Slow Cooker Hunters Chicken

This Slow Cooker Hunters Chicken is the British version of the classic dish  – tender, juicy chicken breasts wrapped in streaky bacon, smothered with a tangy homemade BBQ sauce and topped with melted cheese.  

It’s very easy to make at home from scratch for a comforting family dinner everyone will love!

Hunters chicken is one of those fail safe family dinners I turn to often. I always seem to have a packet of chicken fillets in the fridge or freezer and the sweet and smoky homemade BBQ sauce takes no longer than 5 minutes to make. 

I only recently became a fan of making Hunters Chicken in the slow cooker – slow cooking the chicken makes it so juicy and tender. 

If you don’t have a slow cooker though, no worries. It’s just as good made in the oven! 

This is the British version of Hunters Chicken – bacon wrapped chicken fillets coated in a rich Barbecue sauce and topped with cheese. 

It’s completely different to the Italian  Hunter’s Chicken, which is chicken cooked with onions, garlic, tomatoes, rosemary and wine (Chicken Cacciatore) 

ingredients you’ll need to make hunters chicken

(Scroll to the bottom of the post to find printable recipe card with ingredient amounts and detailed instructions!)

• Chicken Fillets. I always use skinless and boneless breast chicken fillets for this recipe.
• Streaky Bacon for wrapping around the chicken
• Cheddar or Mozzarella Cheese

for the homemade bbq sauce

• Tomato Ketchup
• Red Wine or cider Vinegar
• Soft Light or Dark Brown Sugar (Dark sugar gives a lovely rich molasses flavour)
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Liquid Smoke (Optional, but really good! If you can’t find it, don’t worry)
• Honey 
• Smoked Paprika
• Garlic Granules
• Onion Salt 
• Freshly ground black pepper

how to make hunters chicken in the slow cooker

(Scroll to the bottom of the post for the recipe card to read detailed instructions and ingredient amounts)

• Wrap streaky bacon around 4 large chicken breasts.  Season with salt and pepper and place in a preheated slow cooker. 

• Cover with the BBQ sauce, then place the lid on and cook on HIGH for 2 1/2 – 3 Hours or 6-7 hours on LOW. The chicken should be very tender and soft and the juices should run clear with no traces of pink.

• Once the chicken has fully cooked, remove from the slow cooker, transfer to an ovenproof dish and pour over the sauce (the sauce will be thinner from the chicken juices, so you might want to reduce it by simmering in a small saucepan for around 5 minutes or so.) 

• Sprinkle the chicken and sauce with grated cheese and transfer to the grill for a few minutes until the cheese has melted. 

how to thicken the sauce with cornflour

• If you can’t be bothered to transfer everything to a separate dish, you can thicken the sauce with a cornflour slurry. Spoon about 120ml (1/2 cup) of the sauce out of the slow cooker and place it in a small saucepan. Place 1 tablespoon each of cornflour and cold water in a small dish and mix really well until smooth.

• Bring the sauce in the pan to the boil, then reduce the heat and gradually add the cornflour slurry, stirring constantly. Allow to simmer for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour the thickened sauce into the slow cooker, stirring.

• If I want to save on washing up (which is all the time!) I just sprinkle the cheese directly on top of the chicken in the slow cooker – it doesn’t take long to melt at all.

how to make hunters chicken in the oven

• Wrap streaky bacon around 4 large chicken breasts.  Season all over with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place the bacon wrapped chicken in an oven proof dish. 

• Pour over the BBQ sauce and bake at 180C/160Fan/350F/Gas Mark 4 for 30-40 minutes or until the chicken is tender and cooked the whole way though.  

• Sprinkle with grated cheese and return to the oven for a few minutes until the cheese has melted.  

what to serve with hunters chicken

You can’t beat Hunters Chicken with Creamy Mashed Potatoes – the combination of fluffy mash and sweet and tangy BBQ sauce is comfort food at its finest. 

Hunters Chicken is equally as good with Sweet Potato wedges and greens such as roasted broccoli and green beans.  

Looking for more slow cooker recipes?  Check these out…

• slow cooker beef Stroganoff

• slow cooker golden syrup steamed pudding

• Slow Cooker Beef Curry

• Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Curry

• Slow Cooker Beef and Chorizo Casserole 

• Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

• Slow Cooker Macaroni Cheese

• Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

more comfort food classic recipes

• Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken 

• Slow Cooked Bolognese Sauce

• Easy Sausage Casserole

• Scottish Mince and Tatties

• Meatball Mozzarella Pasta Bake

• Chorizo and Beef Meatballs stuffed with Mozzarella

• Chilli Con Carne

• Chicken Milanese with Spaghetti 

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Slow Cooker Hunters Chicken

Yield: Serves 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 20 minutes

This Slow Cooker Hunters Chicken is the British "pub grub" version of the classic dish  - tender, juicy chicken breasts wrapped in streaky bacon, smothered with a tangy homemade BBQ sauce and topped with melted cheese.  

Print

Ingredients

• 4 Large Chicken Breast Fillets
• 8 Rashers of Streaky Bacon
• Sea Salt Flakes and Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 50G Grated Cheddar or Mozzarella Cheese 

FOR THE BBQ SAUCE:

• 200G Tomato Ketchup
• 100ml Red Wine or Cider Vinegar
• 100G Soft light or dark brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 Teaspoons Honey
• 1 Heaped Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
• 2 Teaspoons Liquid Smoke (optional, but worth using if you can find it)
• 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Granules 
• 1/4 Teaspoon Onion Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Make the BBQ Sauce. Place all the ingredients for the sauce in a medium sized saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring until the sauce is smooth. Remove from the heat and set aside.
2. Preheat your slow cooker (if necessary) Wrap 2 rashers of streaky bacon around each chicken fillet. Season the chicken with a small amount of salt and pepper and place them in the slow cooker.
3. Pour the sauce over the bacon wrapped chicken. Place the lid on and cook on HIGH for 2 1/2 - 3 hours or LOW for 6-7 Hours.
4. Once the chicken has fully cooked through, remove from the slow cooker and place in an overproof dish. The sauce will now be thinner from the chicken juices. Pour the sauce into a saucepan and simmer on a medium-high heat for about 5 minutes to thicken.
5. Pour the sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with grated cheese. Place under a hot grill for a few minutes until the cheese has melted. ***See notes below for an alternative method)***

Notes

If you can't be bothered to transfer everything to a seperate dish, you can thicken the sauce with a cornflour slurry. Spoon about 120ml (1/2 cup) of the sauce out of the slow cooker and place it in a small saucepan. Place 1 tablespoon each of cornflour and cold water in a small dish and mix really well until smooth.

Bring the sauce in the pan to the boil, then reduce the heat and gradually add the cornflour slurry, stirring constantly. Allow to simmer for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour the thickened sauce into the slow cooker, stirring. If I want to save on washing up (which is all the time!) I just sprinkle the cheese directly on top of the chicken in the slow cooker - it doesn't take long to melt at all.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 556Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 133mgSodium: 1497mgCarbohydrates: 42gNet Carbohydrates: 0gFiber: 1gSugar: 36gSugar Alcohols: 0gProtein: 46g

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