{Slow Cooker} BBQ Chicken Quinoa Sloppy Joes

I have a thing for saucy, meaty sandwiches. Bread, meat and sauce.

Since I made these BBQ Beef and Lentil Sloppy Joes, I’ve been a little disappointed with their lack of popularity.

Maybe that sounds totally selfish, but it’s not that. It’s just because I know how absolutely, incredibly delicious they are, and I feel like people are really missing out.

For the last month or so I’ve really been thinking about doing a chicken and quinoa version.

I am just as inexperienced with cooking quinoa as I was with cooking lentils, but I figured things couldn’t go too wrong if I knew the correct amount of liquid for the quinoa to cook in the slow cooker.

It turns out quinoa and lentils require the same amount of liquid to cook, so my job was pretty easy.

I made a couple other changes to try to make the recipe a bit healthier. I took out the brown sugar completely, but found that I had to increase the barbecue sauce a bit in its place. I halved the salt and used a shredded carrot instead of a zucchini.

If you want to make this even healthier, you could sub the ketchup for crushed tomatoes (keeping in mind you’ll lose some of the sweetness from the ketchup), and use a light barbecue sauce or one with less sugar.

We love this version just as much as the beef and lentil! You really wouldn’t believe how much healthy stuff you can sneak into some good old sloppy joes until you try.

5.0 from 2 reviews
{Slow Cooker} BBQ Chicken Quinoa Sloppy Joes

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Prep time 15 mins
Cook time 6 hours
Total time 6 hours 15 mins
{Slow Cooker} BBQ Chicken Quinoa Sloppy Joes: a lighter, healthier version of an old favorite. Packed with protein! www.thereciperebel.com
Serves: 8 sandwiches
Ingredients

• 1lb ground chicken
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• ¾ cup quinoa, dry
• 1½ cups water
• 1 medium-large carrot, shredded
• 1 cup ketchup
• ½ tsp salt
• 5 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• ¾ cup barbecue sauce
• ½ tsp minced garlic
• 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1-2 pinches crushed red pepper

Instructions

1. In a medium pan, fry chicken over medium-high heat until cooked, stirring regularly. When chicken is browned, add onion and cook for 2-3 minutes until onion starts to soften. Add to the slow cooker.
2. Add the dry quinoa to the pan and toast over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until toasted. Add to the slow cooker.
3. Add water through crushed red pepper to the slow cooker (all remaining ingredients) and stir well. Scrape down the sides to make sure the quinoa is in the liquid.
4. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 2-3 hours. Serve on buns or rolls of your choice.

Notes *Using different brands or slightly different ingredients will affect the nutrition information for the recipe.
Nutrition Information Serving size: ⅛ filling Calories: 234 Fat: 7.2g Saturated fat: 1.8g Sugar: 13g Fiber: 2.8g Protein: 13.5g
3.2.2885

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