Easy Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Sliders

5 from 4 votes

Easy Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Sliders

Easy Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Sliders deliver delicious barbecue taste without the fuss. These sliders feature juicy, tender chuck roast seasoned with a simple dry rub and slow-cooked in your favorite store-bought barbecue sauce. Perfect for a weeknight dinner or Memorial Day gathering!

Prep Time5

Cook Time8

Total Time8 5

Course: 4th of July, Appetizer, Main Course, Memorial Day

Cuisine: American

Servings: Sliders

Calories: 353kcal

Author: Chula King

Equipment

Slow Cooker

Ingredients

Dry Rub (See Tip 1)

3 Tablespoons Dark Brown Sugar, packed
2 Tablespoons Paprika
2 teaspoons Dry mustard powder
2 teaspoons Onion powder
2 teaspoons Garlic powder
1 ½ teaspoons Dried basil
½ teaspoon Dried thyme
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
¾ teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper

Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Sliders

Dry rub, from above
3 to 4 pound Chuck Roast
3 cups Store-bought barbecue sauce, divided (See Tip 2)
12 Slider buns (See Tip 3)

Instructions

Dry Rub

Add brown sugar, paprika, dry mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, dried basil, dried thyme, Kosher salt, and pepper to a jar with a lid. Secure the lid and shake the jar until all ingredients are well combined. Set aside. (See Tip 4)

Slow Cooker Barbecue Beef Sliders

Dry the chuck roast with paper towels. Sprinkle both sides of the roast with the dry rub; press the dry rub into the meat.
Add 2 cups of barbecue sauce to the slow cooker. Place the roast on the barbecue sauce. Cover, and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, turning once after four hours, or until the meat is fall-apart tender.
Transfer the cooked meat pieces to a quarter sheet pan or plate, and shred with two forks, separating the remaining fat from the meat while shredding. Discard the fat and discard the cooking liquid from the slow cooker. (See Tips 5 and 6)
Transfer the shredded beef to a saucepan. Add ¾ to one cup of barbecue sauce. Toss to combine. Heat over medium heat until warm. (See Tip 7)
Pile the shredded barbecue beef on slider buns and, if desired, top it with additional barbecue sauce. Serve with potato chips and coleslaw or your favorite side dishes.
Yield: 12 Barbecue Beef Sliders

Video

Notes

May substitute your favorite dry rub.
I used Outback's Original Rib Rack BBQ sauce because it doesn't contain liquid smoke. However, feel free to use your favorite barbecue sauce, whether it's store-bought or homemade.
I will generally use either Pepperidge Soft White slider buns or Walmart's Brioche slider buns. You could also use Hawaiin slider buns, but they're a little too sweet for my taste.
I used an 8-ounce mason jar with a lid. However, if you don't have a jar with a lid, add the dry rub ingredients to a bowl and whisk to combine.
Chuck roast tends to have a lot of fat on it. Some of this fat is cooked away during the slow cooking, but some remains with the meat. When I'm shredding the cooked meat, I take care to separate the remaining fat from the meat. There's nothing that I dislike more than getting a mouthful of the fat!
Many recipes suggest transferring the cooking liquid to a saucepan and boiling it to a desired consistency. My preference is to discard the cooking liquid and use fresh barbecue sauce. One reason is that the cooking liquid tends to have a lot of grease in it. Before using the liquid, the grease should be separated out, which tends to be messy. The other reason is that the dry rub, while flavoring the meat, can be overpowering in the liquid.
The shredded barbecue beef can be made in advance, covered and refrigerated for up to three days or frozen for up to three months.

Nutrition