Hey guess what? I made you a new recipe with your three favorite words in the title — slow cooker chicken.
That’s right. Without fail, requests for slow cooker recipes and chicken recipes seem to far outweigh all other topics in surveys and your emails. So today I’m doing a two-for-one and also introducing a healthier new take on a classic — Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken!
This version includes all of the delicious sweet and savory teriyaki flavors you love. But this easy homemade teriyaki sauce is naturally sweetened with honey instead of refined sugar. And since your slow cooker is going to do most of the work for you, there is very minimal prep time required. I think we can call that a win-win.
Speaking of winning, we’re also giving away not one but two amazing new Crock-Pot slow cookers in a giveaway below. Yep, the winner will receive one to keep and one to give to a friend. How cool is that?! So read on for this tasty recipe and take a minute to enter the giveaway too.
I mean, really, just look at that chicken drenched in that thick, sweet teriyaki sauce. It’s calling your name.
Here’s how to make it happen.
First we begin by making the teriyaki sauce base. Simply whisk together the ingredients.
Then lay your chicken breasts out in a single layer in your slow cooker and pour the sauce over them. Cover and cook on high for about 4-5 hours, or until the chicken basically falls apart when shredded with a fork. Get ready, because your home is going to smell a-ma-zing.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove it with a slotted spoon and shred it on a separate plate or in a bowl.
Then transfer the remaining teriyaki sauce to a small saucepan, and whisk a cornstarch slurry. Bring it to a boil and let it thicken. Then pour the sauce on top of your shredded chicken.
Gently toss to combine. And then comes the hardest part — deciding how you’re going to enjoy it!
I actually enjoyed my first serving on a little teriyaki chicken slider. So simple!
But of course, the classic way would be over rice. Or quinoa. Or even just on its own, with a side of veggies. I’m pretty sure you can’t go wrong any way you choose, especially with that heavenly homemade teriyaki sauce. You’re gonna love it!
Here’s the recipe (and be sure to also check out the giveaway below!)
Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup chopped white onion
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup soy sauce (use low-sodium if desired)
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh ginger
- 1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup cold water
- 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
- (optional toppings: sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds)
Instructions
- Add the chicken breasts to the bottom of your slow cooker in a single layer.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the garlic, onion, honey, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger, and black pepper until combined. Pour the mixture on top of the chicken breasts. Cover slow cooker, and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through and shreds easily with a fork. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon to a separate bowl and shred it using two forks. Transfer the remaining teriyaki sauce from the slow cooker to a medium saucepan.
- Meanwhile in a separate bowl, whisk together the cold water and cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved and no longer lumpy. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the teriyaki sauce mixture, and whisk to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, and let it boil for about 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat, and pour the sauce on top of the shredded chicken. Toss to combine.
- Serve topped with scallions (green onions) and toasted sesame seeds if desired.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Crock-Pot Giveaway
Giveaway Prize:
One winner will receive two (2) Crock-Pot® Digital Slow Cookers with iStir Stirring Systems — one for you, and one for you to give to a friend. And get ready, because they are going to knock your socks off! And here’s why:
iStir™ does the stirring for you so you don’t have to. With the slow cooker’s countdown digital timer and automatic stirring, you are provided the convenience of preparing food with perfect results, even if you are not in the kitchen. Simply prepare ingredients, set cook time and attach the motor housing with proper paddle in place. Choose the general purpose paddle for soup and chili or the stew paddle for thick stew and more dense dishes. After an initial 2-hour delay, the stirring self-activates every 30 minutes to ensure thorough mixing and even heating until turned off. Pretty darn cool.
I especially stirring system when making dips and chilis. It’s really handy, especially when just keeping the slow cooker on the “warm” setting while entertaining, to not have to constantly be stirring my recipe. But this Crock-Pot is also a pro at making all of your other favorite slow cooker meals that don’t need stirring. It pretty much does everything. :)
How To Enter:
Follow the Rafflecopter instructions below.
Disclaimer: This giveaway was sponsored by Crock-Pot. I received a complementary slow cooker to test and review, but was not paid and all opinions are 100% my own as always. Thanks for supporting the brands that make this site — and great giveaways — possible!
I want to try this recipe during the week but am new to using a slow cooker. Do you think it will dry out the chicken to cook it on low for the 5 hours then leave it on warm for another 1 hour? I think after that my slow cooker shuts off, but I work 7 hour days! :-) Thanks for any advice.
Hi Courtney! Cooking the chicken on low for 5 hours isn’t long enough. You’d need to cook it on high for that long, then putting it on the warm setting for an hour should be fine. We hope this helps!
Omg i need a slow cooker i dont really know that many receipes and im always cooking the same thing every week and when trying to find receips mostly of them use a slow cooker which i dont have try to enter the contest but i couldn’t. Is there any other contest available really need a slow cooker?
Hi Rosa, this post is from a couple of years ago, and the contest ended soon after.
Ugh oh baby brain alert! I red the ingredient as “red wine vinegar” because that’s what I’m used to! Will it work ok? Already in and I don’t have rice wine vinegar. Thank you!
Hi Kate! We think it should still be okay — definitely let us know how it turned out!
I don’t have any fresh ginger in the house, can you convert to dry ginger and if so, how much?
No worries Rebecca! You can use 1/8 tsp of ground ginger — that should be the equivalent. Feel free to add more to taste though if you like. We hope you enjoy! :)
Whoops! I didn’t read all of the instructions first! Just tossed all of the ingredients in the crock pot, including the cornstarch. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Oh no, we hope it’s okay — let us know!
This recipe was 5 stars!! (If I could give 10, I would) It was super easy to follow, and so yummy. It didn’t last very long, as you had said, and it was perfect with almost everything. I ended up eating it over rice one time, and over a bed of steamed broccoli another, just to get my extra greens in. – Thanx Ali!
Thank you Reiko! We’re so happy to hear you enjoyed this — thanks for sharing! :D
So, I don’t have a crock pot or a slow cooker. I tried this in the oven inside a covered le creuset pot. 150 degrees (C, that is) for about 3 hours and it was perfect! Used dark soy sauce and a few extra tablespoons of honey and rice vinegar rather than rice wine vinegar (didn’t find any in the shops). Also used double the recipe as I’m feeding a lot of people for Sunday lunch! Thank you very much for this recipe!! The chicken is perfect, just falls apart when shredded and the sauce has a distinct teriyaki flavour and it’s neither over sweet nor too salty.
Thank you for sharing with us Shruti, we’re so glad to hear this worked well in the oven! :) Definitely helpful to know! We’re so happy you enjoyed it too! :D
question: I plan to use 4 boneless breasts instead of 2. Should I double the teriyaki sauce, or will this be enough? Thank you in advance.
Hey Terri, in that case we’d recommend doubling the sauce. We hope you enjoy! :)
Just made this for my husband and I and it came out perfect! Just like the picture. We used 3 chicken breasts( about 15oz) and it only took 2 hours and 15 minutes on high. Put it on some jasmine rice and it tasty perfect. Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Thanks for sharing Hannah, we’re so happy you and your husband enjoyed this! :D
Is there something that I can substitute for the wine?
Hi Charity, if you prefer not to use rice wine vinegar, you can use a different type of vinegar – we’d suggest white vinegar. We hope you enjoy!