Three to five pounds of chicken, broth, and four seasonings in the crock pot — six to eight cups of shredded chicken, bagged and frozen for the weeks ahead.
Three things that make a batch worth doing
This is not really a dinner. It is the thing that makes four other dinners fast.
- Pick the cut for the job: Thighs have more flavor for soups and baked dishes. Breast meat is better for tacos and wraps.
- Shred with a hand mixer: On low, in a bowl — about thirty seconds for the whole batch and a more even shred.
- Bag it in two-cup portions: That is what most casseroles and soups actually call for. Press the air out before sealing.
I use shredded chicken in so many recipes. While I prefer to make it in the Instant Pot I totally understand that not every kitchen has one, although if you’re on the fence, they are so helpful to have. 🙂
Today, I’m teaching you how to make shredded chicken in the Crock Pot in bulk. This is a great way to make shredded chicken, as if you don’t use it all in one meal, you’ll have it for meals in the future.
I pull from that bag all week. Casseroles and soups take the biggest share of it, and the rest goes into quesadillas, tacos, burrito bowls, salads and enchiladas.
Anything that calls for cooked chicken is already halfway done.
This is the one thing I make on a Sunday that saves me on a Wednesday. Three to five pounds of chicken goes in the crock pot with broth and four seasonings, and eight hours later I have six to eight cups of shredded chicken to portion into freezer bags.
It is not really a dinner. It is the thing that makes four other dinners fast.
Why I Make It in Bulk
Having shredded chicken on hand is always a HUGE blessing for me. I make the shredded chicken in the Crock Pot and then store it in freezer baggies.
This makes it so easy to use for casseroles, soups and anything I need pre-cooked chicken for!
Breasts or Thighs?
Both work and I keep both in rotation, but I use them for diffrent things. Thighs have more flavor, so they go into soups and anything baked like enchiladas where the chicken is going to sit in sauce.
Breast meat is what I want for tacos, quesadillas and wraps, the things that are not going back into the oven. It is leaner and it does not compete with whatever else is going in the tortilla.
How Long It Takes
Season the chicken, lay it in the bottom of the crock pot, and add the broth. Low for six to eight hours is what I do most of the time because I can start it in the morning and forget it.
High for three to four hours works if you started late. The chicken comes out shreddable either way, so the only thing you are choosing is how much of your day it takes up.
The Hand Mixer Trick
Two forks work and that is how I did it for years. A hand mixer on low does the whole batch in about thirty seconds and gives you a more even shred.
Move the chicken to a bowl first. Do not run a mixer inside the ceramic crock pot insert, and use a deep bowl unless you want to find chicken on your backsplash later.
Portioning and Freezing
A batch works out to six to eight cups depending on how much chicken you started with. I bag it in portions of about two cups, which is what most of my casseroles and soups actually call for.
Shredded chicken keeps three to four days in the refrigerator and up to two months in the freezer. Use a zip-top bag and press the air out before you seal it, because that is what keeps it from drying out.
Shredded Chicken FAQ
Do I need to add liquid?
Yes. A cup of chicken broth goes in with the chicken.
It keeps the meat from drying out over a long cook and it gives you something flavorful to spoon over the shredded chicken afterward.
Can I season it differently?
The base is salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder, which is deliberately plain so the chicken works in anything. If you already know a batch is going into tacos, this is the point to add cumin and chili powder instead of deciding later.
How do I thaw it?
Overnight in the refrigerator is best if you thought ahead. If you did not, the bag goes in a bowl of cold water while I get everything else ready, and it is usually loose enough to break apart in twenty minutes.
Can I use frozen chicken?
I start with thawed chicken so the timing in this recipe holds. Frozen breasts will need longer and the times below stop being reliable, which defeats the point of a recipe you can walk away from.
Making chicken in bulk is the least exciting thing I do in the kitchen and probably the one that saves me the most time. A few bags of this in the freezer is the difference between cooking dinner and assembling it.
Shredded Chicken in the Crock Pot
Ingredients
- 3-5 pounds chicken breasts or thighs
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Season chicken breasts (or thighs), place chicken breasts in bottom of crockpot.
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
- Remove chicken from crockpot and shred with two forks or a hand mixer in a bowl (remove it from the ceramic Crock Pot bowl.
- Use the chicken right away in your favorite recipes. Or, allow chicken to cool and portion into zip-top bags and freeze for up to two months.