Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken

Sticky slow cooker honey garlic chicken is full of flavor and a cinch to whip up with hardly any prep or clean up. An instant family favorite! 

Looking for more easy slow cooker chicken recipes? I have you covered: Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala, Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie Soup, and Slow Cooker

This is it. This is as easy as it gets without warming up a frozen dinner. Except for the part where this is 900 times more delicious and, let’s be honest, a whole lot healthier, than a frozen dinner. And I’m not even frozen dinner bashing because even though I haven’t touched one in years, I grew up on those things and loved them. 

I’m just saying that even15 years ago I could have handled the preparation on this dish and would have turned down microwave riblets and cherry cobbler in exchange for this saucy slow cooker chicken.

And, if the simplicity and ease don’t make you love this slow cooker chicken recipe, what will for sure make you a convert is the sauce. It’s sweet and savory, and so full of sticky goodness you will absolutely fall in love with every finger-lickin-good drop of it.

Why This Recipe Works

Seven ingredients — That’s it! That’s all it takes to get this slow cooker honey garlic chicken underway. 

Slow cooker — Thanks to my favorite appliance, you don’t even have to be around while this delicious honey garlic chicken dish is coming together. You can literally set it and forget it. 

Honey — Tastes delicious and helps all the sauce stick to the chicken so you get a lovely, honey/garlic/herby mouthful with every bite. 

Perfect for meal prep — Double this recipe if you want to eat it for meals throughout the week. Toss it over rice or noodles with a side of steamed veggies for a healthy, complete meal. 

Here’s How You Make it

Are you ready for the easiest directions of all time? You almost don’t need instructions for making this slow cooker honey garlic chicken, but here goes anyway: 

1. Place the chicken breasts or thighs at the bottom of a greased slow cooker. 
2. Whisk all the ingredients for the sauce together and pour it over the chicken. 
3. Add the lid and cook on low for 6 hours (or high for 3). 
4. Serve and garnish with fresh herbs if you like.

Ideas for Serving this Recipe 

• I love to serve this slow cooker honey garlic chicken over white or brown rice. In a hurry? Use instant rice, or one of those microwaveable bags of rice. 
• This slow cooker garlic chicken also goes great over egg noodles. Be sure to spoon on extra sauce over the top for the noodles to soak up. 
• If you’re looking for a low-carb meal, you can add this chicken over cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash. 
• I have also used leftover honey garlic chicken for the main filling for wraps or inside a quesadilla with some monetary jack or pepper jack cheese. 
• Shred the chicken and drain off most of the juice and add the chicken over the top of an Asian-inspired salad. 
• Want the best of all worlds? Shred or dice the chicken and add it to an Asian noodle salad that contains both spaghetti and veggies. Yum!

Is It Okay to Put Raw Chicken In a Slow Cooker?

Oh heck yes it’s okay. That’s what most recipes call for, in fact. The purpose of a slow cooker is to cook from raw so you don’t have to cook over the stove, in the oven, or on the grill. Any type of raw chicken works in the slow cooker — breasts, thighs, bone-in…you name it! You can even start with frozen chicken (see below).

Can You Put Frozen Chicken in a Slow Cooker?

Yep! Sure can start with frozen, but it will take longer to cook. Also, I feel like the chicken won’t be as flavorful because it will spend the first hour or so of cooking thawing. However, it must be noted that I have no real evidence of this, it’s just what I’ve experienced in the past. If you want to start with frozen chicken, then add another hour to your cooking time. 

Expert Tips

• For even spicier slow cooker garlic chicken, double the hot sauce in the ingredients, add red pepper flakes, or top the chicken with more hot sauce (I love Sriracha!). 
• If you want to add some veggies to this dish, I suggest starting with a microwavable/steamable bag of broccoli, cauliflower, edamame, or another of your favorite veggies. Steam the veggies according to package directions, then add them to the slow cooker during the last 30 min or so of cooking time. Stir together before serving. 
• The chicken will keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months.

More Chicken Recipes

• Greek Avocado Chicken Salad
• Chicken Salad with Grapes
• Best Broccoli Salad (without mayo!)
• Strawberry Pasta Spinach Salad with Orange Poppy Seed Dressing
• Greek Lemon Rice

Did you try this amazingly easy and tasty grilled chicken recipe? YAY! Please rate the recipe below!