for Slow Cooker Rauchbier Pulled Chicken for a cozy meal.
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 cup cider vinegar
- 1 8- ounce can tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoons dry mustard (i used colman's)
- 1/4 cup apricot jam
- 1 7.5 ounces can chipotle in adobo
- 1 cup smoked beer (i used aecht schlenkerla mã¤rzen rauch
- 5.5 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs
- hot sauce for serving
- Carbohydrate 19.4384300084561 g
- Cholesterol 345.108194841667 mg
- Fat 16.5968248614392 g
- Fiber 2.85854166828994 g
- Protein 83.9808431463289 g
- Saturated Fat 4.17408589166779 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (552g)
- Sodium 790.411996189044 mg
- Sugar 16.5798883401661 g
- Trans Fat 3.26003494260475 g
- Calories 589 calories
Step-by-step
- In a large bowl, stir together tomato sauce, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, and cumin. Add apricot jam and stir until no clumps of jam remain. Add entire contents of chipotle in adobo can and stir to distribute.
- Place chicken in a 6-quart slow cooker. Pour sauce over and add beer, stir to coat chicken and distribute. Cover and cook on low 7 to 8 hours.
- When chicken is done, turn off slow cooker and lift each piece of chicken from the sauce with a slotted spoon or tongs. Shred chicken using two forks, placing shredded chicken in a 6-qt pot. Shred chipotles along with the chicken, or discard for a milder dish. Defat cooking liquid using a fat separator (or skim fat from the slow cooker before pouring onto chicken.) Refrigerate chicken in the sauce at this point if you're serving later, or reheat immediately to serve, along with hot sauce if desired.
Operating with a single standard six-quart slow cooker demands careful volume management when handling five and a half pounds of poultry. Cramming raw meat directly into cold liquid prevents even heat distribution, so whisking the tomato sauce, cider vinegar, and spices in a separate mixing bowl first guarantees the apricot jam disperses completely without clinging to the ceramic insert. Liquid levels matter significantly in enclosed ceramic vessels. Pouring in the full cup of smoked beer alongside the adobo sauce creates sufficient moisture for a seven-hour simmer on low without requiring additional water that would dilute the concentrated flavor base.
### Managing Fat and Texture
Extended thermal processing breaks down collagen in skinless boneless chicken thighs, rendering intramuscular fat into the braising liquid. Pulling the meat out with tongs rather than dumping the pot contents prevents the shredded chicken from absorbing excess grease pooled at the bottom. Defatting the remaining cooking liquid through a dedicated fat separator yields a clean jus to moisten the meat before serving. Swapping the smoked beer for a standard amber ale alters the distinct campfire profile, demanding an extra teaspoon of smoked paprika to mimic the missing malt characteristics.
* Forgetting to shred the whole chipotle peppers embedded in the sauce will result in pockets of intense localized heat.
* Leaving the slow cooker on the warm setting for more than two hours post-cooking dries out the exterior fibers of the shredded poultry.
* Straining the hot liquid through a fine-mesh sieve works if a mechanical fat separator is unavailable in a compact kitchen space.
