slow cooker honey garlic chicken

Slow-Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken is a delicious, incredibly low-maintenance dinner that requires almost no work at all! Saucy chicken is cooked to tender perfection in the crock pot, shredded, and served atop fluffy rice for a meal that’s as delicious as it is easy. 

this recipe

This post was originally published in November 2021. I’ve just republished it with extra tips, but the recipe has not changed.

Why you’ll love this Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken:

• Sweet and Savory – Tender, juicy chicken thighs cook low and slow in a bath of honey, garlic, soy sauce, and white wine. The meat falls apart and every bite is bursting with tangy umami flavor with just the right amount of sweetness.
• Basically Effortless – This quick and easy dump-and-go dinner comes together in four easy steps, with only a few minutes of prep time. Plus, the honey garlic chicken cooks totally hands-off in the slow cooker. Set it and forget it! (Well, not literally, of course!)
• Best Meal Prep Recipe – It’s true! Make a regular batch or double it, then use leftovers for fast and delicious lunches and dinners for days.

Ingredient Overview:

As always, the full recipe with measurements & directions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Use the table of contents (back at the top, below the first image, to navigate).

• Honey – Use quality pourable honey.
• Soy Sauce – I suggest using low sodium soy sauce here. You get all of the great umami flavor you want without an extra dose of unnecessary salt.
• White Cooking Wine – You can use a bottled specifically-for-cooking wine. Or use a light and dry white wine like a Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc.
• Boneless Chicken Thighs – Dark meat boneless and skinless thighs are just the right amount of fatty and way more flavorful than chicken breasts. They cook and shred beautifully in the slow cooker!
• Cornstarch – A gluten-free thickener to make the luscious, sweet and savory honey garlic sauce.
• Sesame Seeds – Great to use as a garnish on top of the chicken when serving.

Recipe Variations:

• Gluten-free – Making this recipe gluten-free is as simple as making sure to purchase GF low sodium soy sauce. Or use naturally gluten-free coconut aminos.
• Alcohol-free – Substitute 1/4 cup of white cooking wine with 2 tablespoons of chicken broth and 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar. You can also just use chicken broth, but the sauce won’t have quite the same tanginess.
• Chicken Breasts – If you prefer, you can use 3 lbs of chicken breasts in place of thighs. Either slow cook the breasts whole on low for 3-4 hours (check at the 3 hour mark), or cut them into chicken strips and cook for the regular 2-3 hours.
• Servings – Note that this recipe makes just four servings. Which is great if you’re someone who doesn’t like to eat leftovers of the same thing multiple days in a row. But, if you’re super lazy like me and only want to cook one or two recipes each week and have them last longer, you can certainly double the recipe!

How to Make This Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken Recipe:

Step 1: Mix Up the Sauce. Whisk together the sauce ingredients and add to your slow cooker with chicken thighs. I like using chicken thighs here because they don’t dry out as easily as chicken breast can.

Step 2: Cook the Honey Garlic Chicken. Cook this on low for 2 to 2.5 hours, until the chicken is cooked through and is nice and tender. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and set aside, tented with foil. 

Step 3: Thicken the Sauce. To thicken up our sauce a bit, we’re going to add a cornstarch slurry and water before transferring the sticky sauce to a small saucepan. Cook this over medium heat for 2-4 minutes, until thickened.

Serving + Storing:

Return the chicken to your slow cooker, shred it, and pour that delicious sauce on top! Stir everything up to get your chicken coated in that saucy goodness. Serve over white rice, brown rice, or cauliflower rice.

Sprinkle on some green onions and sesame seeds for a fancy finished look. For a complete meal you can also pair with my Bacon Green Beans (feel free to omit the bacon for a lighter side) or with my Quick Roasted Cauliflower.

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

FAQs:

Special Tools:

• Slow Cooker – Whether you have a Crock-Pot or another brand of slow cooker you call a crock pot, either is great to make this easy honey and garlic chicken recipe!

More Easy Dinner Recipes to Love:

• Beer Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
• Cozy Chicken Dumpling Soup
• Best Ever Slow Cooker Chili
• Asian Chicken Bowls with Sesame Dressing
• Honey Garlic Chicken Bowls

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