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Made with an easy homemade BBQ sauce, these Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Thighs are perfect for weeknight dinners – just dump everything in the crockpot in 5 minutes! The BBQ chicken is great on its own or shredded for BBQ chicken sandwiches.
Most crockpot bbq chicken thigh recipes have you use a store-bought sauce, but this recipe is easy enough to make without all those additives and extra sugar. It’s not only minimal effort, but also extremely flavorful.
Because the chicken thighs are slow cooked, they become very tender and are also able to absorb all the flavors from the homemade sauce. This meal is great for nights that you need to cook dinner ahead or are very tired, but still want a homemade meal.
Serve this recipe with easy side dishes like my Butter Lettuce Salad or Fingerling Potato Salad.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Thighs
- Easy – Throw all the ingredients into the crockpot and set to cook for either 2 hours or up to 8 hours. It takes less than 10 minutes to prepare!
- Quick Homemade BBQ Sauce – This BBQ chicken without store-bought BBQ sauce uses fresh ingredients that are additive-free and lower sugar than other recipes.
- BBQ Chicken Sandwiches – Shred the chicken thighs to create the most flavorful BBQ chicken sandwiches!
This recipe fits a multitude of diets including low sodium, a migraine diet, gluten free, and dairy free. You could even make this paleo by using honey instead of brown sugar or leave out the sugar entirely for whole30.
Boneless or Bone-In Chicken Thighs?
Use boneless chicken thighs for a faster cooking time and an easier way to eat them. They shred easily without having to pick out the bones.
Use bone-in chicken thighs for the best flavor, but add another 2 hours of cooking time. Be sure to buy skin-off.
You do not need to sear the chicken thighs before slow cooking, although if using bone-in, it can help them cook a little bit faster.
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs – I used air chilled boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. I prefer air chilled because they don’t retain water like regular chicken thighs, leaving the sauce less watery. Boneless also tends to cook faster than bone-in, but they’re more forgiving than chicken breasts, which can dry out if cooked too long.
- Strained tomatoes – This will be the base of the BBQ sauce and found in boxes or cans next to all the canned tomatoes. I like the Pomi Brand or De Rica. If you can’t find strained, plain tomato sauce will work (make sure the ingredients are just tomatoes).
- Brown sugar – Just a touch to add some sweetness without too much sugar!
- Apple juice – Adds depth of flavor to the homemade BBQ sauce.
- Spices – Smoked paprika is what is going to add that smoky BBQ flavor to our chicken thighs. Cayenne and ground mustard powder also adds to the flavor.
Step by Step Process
These crockpot bbq chicken thighs are such a simple recipe, it doesn’t require a lot of effort.
Step 1: Prep sauce ingredients and add them to the slow cooker
Place the shallots, garlic, strained tomatoes, spices, and sugar into the bottom of your slow cooker and mix everything together till smooth.
Step 2: Add the chicken thighs to the crock pot
Spread your chicken thighs over the top of the sauce, then turn them so they’re coated on both sides in the bbq sauce.
Step 3: Slow cook
Place the cover of your slow cooker back on and cook on high heat for about 2 hours or low heat for about 4-6 hours.
Step 4: Shred BBQ chicken thighs, if desired
Once cooked through, you can eat the thighs whole or shred them using two forks pulling the opposite directions.
Recipe Tips
- For a thicker BBQ sauce – As the chicken cooks, it will release juices. This can make a thinner BBQ sauce. If you’d like to thicken it back up, heat it in a small pot on the stove and whisk in 2 teaspoons cornstarch. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring till thickened. You can add 1 teaspoon at a time until desired thickness is reached. I personally don’t mess with this though….the sauce is delicious as is in my opinion.
- For boneless chicken thighs that are fairly thin, these cook quickly – only about 3-4 hours on low heat and about 2 hours on high heat. If they are thicker, 4-6 hours will be a good time.
- For bone-in chicken thighs – You will need to cook longer, about 4-6 hours on low.
- Substitute chicken breast – Chicken breast can be used as well, but cooks fairly quickly, about 2-3 hours on low heat, or less than 2 on high heat. If leaving all day while at work, these are less forgiving than thighs and can dry out.
Serving Suggestions
Meal prep – This recipe is great for meal prepping cause it’s easy to make a big batch of and keep in the fridge for 2-3 days or freeze. It freezes beautifully, especially when shredded.
Here are some bbq chicken thigh meal ideas to change it up throughout the week.
- BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Martin’s potato buns.
- BBQ Chicken Salad with ranch dressing.
- On top of a roasted sweet potato or russet potato with ranch dipping sauce.
- Place the shredded chicken on top of nachos.
For slow cooked BBQ chicken thigh sides I would recommend pairing a butter lettuce salad, potato salad, cauliflower in cheese sauce, or apple coleslaw.
Frequently Asked Questions
I find that cooking chicken on low heat provides the maximum amount of flavor without drying the chicken out. If you are in a hurry, you can cut the cooking time in half by using high heat, but be aware they won’t be quite as good!
Yes! Sometimes recipes will have you sear the chicken first, especially if you’re using skin on chicken thighs, but overall you don’t have to cook the chicken before placing it into the slow cooker.
To keep chicken from drying out in the crockpot you need two components – the first one is fat and the other one is heat. This is why chicken thighs are a little more forgiving when cooked in a crock pot because they don’t dry out as easily as breasts due to fat content. Also, using the low heat setting will help, but every slow cooker has different power settings as to what is truly “high” and “low”. Mine runs a little high, so I find I am usually on the low end of cooking times.
Crockpot Recipes
For more slow cooker posts like this crockpot bbq chicken thighs, check out these recipes. You’ll especially love the Crockpot Pesto Chicken. And don’t miss these Buffalo Chicken Thighs or Maple Dijon Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs if you love this recipe!
Chicken
Slow Cooker Apricot Chicken
Slow Cooker
Slow Cooker Pork Shoulder (Crockpot Pulled Pork)
Slow Cooker
Crockpot Pesto Chicken
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Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 2 large shallots, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons apple juice
- 1½ cups strained tomatoes
- 1½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- kosher salt and pepper to taste, (I typically start with adding 1 teaspoon to the slow cooker before cooking)
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Instructions
- Add chopped shallots and garlic, apple juice, strained tomatoes, brown sugar, smoked paprika, dry mustard, and cayenne pepper (if using). Lay the chicken thighs on top, then turn them to coat fully in the homemade sauce.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 3-6 hours, or till cooked through (an internal temperature of 165°F). Remove the chicken thighs and serve whole, or shred with two forks for a shredded BBQ sandwich. Taste and adjust any seasonings.
Notes
- I like Pomi brand of strained/pureed tomatoes. Look for one without seasonings!
- Store-bought BBQ sauce can be substituted if desired – use 2 cups.
- Temperatures on slow cookers can vary greatly. Mine is usually done cooking these chicken thighs on low within 3 hours!
- You can use bone in chicken thighs, they will just add another hour to the cooking time.
- In a pinch, you can use high heat and cut the time in half, however, the meal won’t be quite as flavorful, and might be a little more dry. Same notes go for using chicken breasts.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published in 2021 and was revised October 1, 2024 to include new photos and recipe tips.
Will chicken breasts work with this instead?
Yes, they will just cook a little faster!
I want to try this recipe but I’m worried about the Smoked Paprika. I’m surprised Smoked Paprika would be allowed on the migraine diet.
It’s just the same peppers as paprika but prepared over a fire, similar to grilling. I haven’t had anyone report an issue with it yet unless they’re sensitive to all peppers.
Absolutely delicious and so easy to make. Stores well. Lived off Alicia’s recipes during migraine elimination diet. Couldn’t have done it without her!
Thank you for all your kind comments. I’m so thrilled they helped you!
Any recommendations or tweaks for using the instant pot?
I usually cook them for about 8-10 minutes on regular pressure. You may need to reduce the sauce after to get it thicker by removing the chicken and using the “saute” function. Or you can add a little bit of cornstarch to help it thicken.
When I cook in slow cooker I thought it has to be at least half liquid. I’m concerned if I add water it will dilute the flavors. Any tips? Grateful for you and recently diagnosed with VM. Starting diet tomorrow. This will be first recipe I try!
Hey Rachel, if you make the recipe as is it will work. The tomato sauce acts as the liquid and the chicken gives off a lot too. As you can see from the pictures, there is not a lack of liquid! Good luck! 🙂
This was delicious! Super easy in the slow cooker! Great weeknight meal.
So delicious and easy! Whole family loved
Thank you!!