This sweet and sour Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken is better than takeout and doesn’t make a lot of mess or take a lot of time to make. It’s the best dinner for a weeknight when you don’t want to cook but also don’t want to go out to eat.

About This Teriyaki Chicken Recipe

This teriyaki chicken is sticky, tasty, and easy to make. The sauce only needs seven simple ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen. It makes a sweet and savory sauce that is as good as the sauce from your favorite takeout place by mixing soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and honey. It’s one of our family’s favorite simple crock pot chicken recipes for weeknight dinners when we’re busy.

You will love my Slow Cooker Teriyaki Meatballs, Slow Cooker Beef Ramen Noodles, and Slow Cooker Teriyaki Beef if you like this Teriyaki Slow Cooker Chicken.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• This teriyaki chicken in the slow cooker is sweet, tangy, and sticky. The thick sauce covers every piece of chicken, so every bite is full of flavor.
• Made with Pantry Staples: You should have almost everything you need for this recipe in your pantry, like sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, and rice vinegar.
• This easy teriyaki chicken recipe is a great alternative to takeout. Whether your family is trying to save money or just cut back on takeout in general, this recipe will rival your favorite takeout teriyaki.

Ingredients and Key Tips

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are the best kind of meat for this recipe. After cooking, it shreds easily and doesn’t need to cook for a long time.

• Low-Sodium Soy Sauce: This recipe calls for a lot of soy sauce, so using low-sodium soy sauce makes the dish less salty. If you don’t have low-sodium soy sauce, use water instead of half of the regular soy sauce.
• Light Brown Sugar: Add some sugar to the dish to balance out the salty and savory flavors. This recipe tastes best with brown sugar because it has a richer flavor than regular sugar.
• Rice Vinegar: This vinegar is made from fermented rice and is used in a lot of Asian dishes. It tastes a little sweeter and less strong than regular white distilled vinegar.
• Sesame oil: Made from sesame seeds and has a nutty, tasty flavor. It has a very strong smell, so a little bit goes a long way.
• Ginger: You can use either ground ginger or fresh minced ginger in this recipe. If you use fresh or jarred ginger, add one tablespoon more.
• Garlic: Add some fresh minced garlic to your teriyaki sauce to give it a little kick. You can also use garlic from a jar. Use half a teaspoon of something else if you don’t have garlic powder.
• Honey: A little bit of honey will make this slow cooker chicken teriyaki sticky and sweet. This makes the dish taste better and gives it a better texture.
• Cornstarch: Adding cornstarch at the end of cooking makes the sauce thicker and gives it a shiny finish.

Exact Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
• ⅔ cup water
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar (packed)
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp garlic (minced)
• 3 tbsp honey
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• ⅓ cup cold water (for slurry)

Instructions

1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, the ⅔ cup water, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and honey until they are well combined.

2. Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker and pour the sauce over the top. Cook the slow cooker teriyaki chicken on low for 3 ½ – 4 hours.
3. Once the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the crock pot and shred it using two forks. Then, set aside the shredded chicken.
4. Pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a saucepan. In a separate bowl, mix the 3 tbsp cornstarch and ⅓ cup cold water to make a slurry. Bring the liquid in the saucepan to a boil over medium-high heat. While stirring, slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the sauce a little at a time. Let the sauce boil and thicken for about a minute as you stir.
5. Pour the thickened sauce over the shredded chicken and stir it to coat every piece of chicken.
6. Serve over rice and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Tips & Variations

• Don’t Overcook the Chicken: When preparing chicken in the crock pot, be sure not to overcook it. Cooking on low with a lot of liquid will help keep the chicken from becoming dry and tough.
• Reduce the Mess: Cut back on the mess by using a crock pot liner or spraying the crock pot with a nonstick cooking spray to make clean up a breeze.
• Thin Out the Sauce: If your sauce becomes too thick, you can slowly stir in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.
• Use Chicken Thighs: For this recipe, boneless, skinless chicken thighs are a great choice. Dark meat has more fat and flavor than white meat, and it doesn’t dry out as fast as chicken breasts. It could take longer to cook.
• Add Veggies: I like to put broccoli, carrots, snap peas, peppers, and zucchini in my chicken teriyaki. If you want it to be a little sweeter, you could even add pineapple. Fresh vegetables or a frozen stir-fry mix work great.
• Use Coconut Liquid Aminos: If you don’t like soy sauce or have an allergy, try using coconut liquid aminos instead. It’s made with salted and fermented coconut flower buds and has less sodium than soy sauce.

Storage and Reheating

• Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you want to freeze leftovers, place the chicken, fully cooled, in a freezer-safe container for up to 8 weeks.
• Reheating: Reheat the dish in the microwave on medium heat for 30-60 second intervals until it is heated through. You can also place large portions of leftovers in a baking dish and heat them in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes. If you’re reheating frozen leftovers, thaw them in the refrigerator for 24 hours before reheating.
• Make Ahead: You can prepare the teriyaki sauce a day or two in advance and keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you’re ready to make this slow cooker teriyaki chicken breast recipe.