Cooking Fresh ~ Tangy BBQ Chicken

I'm pretty new at Crock-Pot cooking, but I have to say.....I'm getting hooked.  For someone who is always busy, it's the best thing!  If you don't already know, I LOVE cooking and as fresh as possible.  But sometimes the whole ordeal can take half the day if I'm not careful.  And that's why the crock-pot is genius!  I can just throw everything in and walk away.  That's exactly what I did when I made my Tangy BBQ Chicken!  I love BBQ almost anything, but since I cut processed sugar out of my diet three years ago, that also meant that I quit BBQ sauces too.  Have you seen the amount of sugar per serving?  and it's one of the main ingredients....Unbelievable!!  Well I found my solution for my cravings.....just make my own sauce.  We are having better BBQ Chicken for dinner!


*Disclaimer ~ I did not stop and measure everything.... I used the eyeball it and taste method!


Here's what I did:

I started by making my own blend of seasoning salt.  Did you know Lawry's adds sugar?  (Why?)




-garlic powder
-onion powder
-paprika
-ground sage
-ground brown mustard
-coriander
-whole oregano (dried)
-black pepper
-salt










* REMEMBER I rarely use measurements.  I use the tasting method.  [ I feel like I have to keep saying it! :) ]  I recommend starting with 1/2 teaspoon of each and some common sense.  For example, I happen to LOVE fresh cracked black pepper so I add a whole lot to everything.  You may want to use less....

Generously season both sides of the chicken (I used thighs but go for your favorite part of the chicken.....)










Next, I grabbed a mixing bowl....It's time to make the sauce!  Side note:  I didn't make a whole lot of sauce because I was only making a small amount of chicken with no plans for leftovers.  You can certainly double the ingredients if you need to.  

*****The ingredients that I am listing for the sauce are approximates..TASTE EVERYTHING!! ...and along the way.

3/4 cup  tomato sauce
1/3 cup  apple cider vinegar
2 TBS    honey
1/2 tsp   onion powder
1/2 tsp   garlic powder
1/2 tsp   sweet paprika
1/2 tsp   ground brown mustard
1/4 tsp   nutmeg
1/4 tsp   cinnamon



~From here I might have added a little more honey and a few more sprinkles of seasoning from the above list, oh! and maybe even a little water.... until it was real good to ME!  I recommend doing the same -live a little!  Once the sauce was perfect, I set it aside.  I added it to the chicken later.


APOLOGIES!!! I forgot to take a picture of what the sauce looked like in the bowl...  


After about 2 hours the house was smelling delicious!  Mmmmmmmm.....I removed the chicken thighs from the Crock-Pot and drained the liquids.  It just seemed like a whole lot of oil to me..  I added the chicken back to the pot skin side up and poured in the sauce that I made earlier, making sure everything had a nice coating.  Placed the lid back on and walked away.  I would say that the chicken was ready 1 1/2 hours later, I recall turning the Crock-Pot off before the full 4 hours.  Everything was fully cooked and tender which is exactly what I wanted!  I would think if I were making more chicken I may have needed the full 4 hours, no????  

Well other than a few minutes of prepping, this BBQ chicken took no time! ....well none of mine anyway!  

I paired my yummy Tangy BBQ {Crock-Pot} Chicken with some cheesy rice and green beans.  My family loved it!  Let me know how it goes for you!