Slow Cooker Honey Teriyaki Chicken
E
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
A slow-cooked chicken dish with honey, soy sauce, garlic, and a splash of apple cider vinegar. Slow simmered until tender, shredded, and tossed with a thickened glossy sauce accented by toasted sesame seeds. Serves four with rice. Adapted to swap red wine vinegar for apple cider vinegar and balanced sugar levels. Visual cues matter for doneness more than rigid timing. Sauce strained and thickened separately for a silky coating without onion chunks. An easy, hands-off option with smart tweaks and sensory checkpoints for confident home cooking.
Prep:
7 min
Cook:
Total:
Servings:
4 servings
#slow cooker
#Asian American
#honey chicken
#easy dinner
#teriyaki sauce
#shredded chicken
Forget the timers obsessively counting down. This dish, slow-cooked chicken bathed in honey-soy goodness, teaches you to feel the texture, smell the aromas, to listen to the simmer. Garlic and onions slowly sweeten. Vinegar adds zing, but watch the sweet balance — too much sugar and glaze gets cloying. The magic happens as chicken softens to shreddable, strands parting effortlessly at a light touch. That sauce, strained and boiled down with cornstarch, thickens into a shiny blanket. I swapped red wine vinegar for apple cider recently for a fruitier twang and liked the twist. Tried it with brown sugar once, lost some punch. Use your nose, your fork’s tug as guides, not rigid minutes. Once mastered, makes weeknight dinners fuss-free heavy hitters. Sesame seeds just pop it to another level.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 small yellow onion chopped
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- toasted sesame seeds for garnish
About the ingredients
Honey is the backbone here but maple syrup or a good-quality brown sugar mix well if you want less floral sweetness. Low sodium soy sauce keeps salt in check, essential because chicken reduces and concentrates. Garlic in minced form wins for fast infusing, skip big chunks or minced over crushing for evenness. Fresh yellow onion chopped releases sweetness slowly; yellow’s better than white for this. Switched to apple cider vinegar from red wine for a brighter, fruitier profile but all vinegar types bring acid balance — pick based on your fridge odds. Ground ginger adds subtle warmth. Black pepper adjusts subtle heat, don’t overdo. Cornstarch slurry a must to thicken sauce without gritty texture; mix well or lumps curse the sauce. Toasted sesame seeds are final crunch and aroma seal. Bone-in chicken creates depth but boneless keeps shredding simpler.
Method
- Mix honey soy sauce garlic onion vinegar ginger pepper in slow cooker. Whisk, don’t skip. This sauce base sets story here.
- Nestle chicken in, flip to coat fully. Spoon onion chunks atop bird for flavor punch. Lid locked tight.
- Cook low for around 3 to 3 hours 15 minutes. Watch carefully around 3 hrs — juices run clear and chicken pulls easily with fork; no rubbery chew. Timing fluctuates by slow cooker brand and chicken thickness.
- Remove chicken once tender. Should fall apart easily when forked, fibers separating with no resistance.
- Drain liquid into saucepan. Strain out garlic onion bits; that’s why you want sauce silky, no surprises.
- Heat sauce medium until starting to bubble. Stir cornstarch into cold water till smooth. Stream cornstarch slurry slowly; whisk constantly to avoid lumps.
- Boil until sauce thickens and clings to spoon edges. Stir often. Drop heat to low, simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Thick but pourable, glossy coating texture is right.
- Toss shredded chicken with half this sauce so every strand glistens. Hold rest for serving drizzle.
- Serve over steamed or fried rice. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds over top. Crunch contrast, nutty aroma.
- Note: If no apple cider vinegar, distilled white or rice vinegar works; each alters brightness subtly. If no honey, use maple syrup or brown sugar but reduce soy for less salt.
Cooking tips
Whisking the base sauce without skipping sets the flavor integration foundation; don’t dump and forget. When adding the chicken, coating every surface ensures each bite packs punch. The onion chunks on top slowly infuse sweetness; don’t skip even though you strain them out later — flavor layers count. Cooking 3-3.25 hours low often nails tenderness but test with a fork early: when juices run clear and chicken fibers part under light pressure, proceed. Overcooking can dry it out even in crockers. Straining sauce before thickening removes harsh onion and garlic bits that ruin silky mouthfeel. Cornstarch mixed cold prevents lumps; drizzle slowly into boiling sauce while whisking hard—this is where all the silky sheen happens. Stir constantly or risk sauce sticking or clumping. Simmer briefly after thickening to stabilize. Half sauce tossed on shredded chicken locks flavor in the meat. Save rest for drizzling—keeps dish moist. Sesame seeds aren’t garnish only; toast them yourself to bring out oils and deepen aroma, elevates simple bowl big time.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Whisk sauce base at start. Honey soy garlic vinegar and ginger must blend evenly. Don’t skip this or get uneven flavor pockets. Sauce sets the tone. Onion chunks on top release sweetness slow but trap flavor close to chicken. Strain those out later for smooth sauce. A little patience here pays off big time.
- 💡 Cooking time varies. 3 to 3 hours 15 minutes low heat range is guideline only. Watch juices run clear. When chicken fibers part easily under gentle fork tug, done. Overcooked means dry patches, under means tough bites. Thickness of breasts and slow cooker brand mess with timing a lot.
- 💡 Make slurry cold—always. Stir cornstarch into cold water till lump-free. Pour slowly into boiling sauce while whisking hard. This controls texture that glossy coat requires. Skip this and sauce clumps or sticks. After thickened, simmer couple minutes on low to stabilize sauce shine and texture.
- 💡 If no apple cider vinegar swap distilled white or rice vinegar. Changes brightness and acid punch slightly. Honey replacers like maple syrup or brown sugar work but need to tweak soy sauce salt to stop oversalting. Garlic minced finer for fast infusion. Big chunks give patchy strong bursts.
- 💡 Toasted sesame seeds garnish is not just ugly topping. Toast to bring out oils and deepen nutty aroma. Adds crunch contrast to tender chicken and thick sauce. Bone-in chicken works flavor-wise but boneless is easier to shred clean and quick. Choose based on your shred patience.
Common questions
Can I skip straining the sauce?
Not really. Garlic onion bits make sauce gritty, ruin mouthfeel. Strain helps get smooth glossy coating. If you want texture, leave them. But sauce thin, less shiny then.
What if chicken isn’t shredding easily?
Cook longer but carefully. Temperature lower if possible. Fork test key; fibers part with light pull means ready. Else keep cooking short bursts. Overcooking dries meat, toughens fibers; balance tricky but worth it.
Can I use brown sugar instead of honey?
Yes but reduce soy sauce salt. Brown sugar less liquid, more grainy texture. Honey adds floral sweetness and gloss. Maple syrup works too but changes flavor profile. Adjust sugars and salt cautiously to avoid cloying or flat taste.
How to store leftovers?
Sauce and chicken separate best. Keep sauce airtight in fridge up to four days. Chicken shredded, covered, fridge 3-4 days too. Freeze both separately for a month. Reheat sauce gently, add warm shredded chicken in at last step for moistness.
