Slow Cooker Bourbon BBQ Chicken Tacos with Corn Salsa
Make incredibly flavorful Slow Cooker Bourbon BBQ Chicken Tacos! This easy recipe features tender shredded chicken in a homemade bourbon barbecue sauce, served with a fresh corn and red pepper salsa.
Ingredients
(Original recipe yields 6 servings)
Bourbon BBQ Chicken:
- â–¢ 1 cup ketchup
- â–¢ 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- ▢ ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- â–¢ 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- â–¢ 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- â–¢ 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- â–¢ 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- â–¢ 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ▢ ¼ teaspoon pepper
- â–¢ 3 tablespoons bourbon, divided (2 tbsp for cooking, 1 tbsp for finishing)
- ▢ 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
Corn Salsa:
- â–¢ 2 cups fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels
- â–¢ 1 cup chopped sweet red pepper
- ▢ ½ cup finely chopped red onion
- â–¢ Zest and Juice of 2 medium limes
- â–¢ â…› teaspoon hot pepper sauce (or to taste)
- ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
- ▢ ¼ teaspoon pepper
For Serving:
- â–¢ 8 flour tortillas (8 inches), warmed
- â–¢ Minced fresh cilantro (optional garnish)
Instructions
1. Prepare Bourbon BBQ Sauce Base and Add Chicken:
- In the insert of a 3-quart slow cooker, combine the ketchup, finely chopped red onion (the “1 small” one), packed brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, maple syrup, cider vinegar, chopped fresh parsley, minced garlic, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
- Stir in 2 tablespoons of the bourbon. Mix these sauce ingredients well.
- Place the boneless, skinless chicken breasts into the slow cooker with the sauce. Turn the chicken pieces to ensure they are well coated with the sauce mixture.
2. Slow Cook the Chicken:
- Cover the slow cooker securely with its lid.
- Cook on the LOW setting until the chicken is very tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 165°F (74°C). This typically takes 3-4 hours (some slow cookers might take 4-5 hours for very thick breasts).
3. Shred Chicken and Finish:
- Once the chicken is cooked and tender, carefully remove the chicken breasts from the slow cooker and place them on a clean cutting board or large plate. Leave the sauce in the slow cooker.
- Using two forks, shred the cooked chicken.
- Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker with the sauce.
- Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon of bourbon.
- Cover and let it heat through on LOW or WARM for another 10-15 minutes, allowing the shredded chicken to absorb more sauce and the final bourbon note to meld.
4. Make the Corn Salsa:
- While the chicken finishes heating through (or earlier), prepare the corn salsa.
- In a medium bowl, combine the corn kernels, chopped sweet red pepper, ½ cup finely chopped red onion, lime zest, lime juice, hot pepper sauce, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
- Stir well to combine all ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Cover and refrigerate if not using immediately.
5. Assemble and Serve Tacos:
- Warm the flour tortillas according to your preferred method (e.g., briefly in a dry skillet, wrapped in damp paper towels in the microwave, or wrapped in foil in a low oven).
- To serve, spoon a generous portion of the warm Bourbon BBQ Shredded Chicken into each warmed tortilla.
- Top with a spoonful of the fresh corn salsa.
- Garnish with minced fresh cilantro, if desired.
- Serve the tacos immediately and enjoy!