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Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki is the sticky, sweet, and savory dinner that makes you look like a kitchen hero with almost zero effort, and my crew cleans their plates every single time I make it. I started leaning on it hard the year both girls had back to back activities, because I could toss everything in the crock pot on a busy Tuesday morning and come home to dinner that smelled incredible. If you love our Panda Express teriyaki chicken, this hands off version is about to become your new weeknight hero.
Better yet, it all comes together with a handful of pantry staples and one pot you do not have to babysit.
Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 4 to 6 hours
- ⏳ Total Time: About 6 hours 10 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 4 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 389kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Sweet, savory, and sticky with garlic and ginger
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, about as simple as our easy bourbon chicken
Quick Answer
Add boneless chicken thighs, brown sugar, soy sauce, chicken stock, honey, cornstarch, garlic, and ground ginger to the slow cooker, then cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. About 30 minutes before serving, stir in the teriyaki sauce and turn the heat to high so the sauce thickens into a sticky glaze. Serve the chicken over rice with toasted sesame seeds and a pile of pan fried broccoli.
Jump to:
- Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Asian Recipes
- Sticky Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Chicken thighs stay juicy. Thighs carry a little more fat than breasts, so they shrug off the long, low cook without drying out and turn perfectly fork tender.
- Cornstarch does double duty. Tossing it in at the start lets it slowly thicken the cooking liquid into a glossy sauce that clings to every single bite.
- Low and slow builds flavor. Hours in the crock pot give the soy, garlic, and ginger time to soak deep into the chicken instead of just coating the outside.
- A high heat finish makes it sticky. Cranking the slow cooker to high for the last 30 minutes with the teriyaki sauce reduces the glaze so it goes from soupy to sticky and spoon coating.
- It is genuinely hands off. You dump, stir, and walk away, which means dinner basically cooks itself while you tackle the rest of your day.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It is a true dump and go dinner that needs about 10 minutes of hands on time before the slow cooker takes over.
- The sticky teriyaki glaze tastes just like takeout but skips the mystery ingredients and the delivery fee.
- It feeds the whole family for cheap and reheats beautifully, just like our better than takeout beef and broccoli.
Key Ingredients
Here is what makes this Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki sing, and most of it is probably already sitting in your pantry.
- Boneless chicken thighs: They stay tender through the long cook and soak up the most flavor. Boneless breasts work too, but check them a little earlier so they do not dry out.
- Soy sauce and teriyaki sauce: The salty, savory backbone of the glaze. Reach for low sodium soy sauce if you want to dial back the salt.
- Brown sugar and honey: Together they give the sauce that signature sticky sweetness and glossy shine.
- Cornstarch: The secret to a sauce that actually clings to the chicken instead of running off into a puddle.
- Garlic and ground ginger: The warm, aromatic duo that makes the whole kitchen smell like your favorite Chinese chicken takeout.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This recipe is forgiving and easy to make your own, so lean on whatever you have on hand.
- Swap the protein: Boneless chicken breasts or even chicken tenders work, just shorten the cook time so they stay juicy.
- Add vegetables: Stir in carrot matchsticks, sliced radishes, a handful of kale, cucumber ribbons, or shredded cabbage near the end of cooking.
- Make it spicy: Add a spoonful of sriracha or a pinch of red pepper flakes for a little background heat.
- Go gluten free: Use tamari or a gluten free soy sauce and a gluten free teriyaki sauce.
- Pile it on noodles: Serve over steamed rice, or spoon it over our easy chow mein noodles for a fun twist.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki
- Add the chicken thighs, brown sugar, soy sauce, chicken stock, honey, cornstarch, garlic, and ground ginger to the slow cooker. Stir everything together, cover, and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
- About 30 minutes before serving, stir in the teriyaki sauce and turn the slow cooker up to high so the sauce can thicken into a sticky glaze. Start a pot of rice cooking so it is ready at the same time.
- Dry toast the sesame seeds in a small skillet over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring often, until golden and fragrant. Pour them onto a plate so they do not scorch.
- In the same skillet, heat a tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Add the broccoli and pan fry for 3 to 5 minutes, tossing in the green onions about halfway through, until everything is crisp tender.
- Spoon the rice into bowls, top with the broccoli and a generous scoop of the sticky teriyaki chicken, then shower everything with the toasted sesame seeds. Serve right away while it is hot and glossy.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Do not skip the high heat finish. Slow cookers do not reduce liquid on their own, so that last 30 minutes on high is what turns the sauce sticky and glossy.
- Want it even thicker? Pour the contents into a saucepan, add the teriyaki sauce, and simmer on the stove for 10 to 20 minutes until it coats the back of a spoon.
- Toast the sesame seeds. A quick minute in a dry skillet wakes up a nutty flavor that raw seeds just do not have.
- Resist lifting the lid. Every peek lets out heat and can add 15 to 20 minutes to the total cook time.
- Use a slow cooker liner for easy cleanup. The sticky sauce wipes right out, just like when we make slow cooker bourbon chicken.
- Double it for a crowd. This recipe scales up beautifully for meal prep or a busy week of grab and go lunches.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
The classic way to serve this Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki is piled over a bowl of fluffy steamed white rice with the toasted sesame seeds scattered on top. For something a little heartier, spoon it over our better than takeout chicken fried rice or a tangle of chow mein noodles.
Round out the plate with a quick vegetable side. The pan fried broccoli and green onions in this recipe are a great start, but a batch of garlicky snow peas or some steamed edamame would feel right at home next to that sticky glaze.
If you are building a full takeout night at home, this teriyaki chicken plays so well with our sweet and sour chicken and a side of kung pao chicken. Set everything out family style and let everyone build their own bowl.
Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki FAQs
Yes. Boneless skinless chicken breasts work in place of thighs, but they are leaner and can dry out, so check them around the 3 to 4 hour mark and pull them as soon as they are cooked through. Thighs are more forgiving if you need to leave the slow cooker running a little longer.
Slow cookers trap moisture and do not reduce sauces the way a stovetop does. The fix is the high heat finish: turn the cooker to high for the last 30 minutes with the teriyaki sauce stirred in. If it still is not thick enough, pour everything into a saucepan and simmer it on the stove for 10 to 20 minutes until glossy.
Absolutely. Let the chicken cool completely, then freeze it in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge and reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave with a splash of water to loosen the sauce.
No, and that is the beauty of this recipe. You add the raw chicken straight to the slow cooker with everything else. The long, low cook does all the work, so there is no searing and no extra pan to wash.
Any bottled teriyaki sauce you love works great here, since it goes in at the end to boost the glaze. A thicker teriyaki glaze will give you the stickiest result. You can also stir together a quick homemade version with soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and ginger if you prefer.
Stored in an airtight container, leftovers keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, which makes this a great make ahead lunch. Reheat single portions in the microwave, or warm a bigger batch on the stovetop over low heat with a splash of water.
Looking for more cozy, hands off dinners? Try our easy bourbon chicken next, another sweet and savory favorite the whole family devours.
Sticky Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into chunks
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken stock a scant 1/2 cup
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 2 cups cooked white rice for serving
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 2 green onions sliced
Instructions
- Add the chicken thighs, brown sugar, soy sauce, chicken stock, honey, cornstarch, garlic, and ground ginger to the slow cooker. Stir everything together, cover, and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup chicken stock, 2 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- About 30 minutes before serving, stir in the teriyaki sauce and turn the slow cooker up to high so the sauce can thicken into a sticky glaze. Start a pot of rice cooking so it is ready at the same time.2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce, 2 cups cooked white rice
- Dry toast the sesame seeds in a small skillet over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring often, until golden and fragrant. Pour them onto a plate so they do not scorch.2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- In the same skillet, heat a tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Add the broccoli and pan fry for 3 to 5 minutes, tossing in the green onions about halfway through, until everything is crisp tender.2 cups broccoli florets, 2 green onions
- Spoon the rice into bowls, top with the broccoli and a generous scoop of the sticky teriyaki chicken, then shower everything with the toasted sesame seeds. Serve right away while it is hot and glossy.
Notes
- Sauce too thin? Slow cookers do not reduce liquid well. Before adding the teriyaki sauce, pour everything into a saucepan, stir in the teriyaki sauce, and simmer over high heat for 10 to 20 minutes until thick and glossy.
- Chicken: Boneless skinless chicken thighs stay the most tender, but boneless breasts work too. Check them a little earlier so they do not dry out.
- Bulk up the veggies with carrot matchsticks, sliced radishes, a handful of kale, cucumber ribbons, or shredded cabbage.
- Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave with a splash of water.
- Gluten free: Use tamari or a gluten free soy sauce and a gluten free teriyaki sauce.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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If I wanted to sub the chicken thighs for breasts, how many would you recommend I use?!
AMAZING!!!! I subbed out broccoli for peppers. My family loved this meal. Thank you
Could you clarify what a “pack” of chicken thighs is? Is there a specific weight/amount?
Just put this in my slow cooker. Btw I’m a Brit living in the US, with a son named Callum too!
Glad to hear that, Ang! Be sure to pop over to my blog & see if there’s anything else you deem pin-worthy! 🙂
Yay, thanks so much!
This looks AMAZINGLY delish! I’m pining it to my crockpot board 🙂
Thanks Dana!