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I’ve always preferred shredded meats to the sliced or cubed variety. I choose shredded chicken for my tacos and shredded pork for my bánh mì, and shredded chicken salad is by far the superior preparation method—this despite the fact that shredding meat is undoubtedly more work that cutting it, but it doesn’t have to be if you use a stand mixer for the job.
The first time I shredded chicken with forks, I remember thinking, “oh, this isn’t so bad,” until a few minutes later, as my palms developed reddened fork handle-dents. It’s not that the act of shredding is complicated or particularly hard to figure out, but if you need to do it for more than maybe two hunks of meat, it can be a pain. Tossing it in a stand mixer instead is entirely worth it.
I first learned of this method in a video similar to this one a couple weeks ago, focused on making a shredded chicken salad. The person fitted the stand mixer with a whisk attachment, switched on the machine, added their ingredients, and scooped out the finished salad. My initial reaction was that the completed chicken salad looked a bit too smooth, like it had lost its texture. The video maker essentially admitted as much, but was otherwise pleased with the results.
I was intrigued enough to try shredding in a stand mixer myself—with a few modifications.
How to shred chicken with a stand mixer
I think that the whisk attachment was the primary culprit for the over-mixing in that video. A stand mixer is incredibly powerful, and you have to be careful about timing and how fast the machine is going to avoid going too hard, whatever you’re making.
I decided to try stand-shredding for pulled pork, which is much fattier than chicken, and thus even easier to accidentally over-shred. (You might note that slow cooker pulled pork falls apart readily, which is true; I’ll reiterate that it’s not that pulling apart the meat is hard, it’s just a lot to do if you have a large quantity.)
I tossed the meat into the mixing bowl and used a paddle attachment to start shredding it. With no exaggeration, my pork was nearly ready in fewer than 10 seconds on the lowest possible setting. I added my favorite barbecue sauce and switched on the machine for another 5 seconds. Done: The pulled pork was perfect.
The best stand mixer for shredding meat
What does this mean for us shredded meat lovers? Well, it means you may want to get yourself a stand mixer if you don’t already have one. I think this method is an absolute game changer for tougher, drier meats like chicken, and a very reasonable option for tender meats when you have three or more pounds of it to shred.
I’ve had my Kitchen Aid Professional 6-quart for more than a decade, and while newer models are quieter, this ol’ girl is as effective as ever. Though I can’t find the 6-quart model in stock anymore, the 5-quart is a alternative.
This is the best way to shred chicken and pork
I always include clean-up when I’m deciding if a gadget or appliance helps with speedy cooking, and the amount of time saved here cannot be argued. Consider the cutting board, the dripping juice, the knives, and the forks, compared to just the bowl and the paddle using the mixer method. The bowl prevents juices lost to the cutting board, and the paddle attachment is easy to clean. Between shredding and cleaning time, I’d estimate I saved 10 to 20 minutes.
Beyond that, the mixer does the stirring for you, so you can drop in chopped ingredients and sauces for a simple, effective multitask. Essentially, using a stand mixer takes all the tough work out of preparing a pulled meat dish, and makes cooking big batches more accessible too. I would absolutely suggest it to older cooks or anyone with reduced shoulder mobility or arm strength.
