Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Pineapple Teriyaki Recipe

This easy slow cooker chicken pineapple teriyaki recipe is sweet, tangy, and a family favorite for dinner! It’s better than take out, and we love it over pineapple rice!

This slow cooker recipe is the perfect, easy dinner during a busy week because it takes just 15 minutes of prep time! Plus, our slow cooker Hawaiian pineapple chicken is super delicious and requires just a hand full of simple ingredients that are easy to find at the grocery store!

So the next time you’re wondering what to eat, try this Hawaiian chicken! 

Ingredients To Make Slow Cooker Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken

You’ll only need a few items for this crockpot recipe!

5 skinless chicken thighs

You’ll want 5 large chicken thighs for this recipe. If your thigh are on the smaller side, you may want 6 or 7. You’ll also want the thighs thawed before putting into the crockpot.

20 oz. can pineapple chunks in juice

1/4 cup Low Sodium soy sauce

You could use regular soy sauce, but we prefer the low sodium version because it’s less salty!

3 tablespoons Light brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

You can use fresh garlic or used minced garlic from a jar.

1.5 tablespoons cornstarch 

2 sliced green onions

5 cups cooked pineapple rice (optional – for the side dish)

You could also serve it with white rice.

CAN You USE CHICKEN BREAST?

Yes, you could use skinless chicken breasts for this slow cooker pineapple teriyaki chicken recipe. We chose to use thighs because they are more juicy!! If you chose to use large chicken breasts, you will only need 2 or 3.

How do you to make slow cooker pineapple chicken?

1. Start by draining the juice from the can of pineapple juice into a small bowl or container. You’ll have about 3/4 a cup of juice saved that you’ll use in your sauce later. Place the chunks in the refrigerate until needed.
2. To make the Hawaiian sauce, combine the pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, and minced garlic together. You can also add a little water if you’re short on pineapple juice.
3. Place chicken thighs in the crockpot and pour the sauce on top of them. Cook on high heat for 4 hours or low heat for 8 hours. You’ll also want to flip the thighs half way through cooking to make sure each side gets marinaded.
4. Once the slow cooker has cooked the meat through, remove the meat. Then, mix together cornstarch with 2 Tbsp water and whisk it into the remaining sauce in the slow cooker. Let this mixture simmer in the slow cooker for 5 minutes on high or until it’s thick. 
5. Once it’s thickened, add in your pineapple chunks and chicken back to the crockpot and coat with sauce.
6. Serve over rice or vegetables.

Note: The chicken will be tender to the point of falling apart. You can choose to leave it in pieces or shred it before or after adding in the sauce.

What if my pineapple chicken sauce is thin or watery?

If your pineapple chicken is watery, you may have too much liquid in it. Along with following the ingredients list, you can also add a little more cornstarch to the sauce to thicken it.

What to Serve Slow Cooker Chicken Pineapple Teriyaki With

We prefer our slow cooker chicken pineapple teriyaki with rice, but you could also use fresh or frozen vegetables like broccoli florets or stir-fry veggies.

We made this pineapple rice on the stove top to go with it! You could also do a blend of brown rice.

Can you make crock pot pineapple chicken ahead of time?

To make this meal ahead of time, you can add the chicken thighs to a gallon-size Ziploc with the teriyaki sauce ingredients. Shake the closed bag and store for up to 5 months. When you’re ready to enjoy, just unthaw the bag and then put its contents into the slow cooker and cook like normal. If it’s still a little frozen – the cooking time may be a little bit longer.

Tips for Making Crockpot Chicken Pineapple Teriyaki

This recipe is actually really easy to make, but with that said – we wanted to include a few tips to making it!

• Serve over rice or vegetables
• Use thawed chicken versus frozen because frozen chicken releases more water and makes the sauce thin.
• The sauce thickens as it cools.
• You can also add in red chili flakes or Sriracha sauce to up the spice level!
• This recipe doesn’t work for chicken wings.
• You could also use fresh pineapple and fresh pineapple juice versus the can.

This crockpot pineapple chicken is also a great recipe for a Hawaiian movie night!

We had it, Hawaiian fruit salad, banana bread, and cream horns for dessert!

If you love this slow cooker teriyaki chicken, you may also like:

• Healthy Crockpot Meals for Weight loss
• Crockpot Potato Soup
• Is SPARKLING ICE Good for You?

Continue to Content

Yield: 5

Slow Cooker Chicken Pineapple Teriyaki

Print

This easy slow cooker chicken pineapple teriyaki recipe is sweet, tangy, and a family favorite for dinner! It's better than take out, and we love it over pineapple rice!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 4 hours

Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 5 skinless chicken thighs
• 20 oz. can pineapple chunks in juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1.5 tablespoons cornstarch 
• 2 sliced green onions

Instructions

1. Start by draining the juice from the can of pineapple juice into a container. You'll have about 3/4 a cup of juice saved that you'll use in your sauce later. Place the chunks in the refrigerate until needed.
2. To make the Hawaiian sauce, combine the pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, and minced garlic together. You can also add a little water if you're short on pineapple juice.
3. Put the chicken thighs in the crockpot and pour the sauce on top of them. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours. You'll also want to flip the thighs half way through cooking to make sure each side gets marinaded.
4. Once the slow cooker has cooked the meat through, remove the meat. Then, mix together cornstarch with 2 Tbsp water and whisk it into the remaining sauce in the slow cooker. Let this mixture simmer in the slow cooker for 5 minutes on high or until it's thick. 
5. Once it's thickened, add in your pineapple chunks and chicken back to the crockpot and coat with sauce.

Notes

• The chicken will be tender to the point of falling apart. You can choose to leave it in pieces or shred it.
• Serve over rice or vegetables
• Use thawed chicken versus frozen because frozen chicken releases more water and makes the sauce thin.
• The sauce thickens as it cools.
• You can also add in red pepper flakes or Sriracha to add some spice!
• This recipe doesn't work for chicken wings.

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  Crock-Pot Programmable Slow Cooker with Digital Timer, Stainless Steel

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

5

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 322Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 137mgSodium: 932mgCarbohydrates: 34gNet Carbohydrates: 33gFiber: 1gSugar: 29gProtein: 29g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.

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