Chew Out Loud

By 160 Comments

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

Jump to Recipe

This Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki is a must-try.  It couldn’t be easier to make this savory and tender chicken. You’ll want to make a big batch of this saucy dish, because it’s going to be an enormous hit with kids and grown-ups alike.  100% finger-licking great.

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki, crock pot teriyaki chicken, teriyaki chicken recipe

Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken

There are days in summer when we just don’t want to turn on the oven.  Or stand in front of a hot stove.  Go out into the humid heat and work on a grill?   There are even days when we who are self-proclaimed grill monsters won’t go near that fire.  The slow cooker is our hero.

Regardless of how busy we are, we still want something worthy of sitting down to the table for, and we’re not doing takeout. Deliciousness is a requirement, and healthy is good.

 And who’s not always looking for new ways to cook up easy chicken dinners?

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki, crock pot teriyaki chicken, teriyaki chicken recipe

Healthy, Hands Free, Delicious

Not to mention that we’ve been on a bit of a health kick in recent years.  Not the kind that ditches sugar, butter, or this tempting summer dessert, obviously.  Not that extreme.

Rather, we go for healthyish.  The kids have been regularly doing their own label reading at stores since kindergarten.  I haven’t decided if I like that or not, but that’s another story for another time.

What’s for sure is this: we’re officially smitten with this easy, hands-off dish that goes with any kind of rice, salad, or even noodles..  We’ve fallen head over heals for this Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken.  It was devoured so quickly, I wish I’d made a double batch.  More, please.

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki, crock pot teriyaki chicken, teriyaki chicken recipe

Unbeatable Teriyaki Sauce

For the scrumptious Teriyaki sauce, I use my trusty old recipe that I use for pretty much protein possible.

It’s easy peasy and forever fail-proof.  In fact, I habitually make extra sauce so I can keep an extra bottle of it in the fridge to use as a glaze over any protein.

Simply place the chicken thighs and sauce into the slow cooker, walk away, and ring the dinner bell when your house smells amazing. It doesn’t take all day to cook this chicken in the slow cooker, since boneless chicken thighs cook in just a few hours on high.

You’ll be able to smell the mouthwatering chicken the minute you walk in the kitchen. It’s phenomenally delicious.

Crock Pot Chicken Teriyaki

Use Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs

This Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki is superbly tender; I highly recommend using thighs for this. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs will yield the most tender results; they’re much more forgiving when cooked long and slow.

There’s plenty of sauce to go over the chicken and rice, so pour it on. Again, you may want to double batch the sauce to keep some in a jar for future use. This sauce is amazing over grilled salmon and steaks as well.

What’s your favorite way to serve chicken?

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
slow cooker teriyaki chicken

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

  • Author: Chew Out Loud
  • Prep Time: 10 min
  • Cook Time: 3 hours
  • Total Time: 3 hours 10 minutes
  • Yield: 6 1x
Print Recipe

Description

This Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken is simply magnificent. Be careful when you shred the meat after cooking, as it is amazingly fork tender. Tip: Make extra, unused sauce and store it in the fridge for future use.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 T cornstarch
  • 3/4 cups regular soy sauce
  • 3/4 cups white sugar
  • 1/3 cups packed brown sugar
  • 1/3 cups mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine; not rice vinegar)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 T freshly grated ginger
  • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 TB cornstarch dissolved in 2 TB water
  • Optional: Chopped scallions and toasted sesame seeds for garnish

Instructions

  1. Make the Sauce: In a bowl, whisk together 1 TB cornstarch, soy sauce, both sugars, Mirin, garlic, ginger, and black pepper. Whisk to combine well.
  2. Place chicken thighs in a single layer in slow cooker. Pour enough sauce to almost cover the top of chicken. (Save any leftover for boiling after the chicken is cooked or keep it in fridge for future use.)
  3. Cook on high for 3 hours or just until chicken is cooked through. To keep meat tender, don’t overcook. If you need to keep the slow cooker on longer, use low setting and adjust cook time.
  4. Remove chicken with slotted spoon and gently shred or cut into pieces (don’t shred too finely, as it will break up more in the sauce)
  5. Transfer sauce from the slow cooker into a saucepan. Add the 2 TB cornstarch dissolved in 2 TB water, stirring well. Bring to a low boil, stirring continuously, until sauce is thickened.
  6. Pour sauce over chicken and rice. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds if desired.

Notes

We highly recommend using chicken thighs, as they’ll yield much more tender results than chicken breasts would.

If you enjoyed this recipe, come back and give it a rating ♡

  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Slow Cooker
  • Cuisine: Asian

Keywords: Slow cooker teriyaki chicken, Crock pot teriyaki chicken, Teriyaki Chicken recipe

Reader Interactions

Comments

  8. Jenny G says

    Probably my favorite way to serve chicken is to grill boneless, skinless thighs. Marinate overnight in your choice of seasonings and then grill… so much flavor!

    Reply

  9. AnnaZed says

    I cook all of the time, but a favorite around here is chicken painted with a little melted butter (I know!) and dusted with Old Bay Seasoning. Everyone likes this.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    margueritecore [at] gmail [dot] com

    Reply

  12. natasha says

    I love to sautee thin chicken fillets that have been coated in fand egg-wash, then flour and seasonings (usually spike or some garlic powder and herb combo), then i pair it with a nice beet and goat cheese salad and mashed sweet potatoes.

    Reply

  13. nicole dz says

    My favorite way to serve chicken is seasoned with basil and garlic, then grilled, and topped with fresh stemmed veggies.

    Reply

  26. AnnaZed says

    I make chicken with a jar of verde sauce dumped over it that i surprisingly good and popular around here.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    margueritecore [at] gmail [dot] com

    Reply

  36. Birdiebee says

    My favorite check is Sour Cream Chicken Bake where you roll the chicken breasts in sour cream then roll in crushed Ritz Crackers and bake in the oven. Yum.

    Reply

  45. Deb Anderson says

    This looks amazing!! I love cooking chicken in the crock pot, so I’ll definitely be trying this. My favorite chicken dish is chicken parmigiana. Never get tired of it!

    Reply

  64. Anne says

    My all-time favorite way to serve chicken is a good old reliable roast. Lately I’ve been using one of those vertical-roasting pans, and the chicken is always moist on the inside with nice crisp skin on the outside. Delicious.

    Love your homemade Teriyaki. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply

  89. michele says

    That looks so delicious! I love making grilled chicken, salsa chicken, and chicken pot pie, but would love to try this dish that you shared.

    Reply

  94. Paula Michele Hafner says

    I love to bake chicken breast in a pan with green beans and potatoes. Sprinkle some Italian dressing mix over the top and cut up a stick of butter. Cover and bake at 350 for an hour. It taste really good and is a family favorite. We found the recipe on Pinterest.

    Reply

  111. Jennifer Reed says

    My favorite way to cook chicken is grilled outside. I love the taste of grilled food. I do like teriyaki chicken too in my slowcooker.

    Reply

  114. mizztara71 says

    I like spicy baked chicken wings served with blue cheese/ranch dressing and celery sticks.
    mizztuts AT bellsouth DOT net

    Reply

  116. Angela Ash says

    I love to serve chicken grilled with a lemon pepper seasoning. It’s refreshing and delicious and pairs well with cold sides, especially throughout the warmer months.

    Reply

  153. Maroula Spagnuolo says

    Hello this is on my list to cook this week for dinner. Looks super yum.
    Just wanted to ask, would it change the flavour if I put less sugar?

    thanks

    Reply

    • chewoutloud says

      Maroula, you can put a bit less sugar without altering flavor too much. Alternatively, you can try using agave nectar or honey as well. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for being here today! 🙂

      Reply

      • Maroula Spagnuolo says

        Thank you.

        So I made this last night for my husband and my parents… it was yum.
        I put less than 1/2 cup white sugar and less than 1/3 cup brown sugar…I reckon I could put even less…

        Also next time I think I might try doing half normal soy and half low sodium, it was too intense flavour for me, but everyone else liked it…

        Thanks for the recipe 🙂

        Reply

  154. Kenneth Norred says

    I can’t wait to try this slow cooker chicken teriyaki recipe, I love teriyaki every other way! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

Don't miss all the latest!