I love hosting friends for gatherings and we have had memorable get-togethers at our house. We’ve had an incredible New Year’s Eve party with enough food to ensure the champagne toast at midnight didn’t hit anyone too hard; we’ve had summer barbecues with most of the food being cooked on the grill; we’ve even had impromptu casual Sunday suppers with a few family members to watch a late afternoon football game. Typically, coming up with a menu that will make enough food for everyone and will be well rounded enough for even the pickiest eaters is my forte.

One demographic I find challenging to cater to is a very large group of hungry men. For one, most of the selective eaters in my life happen to be male and getting them together simultaneously can be quite a feat for a cook. I also find that a vital criterion for feeding rowdy boys is quantity; it’s not an opportunity for me to break out my most creative recipe, and I wouldn’t dare dream of providing an elegant cheese board or a fancy flatbread.

That’s not to say my man-party food isn’t delicious; it just takes a little extra thought to come up with something clever that produces a large quantity while being cost effective. This shredded chicken is amazing on soft rolls or tortillas, and could even work wonders on a bed of nachos and cheese. It’s the perfect party food and, while gender neutral, hungry men love it.

Barbecue Shredded Chicken
Adapted from The Kitchen food blog

• 4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• Olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 ½ cups barbecue sauce

Heat the oven to 325. Remove the chicken from its packaging and pat it dry. In a Dutch oven or heavy, oven-safe pot (with a lid) heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until quite soft. Add the smoked paprika and stir. Add the chicken piece by piece, stirring to mix well with the onion. Stir in the salt and a few generous grinds of black pepper. Pour in the barbecue sauce and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and cover the pot with a heavy lid and put in the oven. Bake, covered, for 90 minutes, or until the chicken is extremely tender. Remove from the oven and use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken to a large bowl. Use two forks to shred the chicken finely. While you’re shredding the chicken, put the sauce, uncovered, back on the stove over high heat. Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid in the pan to about half of its volume. Pour this thickened sauce over the chicken and stir.

This recipe feeds a large group, is homemade enough to brag about, is cheap and leaves as few dishes to clean as possible. Add to that the fact that it is incredibly tasty, and I’d say you have the perfect recipe for your next party. Personally, I prefer chicken thighs to breast meat – I feel it’s more flavorful and tender, not to mention it doesn’t dry out as easily. While the onion and paprika do enhance this dish, the majority of the flavor comes from the barbecue sauce. The condiment aisle is stocked with all sorts of interesting varieties so the possibilities are endless.  Personally, I like sweet barbecue and opted for a bottle with the words “sticky”, “Caribbean”, and “rum.” Once the chicken was removed from the hot sauce, the boiled down liquid became nice and thick – I immediately poured it back over the pulled chicken, where it belonged. It was certainly a crowd pleaser.

Since it became oddly quiet once the chicken was served, I’d like to think my hungry guests were happy. With only a few dishes to clean, I know I was certainly pleased.

Casey Ann is a local foodie and blogger. Check out her recipes and reviews at www.cleanpl8.com.