Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

It’s takeout…only better. Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki can be started in the morning and is ready when you walk in the door at dinnertime.

Between working, chauffeuring the kids to school and their activities, maintaining the ever-growing laundry pile and simply taking a few minutes to relax, life is busy. After a long day, takeout is often the simple and easy solution to a weeknight dinner.

But we all know it’s better for us, and cheaper too, to make these dinners at home. Using a slow cooker for classic takeout meals like chicken teriyaki, orange chicken and chicken burrito bowls, you can make takeout yourself with very little effort at the end of your long day. You can use a rice cooker (like this one) or an Instant Pot (so many features in this small appliance!) to make the rice can make dinnertime even easier.

The key to this dish is the teriyaki sauce, a savory teriyaki made with the distinct flavors of honey and soy sauce which are pulled together with a bit of rice wine vinegar and ginger. The sauce comes together in two easy parts. First it’s cooked with the chicken in the slow cooker; this keeps the chicken moist and gives it a ton of flavor. Then it’s thickened with a cornstarch slurry over the stove before being added back to the chicken. This dish is best served over white rice and topped with chopped green onions – every single bite is packed with flavor!

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

Contributor: Ellie O’Brien

It’s takeout…only better. Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki can be started in the morning and is ready when you walk in the door at dinnertime.

• Author: Ellie O’Brien
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 4 hours
• Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes
• Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
• Category: Entrée
• Method: Slow Cooker
• Cuisine: Japanese

Print Recipe

Ingredients

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• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts  or thighs or a mixture
• ½ cup honey 
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup rice wine vinegar 
• ½ tsp. ground ginger 
• ¼ tsp. black pepper 
• 3 cloves garlic, minced 
• ½ white onion, chopped 
• ¼ cup cold water 
• 3 Tbsp. corn starch 
• To Serve: 1 and ½ cups cooked white rice and 2 green onions, chopped

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Instructions

1. Add chicken to the bottom of the slow cooker in a single layer. 
2. In a small bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger, pepper, garlic, and onion. Pour over the chicken and place cover on slow cooker.
3. Set slow cooker to ‘low’ for 4 hours, and cook until internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F. Begin checking at 3 hours.
4. Once cooked, transfer chicken to a large bowl and shred using two forks.
5. Transfer the sauce from the slow cooker into a medium saucepan. 
6. In a small bowl, whisk water and cornstarch together until the cornstarch is dissolved. Add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce, whisking to combine.
7. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and let it boil until thickened, 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over the shredded chicken. Toss to combine. 
8. Serve with white rice and top with sliced green onions.