You will love how easy this Slow Cooker Honey Soy Chicken recipe is: just set it and forget it for 5 hours, and come home to juicy, tender shredded chicken- perfect for creating multiple meals with steamed veggies, rice, quinoa, or soba noodles.
While this recipe is simple like my Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken (that post has 3 different flavor ideas!), the added ingredients that take the easy idea to the next level.
The sweet flavor of honey is tempered with salty soy sauce, tangy rice vinegar, and zesty garlic + ginger to create a wonderful sauce that permeates every bite of chicken. I couldn’t get enough of this meal – and had to make it again, because the whole point was to load up my freezer with easy meals like this one for Back To Basics January.
- 4 cloves garlic
- ⅓ cup honey
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Garnishes: sesame seeds, green onion
- Finely mince your garlic and combine all sauce ingredients in the base of your slow cooker.
- Set the raw chicken breasts into the sauce, flipping them around to douse them in sauce and then trying to set them into an even layer on the bottom of the slow cooker. Add a bit of additional water if the chicken breasts aren't submerged in the sauce.
- Cook on low heat in your slow cooker for approximately 5 hours (see notes).
- Remove the chicken breasts and shred the meat with two forks. Mix it back into the sauce in the slow cooker to serve and garnish with sliced green onion and sesame seeds.
- For a thicker sauce: Move the leftover sauce from the slow cooker into a pot on the stove and add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch (mixed into 2 tablespoons of cold water before adding to the hot mixture) to the sauce to thicken it.
If using frozen chicken breasts, I recommend mixing the sauce up and defrosting the chicken breasts directly in the sauce overnight in the fridge.
I loved this bowl of nutty quinoa topped with the delicious shredded chicken and lightly steamed broccoli. I hope this simple meal with a sauce made out of pantry ingredients inspires you to add it to your meal prep plan for the coming weekend!
For those of you who’ve made it halfway through Back To Basics January – let’s check in with each other in the comments: Have you tried a new-t0-you simple snack, homemade meal, or favorite coffee at home? Have you made it a point to invite others over for dinner instead of eating out as much as you normally do?
I have loved celebrating in all the small accomplishments you #BackToBasicsJanuary hashtaggers have completed!
Marisa
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Slow cooker chicken always comes out so good! It is such an easy and versatile thing to cook!
Melanie @ Nutritious Eats says
I agree, slow cooked chicken is the best! I just did a chinese version of this with honey, soy and garlic. so yummy! Will have to try this next.
Marisa says
Oh yum – I would love to try the Chinese version!
Carly @ Snack Therapy says
I love me a good crockpot recipe. And I feel like this chicken would be AMAZING in butter lettuce wraps.
Marisa says
Why didn’t I do that!? I’m off to dig the leftovers out of the freezer for lettuce wraps this week!! Yum.
Cassie says
I haven’t eaten out since I’ve been back in SF (I think!). Wait, JK, I ate out twice. And ate yogurt a bunch. But that’s still good for me! I’ve been trying to not buy coffee at work but needed it yesterday… but also yesterday my baby french press arrived from my dad so I can make coffee at my desk 🙂
Marisa says
I know I’m late to respond to this – but you have been rocking Back To Basics! Are you enjoying your french press?! I have a post coming up soon about stovetop percolator coffee from Noah so get excited 🙂