Pulled Chicken

I love pulled anything…falling-apart, fork-tender meat?  Pot roast?  Shredded beef?  Pulled pork?  I’m in.  100%.

But I wouldn’t eat any of that on a regular basis.  I try to limit my intake of red meat.  Once or twice a month…if that.  Chicken thighs make a good stand in here.  They stay just as moist as a pork shoulder with a lot less saturated fat.

Instead of the usual sticky-sweet bbq sauce, I wanted to do something vinegar based, similar to East Carolina barbecue.  This allows the chicken to pair well with a wide variety of condiments and toppings.  I think this would be a PERFECT game day recipe.

Adam, this recipe has your name written all over it…you can thank me later…for the Saints tickets too…you owe me big.

Pulled Chicken
inspired by this and this

1 cup cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of visible fat
Salt and pepper

In a bowl, combine the cider vinegar, water, white wine, soy sauce, dry mustard, sweet paprika, salt, and black pepper.

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Place chicken thighs in a roasting pan or rectangular Pyrex baking dish and season well with salt and freshly ground pepper. Pour the vinegar mixture over the chicken. Cover the baking dish/pan tightly with foil and place in the oven. Cook chicken for about 1 hour, then remove foil and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes longer until the chicken is fork tender.

Remove the chicken to a plate. Pour the vinegar mixture into a medium sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Continue cooking until sauce is reduced to 1 - 1 ¼ cups, about 15 minutes. Remove the vinegar sauce from the heat.

Meanwhile, when chicken is cool enough to handle, shred using two forks. Add the pulled chicken to the vinegar sauce and toss to thoroughly coat.

Serve the pulled chicken warm as sliders (on mini buns) or as soft tacos (on corn tortillas). Serve with sliced onions, sliced jalapenos, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, shredded lettuce, slaw…the possibilities are endless!

Per 2 oz serving of chicken (w/o the bun or tortilla): 82 calories, 2.2 g fat (0.6 g saturated), 0.7 g carbohydrates, 11.4 g protein