There are times where Shabbat dinner is a big, elaborate to-do. Lately, that has not been my thing. I want simple. I want to come home from work on Friday and have to do as little as possible when we sit down to eat. This is why the slow cooker is my friend.
Sure, the slow cooker is great in the winter for soups and stews. But a family favorite year round is a slow-cooker barbecue chicken, topping a baked potato.
The recipe is easy enough to pull together, and if you forget to take the chicken out of the freezer to defrost it works too.
The beauty of the baked potato is that you can cook it a variety of ways. Personally, we go for low-and-slow (350 degrees for 60-90 minutes, depending on the size). In a pinch, you can do them on higher heat for a shorter time. In a real pinch, you can always microwave it (but I really don’t recommend it). Spray the potatoes with cooking spray and season them with whatever you want – we’re fans of salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders.
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Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
6 fresh or frozen boneless/skinless chicken breast halves
12-ounces barbecue sauce of your choice
½ cup Italian dressing
¼ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce.
Mix ingredients in a bowl, pour over chicken in slow cooker.
Cover, cook 3-to-4 hours on high or 6-to-8 hours on low.
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After cooking, we like to shred the chicken and put it back into the sauce to get thoroughly, well, sauced. Then top the split potatoes with the chicken and whatever veggies you want. Personally, I prefer tomatoes and broccoli. Also cheese. Everything’s better with cheese. But if you keep kosher, this is obviously an easy enough meal to make kosher.
If there are leftovers — and there probably will be — they freeze and reheat terrifically.
Enjoy, and Shabbat Shalom!
