Yet another recipe born of necessity. I'm recovering from several back to back trips, and still haven't made it to the store this week. What's in the pantry and freezer? Chicken. BBQ Sauce. BBQ Seasoning and Rub. Now, admittedly, I could have gone conventional and made some grilled or broiled chicken with BBQ sauce. No complaints there, BUT in the spirit of cooking something clever (and not having to mess with much once I got home from work!), I thought to slow cook the chicken in the slow cooker, effectively making pulled chicken, then make it into some kind of chili. I couldn't find any cans of beans, but I did have some dried lentils, a can of tomatoes with green chile, some leftover low-sodium Fritos, plus a little shredded cheese and chives. Who would have thought 1) BBQ+Chili=YUM! 2) Lentils make good chili beans! Try this and your tummy will be happy. My husband literally did a "happy dance" and finished the rest of the pot!
To Slow Cooker, Add:
3 boneless chicken breasts
1 can mild tomatoes and green chiles
2 tsp BBQ seasoning/rub (being a KC native, I used Gates, which you can find here: Gates BBQ)
Cook on Low for 8-9 hours. Shred chicken in pot. Add to pot:
3/4 c. dried lentils
1 c. beef broth
1/2 c. water
1/4 c. BBQ sauce (again, I used Gates)
1-3 tsp more BBQ rub/seasoning, depending on taste and how salty your rub may be
Cook on High 1.5-2 more hours. Top with spicy southwestern Fritos (recipe follows) and some shredded cheese, sour cream, crackers, chives, whatever you've got that sounds good to you!
Serves: 2 if eating just as a bowl of Chili (or if your spouse is really hungry ;) ), up to 4 if eating more as a Frito pie topping with mostly Fritos and toppings.
Spicy Southwestern Fritos:
1 1/2 c. low sodium Fritos (about half a regular bag)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper
1 Tbs Jalapeno Cheddar popcorn sprinkle powder
Cooking Spray
Open all seasonings. Lightly spray Fritos with cooking spray and shake in a large bowl to distribute. Add seasoning powder and shake/mix well. Add to chili above or eat on their own. Delicious!
