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    Home » Recipes » Dinner

    Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken

    Published: Apr 18, 2022 · Modified: Apr 3, 2025 by Ryan Allen · This post may contain affiliate links · 5 Comments

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    This sweet and tangy Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken is better than takeout and still doesn’t require a lot of effort or mess. It’s the perfect weeknight dinner when you don’t feel like cooking but also don’t want to eat out.

    Teriyaki chicken rice bowls garnished with green onions.
    Jump to:
    • Why You’ll Love This Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • Variations
    • How to Make Teriyaki Chicken in the Crock Pot
    • Expert Tips
    • Storage Directions
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Recipe FAQs
    • More of My Best Crock Pot Chicken Recipes
    • Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken

    This delicious slow cooker teriyaki chicken is sticky, flavorful, and the sauce is made with seven simple ingredients you probably already have in your pantry! It combines soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and honey into a sweet and savory sauce that rivals the sauce from your favorite takeout spot. It’s one of our family’s favorite easy crock pot chicken recipes for busy weeknight dinners.

    If you like this Teriyaki Slow Cooker Chicken, you will love my Slow Cooker Teriyaki Meatballs, Slow Cooker Beef Ramen Noodles, and Slow Cooker Teriyaki Beef!

    Why You’ll Love This Recipe

    • Sweet and Flavorful: This delicious slow cooker teriyaki chicken is sweet, tangy, and sticky. The thick sauce coats every piece of chicken, so there is flavor packed into every bite. 
    • Made with Pantry Staples: You should have almost everything you need for this recipe in your pantry, like soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. 
    • Great Substitute for Takeout: Whether your family is saving money or just trying to cut back on takeout in general, this easy teriyaki chicken recipe will rival your favorite takeout teriyaki. 

    Ingredients

    • Chicken Breasts: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are the best meat for this recipe. It shreds easily once the chicken is cooked and doesn’t require a long cook time. 
    • Low-Sodium Soy Sauce: This recipe uses a good amount of soy sauce, so low-sodium soy sauce helps reduce the saltiness of the dish. If you don’t have low-sodium soy sauce, replace half the amount of regular soy sauce with water instead.
    • Light Brown Sugar: Balance the saltiness and savory flavor of the dish with some sugar. Brown sugar has a richer flavor than regular sugar and tastes best in this recipe.
    • Rice Vinegar: This vinegar is made from fermented rice and is popular in many Asian dishes. It has a milder and slightly sweeter flavor than regular white distilled vinegar.
    • Sesame Oil: This nutty and flavorful oil is made from sesame seeds. It’s extremely pungent, so a little goes a long way!
    • Ginger: This recipe calls for ground ginger, but you can also use fresh minced ginger. Increase the amount of ginger to one tablespoon if you use fresh or jarred ginger.
    • Garlic: Add a little zip to your teriyaki sauce with fresh minced garlic. You can also use jarred garlic. If you need to substitute for garlic powder, use half of a teaspoon. 
    • Honey: Give this slow cooker chicken teriyaki its sticky, sweet texture with a bit of honey. This adds sweetness and improves the texture of the dish.
    • Cornstarch: Adding cornstarch at the end of the cooking process helps thicken the sauce and gives the sauce a glossy finish. 

    See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.

    Variations

    • Use Chicken Thighs: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are a great alternative for this recipe. Dark meat is fattier and more flavorful, plus it doesn’t dry out as quickly as chicken breasts. It may require a longer cooking time.
    • Add Veggies: I love vegetables like broccoli, carrots, snap peas, peppers, and zucchini in my chicken teriyaki! You could even add pineapple for a little extra sweetness. Fresh vegetables or a frozen stir-fry mix work great.
    • Use Coconut Liquid Aminos: If you don’t like soy sauce or have an allergy, try using coconut liquid aminos instead. It’s made with salted and fermented coconut flower buds and has less sodium than soy sauce. 
    Crock pot teriyaki chicken garnished with green onions and sesame seeds.

    How to Make Teriyaki Chicken in the Crock Pot

    This teriyaki slow cooker chicken is a great alternative to takeout on a busy night when you don’t feel like cooking. It doesn’t require a lot of prep, but it’s a warm, comforting meal everyone will love.

    1. Step 1: Make the Teriyaki Sauce. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, water, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and honey until they are well combined. 
    2. Step 2: Add to the Slow Cooker. Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker and pour the sauce over the top. Cook the slow cooker teriyaki chicken on low for 3 ½ - 4 hours.
    3. Step 3: Shred the Chicken. Once the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the crock pot and shred it using two forks. Then, set aside the shredded chicken. 
    4. Step 4: Thicken the Sauce. Pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a saucepan with a little bit of water and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Slowly stir the cornstarch a little at a time into the sauce. Let the sauce boil and thicken for about a minute as you stir.
    5. Step 5: Sauce the Chicken. Pour the thickened sauce over the shredded chicken and stir it to coat every piece of chicken. Garnish with green onion and sesame seeds before serving.

    Expert Tips

    • Make a Cornstarch Slurry: Instead of adding cornstarch directly to the sauce and risking clumps, make a slurry instead. In a separate bowl, combine the cornstarch with ⅓ cup of cold water and mix. Slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the boiling sauce while stirring. It thickens the sauce and makes it appear shinier.
    • Don’t Overcook the Chicken: When preparing chicken in the crock pot, be sure not to overcook it. Cooking on low with a lot of liquid will help keep the chicken from becoming dry and tough. 
    • Reduce the Mess: Cut back on the mess by using a crock pot liner or spraying the crock pot with a nonstick cooking spray to make clean up a breeze.
    • Thin Out the Sauce: If your sauce becomes too thick, you can slowly stir in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.

    Storage Directions

    • Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you want to freeze leftovers, place the chicken, fully cooled, in a freezer-safe container for up to 8 weeks.
    • Reheating: Reheat the dish in the microwave on medium heat for 30-60 second intervals until it is heated through. You can also place large portions of leftovers in a baking dish and heat them in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes. If you’re reheating frozen leftovers, thaw them in the refrigerator for 24 hours before reheating.
    • Make Ahead: You can prepare the teriyaki sauce a day or two in advance and keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you’re ready to make this slow cooker teriyaki chicken breast recipe.
    Two bowls of teriyaki chicken over rice.

    Serving Suggestions

    After a long day, sometimes you just want a home-cooked meal, but you don’t want to actually do the cooking. This easy teriyaki chicken breast recipe makes that dream dinner possible. It barely requires any prep or hands-on cooking, and the whole family will beg for it week after week.

    • Serve this crock pot Asian chicken over a scoop of slow cooker white rice or brown rice with a side of stir fried vegetables or crock pot green beans for a balanced meal.
    • It’s always fun to mix up how you serve a frequently made dish. Try making chicken lettuce wraps or teriyaki chicken sandwiches for a fun new take on the dish. 
    • Prepare a takeout-inspired feast and serve this with sweet and sour chicken and slow cooker Mongolian beef.
    • Don’t forget dessert! Chocolate lava cake and chocolate peanut clusters pair so well with Asian-inspired dishes.

    Recipe FAQs

    Can I use bottled teriyaki sauce instead?

    Absolutely! Use your favorite bottle of teriyaki sauce plus a little bit of water for this slow cooker chicken teriyaki. It will reduce prep time and the number of ingredients needed.

    Where do I find rice vinegar?

    Rice vinegar is available in grocery stores in the aisle with the international foods. It is in the Asian section of that aisle, along with sesame oil.

    Can I make this in the Instant Pot?

    If you need a quick and simple dinner, make this easy teriyaki chicken in the Instant Pot. Add the chicken and sauce to the Instant Pot and cook on manual high pressure for 10 minutes. Then, let it naturally release for another 10 minutes. Shred the chicken, and you have dinner in less than 30 minutes.

    Chop sticks holding honey teriyaki chicken in a white bowl over rice.

    More of My Best Crock Pot Chicken Recipes

    • A bowl of Crock-Pot sweet and sour chicken over rice with diced green onions in the background.
      Crock Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
    • Crock pot Hawaiian chicken on top of a bowl of rice.
      Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken
    • Close up of slow cooker general Tso chicken over rice in a white bowl with chopstick in it.
      Slow Cooker General Tso Chicken
    • Overhead look at slow cooker mongolian chicken in a bowl over rice with chop sticks in it.
      Slow Cooker Mongolian Chicken

    Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below. Then follow me on Facebook and Pinterest! Share your favorite recipes or ask questions in my Facebook Group.

    Overhead look at crock pot teriyaki chicken garnished with green onions and sesame seeds.

    Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken

    Author: Ryan Allen
    Skip the takeout and make this easy Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken for dinner instead. It combines a homemade teriyaki sauce with chicken breasts to create a flavorful meal without a lot of hands-on cooking.
    5 from 26 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 4 hours hrs
    Total Time 13 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Chinese
    Servings 6
    Calories 167 kcal

    Equipment

    • My Favorite Slow-Cooker
    • Slow-Cooker Liners

    Ingredients
      

    Chicken

    • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
    • ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
    • ⅔ cup water
    • 2 tbsp light brown sugar (packed)
    • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
    • 1 tsp sesame oil
    • 2 tsp ground ginger
    • 2 tsp garlic (minced)
    • 3 tbsp honey

    Sauce

    • 3 tbsp cornstarch
    • ⅓ cup water

    Instructions
     

    • Combine soy sauce, water, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and honey in a medium bowl. Whisk everything together and set it aside.
    • Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker and pour sauce on top. Cook on low for 3½ to 4 hours.
    • Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred, set aside.
    • Place liquid from the slow cooker and water into a saucepan. Then bring to a boil over medium-high heat. While stirring the liquid, add cornstarch a little at a time and stir until thickened. Let boil for 1 minute and stir occasionally.
    • Pour sauce over shredded chicken and stir to combine.
    • Serve over rice and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

    Notes

    • Make a cornstarch slurry to avoid any cornstarch clumps in your teriyaki sauce. In a separate bowl, combine the cornstarch with ⅓ cup of cold water and mix. Slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the boiling sauce while stirring.
    • Always cook chicken on low with a lot of liquid to avoid overcooking the meat.
    • If your sauce becomes too thick, stir in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.
    • Prepare your homemade teriyaki sauce a day or two in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 167kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 17gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 602mgPotassium: 352mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 23IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 16mgIron: 1mg

    *Nutrition information is an estimate. It may vary based on ingredients, brands, and changes in cooking methods listed in the recipe. If you need exact ingredient numbers, I recommend calculating them with your preferred nutrition calculator.

    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    Comments

    1. Emily says

      April 22, 2022 at 3:31 am

      5 stars
      Amazing recipe! It’s quick and easy and tastes delicious. The chicken is so tender and the sauce really adds flavor and keeps it moist. Will definitely keep in the rotation! Also, the crab Rangoon recipe that’s attached in the website is really great with it too!

      Reply
    2. Hazel says

      December 22, 2023 at 3:43 am

      5 stars
      Tried doubling the recipes for make ahead meals for the week and I just tasted it! This is one of the best teriyaki chicken recipes I've ever tried. The honey really balances out the soy sauce!

      Reply
      • Ryan Allen says

        April 18, 2024 at 2:50 pm

        It is an honor to hear you say that.

        Reply
    3. Kiara says

      January 06, 2024 at 1:58 pm

      can I make this just using actual Teriyaki sauce??

      Reply
      • Ryan Allen says

        January 15, 2024 at 4:26 pm

        Yes, you can make this with a bottle of teriyaki sauce.

        Reply
    5 from 26 votes (24 ratings without comment)

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    Hey, I am Ryan

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