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Sweet Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken

Sweet Hawaiian crockpot chicken made with a sticky pineapple teriyaki sauce that turns golden and clings to pull-apart tender chicken. Slow-cooked with pineapple chunks for visible fruit bits and a thick glaze you’ll spoon over fluffy steamed rice.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Hawaiian-American
Calories: 620
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken and pineapple
  • 2.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 can (20 oz) pineapple chunks, drained (reserve 1/2 cup juice)
Sauce
  • 0.333 cup soy sauce
  • 0.25 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 3 tbsp ketchup
  • 3 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 3 garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • 3 tbsp water
To serve
  • steamed rice
  • sesame seeds
  • sliced green onions

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Method
 

Layer and sauce
  1. Place the boneless skinless chicken thighs in the slow cooker in an even layer.
  2. Whisk together the reserved pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, ketchup, rice vinegar, minced garlic, grated ginger, and sesame oil until smooth, then pour over the chicken so it’s mostly covered.
  3. Add the pineapple chunks on top in a single layer so they stay visible during cooking.
Slow cook
  1. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours until the chicken is tender and easily shredded (or cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours for faster results).
  2. Shred the chicken in the slow cooker, then stir to mix the pineapple pieces throughout the sauce.
Thicken to a glaze
  1. Stir the cornstarch slurry (cornstarch mixed with water) into the hot sauce until no lumps remain.
  2. Cook on HIGH uncovered for 20-30 minutes until the sauce thickens to a glossy glaze that clings to the chicken, stirring once or twice during this time.
Serve
  1. Serve the Hawaiian pineapple chicken over steamed rice and garnish with sesame seeds and sliced green onions so the toppings stay fresh and bright.

Notes

For best pull-apart texture, keep the lid on during the LOW/HIGH cook and only thicken the sauce during the uncovered HIGH step. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days; freeze up to 2 months. To make it gluten-free, use tamari instead of soy sauce while keeping the remaining ingredients the same.