Barbecue Chicken Potatoes

Barbecue chicken potatoes: these are kind of a combo of an Eating Well baked potato suggestion, my own dislike of shredded pork, lol, and my favorite barbecue sauce recipe from an old Cooking Light. To give credit where credit is due!

But I’ve really made so many changes I’ve made it my own. 😊

And if you have never had homemade barbecue sauce you are MISSING OUT. I never thought I <liked> barbecue sauce, even, until I'd had homemade. What I didn't <like> was the bottled stuff!  This is my favorite recipe.

First, bake your potatoes. Scrub them good, trim off the bad spots, wrap them in aluminum foil: into the oven for an hour at 400. Pull them out when they’re squeeze-able to the touch (use a pot holder!) and let them cool slightly. 

While they’re baking, trim up your broccoli florets and microwave them. Cover them with a microwave cover or plastic wrap; three minutes, stir; another three.

Trim up your chicken breasts.

This is where the homemade barbecue sauce comes in: chicken goes in the Instapot with a 29oz can tomato sauce, 2/3 C water, 1/8 C ketchup, 1/4 C Dijon mustard, 1/4 t chili powder (or to taste), 1/2 t onion powder, and I used about three cloves of minced garlic. Stir WELL.

Cover with the Instapot lid and cook for 15 minutes on Poultry.

After the pressure has released and the chicken has cooled, I’m pulling the chicken out to shred it. 

If you are NOT using an Instapot, you can use shredded rotisserie chicken - that works great. Mix your barbecue sauce up in a small saucepan, heat to boiling, and simmer until thickened. Then stir the rotisserie chicken in until heated and well coated.

You could pork this just as easily; Eating Well called for shredded pork. I’m just not a huge fan of pork unless it’s in the form of ham or bacon!

Then I divided up my potatoes into my bento boxes and started to assemble.

And voila!  Barbecue chicken potatoes ready for dinner.

BARBECUE CHICKEN POTATOES

8 oz Russet potatoes (I used a five pound bag that was actually 4.5 lbs) for dinners for the week
12 oz chicken breasts
2 lbs broccoli florets
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Barbecue sauce:
2/3 C water
29oz can tomato sauce
1/8 C ketchup
1/4 C Dijon mustard
1/4 t chili powder (or to taste, more if you like it spicy)
1/2 t onion powder
3 t minced garlic (about three cloves)

Clean the potatoes, wrap in aluminum foil, and bake for an hour at 400 or until soft.

Trim the broccoli and steam in the microwave until just tender crisp: 3 minutes, stir, 3 minutes.

Trim the chicken breasts. Put the chicken breasts in the Instapot with the barbecue sauce ingredients. Stir well. Cook on Poultry 15 minutes.

** Alternative: mix the barbecue sauce ingredients together in a small saucepan on the stove. Heat to boiling, reduce heat, and simmer until thickened.

Shred the chicken when done.

Top the baked potatoes with broccoli, chicken, and sauce. Add 1/8 C shredded sharp cheddar to the top of each.