A whole chicken cooked with plenty of seasonings, onion and liquid smoke that is turned into chicken sandwiches and topped with a homemade Alabama barbecue sauce.
Add your clean chicken to the slow cooker, being sure that you removed anything that is on the inside and discard.
Drizzle over the melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, and liquid smoke.
Sprinkle over the salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and paprika.
Add the onion rings on top.
Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours. You want the chicken falling off the bone.
Before the day gets away from you, make the Alabama barbecue sauce. In a small bowl (or a pint jar) add the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, creamed horseradish, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Mix with a spoon or whisk until smooth. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
When the cooking time is up, remove the chicken onto a sheet pan that has a lip, or a baking dish. Remove the drippings from the slow cooker, saving them aside. The onions you can add back into the slow cooker for serving (or discard them if you have people who hate onions).
Let the chicken cool for about 15 minutes, enough where you can handle it.
With clean hands remove all the meat off the chicken, being EXTRA careful to remove any bones. Doing this with your hands will ensure that. Pick apart the chicken into small shredded pieces and place back in the crockpot. Do not add any fatty pieces or skin into the crockpot.
Add about 2-3 tablespoons of the drippings back into the chicken in the crockpot.
Serve the shredded chicken and onions on buns topped with the Alabama barbecue sauce. This is a great recipe to serve "buffet" style.
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Notes
If you want a less spicy sauce, you can cut the cayenne pepper and horseradish measurements in half. You can always add more should you want a spicier flavor.
Add any shredded chicken into an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 4 days.