Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken Recipe
Sep 06, 2015, Updated Aug 31, 2022
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken is an easy slow cooker dinner, featuring a sticky-sweet sauce and juicy, perfectly cooked chicken thighs. Everyone will be fighting for the last piece!
Want more chicken thigh recipes? Try this easy air fryer chicken thighs recipe!
So Good You Might Just Lick Your Plate (I Did!)
Crockpot honey garlic chicken always makes me think of this one time, at a reallllyyy nice restaurant, when I picked up my plate and slurped up all the sauce. No shame.
It just so happened that I had a hot date at one of Chicago’s best Asian restaurants, and because I knew the owner, I felt like, hey anything goes! I felt like a hot shot, if you will, until I completely made a fool of myself because I could not stop slurping up the honey garlic sauce. I didn’t completely pick up the plate – just kind of tilted it a little bit – enough to get every last drop of that sauce! This experience was akin to the first time I tasted bourbon chicken, with its equally irresistible sauce that leaves you wanting more.
As a result, I developed this recurring hangry hunger for honey garlic chicken because it is simply that good. Tender, moist, chicken thighs, coated in the most glorious homemade honey garlic sauce, and in my version, it all comes together in the slow cooker. This recipe will change your life!
What You’ll Need
We’re only dealing with 5 ingredients here plus a seasoning or two. Super easy, I’m telling you. Here’s what you will need to make the perfect crockpot honey garlic chicken:
- Chicken Thighs: Since this recipe is for the slow cooker, I recommend using boneless, skinless thighs. Skin-on chicken would not get crispy.
- Garlic: Mince up some fresh garlic for a pop of savory flavor.
- Honey: For sweetness and stickiness! Pure maple syrup makes a good substitute if needed.
- Ketchup: Low-sodium is my preference, but you can use any ketchup you like.
- Soy Sauce: Again, I like low-sodium soy sauce. However, you can use regular soy sauce, or substitute tamari or coconut aminos.
- Dried Herbs/Seasonings: Dried oregano, fresh parsley, and toasted sesame seeds… yum!
How to Make Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken
Take out the ketchup, soy sauce, honey, garlic, and chicken thighs – things are about to get amazing!
- Mix the Sauce Ingredients. In a bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients: honey, ketchup, garlic, soy sauce, and dried herbs.
- Place the Sauce and Chicken in the Slow Cooker. Arrange the boneless, skinless chicken thighs inside the slow cooker, and pour the sauce over them.
- Cook. Cover the Crockpot and cook on HIGH for about three hours, or on LOW for 4 to 5 hours.
- Optional: Thicken the Sauce. If you would like to thicken the sauce, you can whisk a cornstarch slurry into the sauce about thirty minutes before the end of the cooking time.
How to Make a Cornstarch Slurry
To make the slurry for thickening, mix a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with a tablespoon of cold water, to form a paste. Whisk this into your sauce inside the slow cooker, cover and continue to cook. The sauce will thicken up beautifully!
Helpful Tips
This easy recipe is perfect for any dinner, with its ultra-simple ingredients and scrumptious taste. Plus, these tips make it even easier to whip up!
- How Much Chicken Should I Use? Use enough chicken thighs to cover the bottom of your slow cooker. You can also use chicken breasts, or substitute bone-in, skin-on chicken, if you prefer. Keep in mind that different kinds of concern require different cooking times!
- How Long Should I Cook This? All crock pots cook at different times and temperatures. Some readers suggest to cook the chicken for only 3 hours, while others said it took 4 hours in their crock pot. You can use a meat thermometer to make sure your chicken is done.
- Checking for Doneness. Most importantly, 165 degrees Fahrenheit is the safe internal temperature for both the white meat of the chicken, and the dark meat. Always cook to this temperature for food safety!
Great Side Dish Ideas
To serve this chicken, I like to make jasmine rice or another white rice. Of course, you could also make salad, or serve some simple veggies cooked with salt and maybe a little butter. Still looking for inspiration? Well, some other good side dishes could include…
- Broccoli: Fresh, green, Garlicky Steamed Broccoli is a great contrast for sticky chicken. It adds nutrition, too, of course! I love the fragrant garlic flavor in this recipe.
- Noodles: Instead of rice, add even more yumminess to your meal with a serving of noodles.
- Snap Peas: Crispy, crunchy, and sweet, these Sesame Snap Peas are always a huge hit and a breeze to make. Sesame goes perfectly with the sweetness of the honey garlic chicken.
Storing and Reheating the Leftovers
- To store, place the chicken and sauce in airtight containers or bags, and refrigerate for up to four days.
- Reheat on the stove over medium heat until heated through.
Can I Freeze Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken?
Yes, you can! Just place the cooked, cooled chicken and sauce in a freezer bag or container, leaving as little air inside as possible. Mark with the date, freeze, and use within 3 months for best results.
Pin this now to find it later
Pin It
Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 boneless, , skinless chicken thighs*
- 4 garlic cloves, , minced
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/2 cup low sodium ketchup
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Arrange chicken thighs on the bottom of your slow cooker; set aside. (please look at the notes section)
- In a mixing bowl, combine garlic, honey, ketchup, soy sauce, oregano and parsley; whisk until thoroughly combined.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken thighs. Close with a lid and cook for 4 to 5 hours on LOW, or 3 to 4 hours on HIGH.** (please look at the notes section)
- Remove lid and transfer chicken to a serving plate.
- Spoon the sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Serve.
Video
Notes
- Use 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water; mix it together until mixture forms a paste.
- 30 minutes before the chicken is done cooking, whisk the cornstarch slurry into the sauce inside the slow cooker; cover and continue to cook for 30 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Wonderful taste!
Made it in the oven and it came out delicious. had jasmine rice with it. next time i will skip oregano. it threw off the flavor a bit
What degree and how long did you cook it in the oven?
Anyone know what the instapot conversation would be?
I did it in the instant pot on low setting on slowcook for 5 hours. Then pulled the chicken out and thickened the sauce with some flour. I also used sesame oil instead of seeds. Came out wonderful!
What oven temp did you bake it N and how long?
CAN THIS be frozen then put in crockpot at later dressing ate?
You will sacrifice a lot of taste if you do that.
We substituted basil for oregano (I had fresh basil, no fresh oregano). Sooooo yummy and so easy! I double the recipe so we can have leftovers.
Can I use chicken breasts instead?
If I can is it the same cooking time?
This pot honey chicken will be perfect for my weekend. i will try this , it’s look so delicious. Thanks katerina for share this complete instruction
I made this in a sealed, enameled iron pot in my oven at a low temp, and it was very good (don’t have a crock pot just now). I have since made it with breast, and also delicious. Boneless breast takes less time than thighs. Haven’t yet made it with bone-in breast. Very good recipe. Thank you!
can you tell me how to make this same recipe in the oven
Realli gd base recipe that leaves room to tweak to ur craving!! Being huge foodies my husband and I are very excited to taste this…already in the Crock-Pot and lookin n smellin delish….my tweak on this wonderful recipe is this….1/2 c ketchup…1/2 c red Thai curry sauce ( was out of fresh ginger and this had it in it as well as coconut milk and red chili )…1/4 c fish sauce..1/4 c soy sauce…1/2 c soylaki sauce…1/4 c honey…3 lrg cloves of garlic,minced…a pinch of chyenne pepper…omitted the other due to personal preference…stuffed 8 bone in theighs in the pot..drenched in sauce and away we are going…*note* soylaki and red Thai curry sauce is from Trader Joe’s…good stuff!! Thank you so much for this awesome Asian inspired dish and look forward to trying out the many tasty looking recipes on this sweet site!! Happy cooking to all 🙂
Haha! So you basically did not follow the recipe and made a whole new dish.
Lol you’re my hero. “This recipe is so good! Except I changed everything but the your of meat you used.” Its my biggest pet peeve ou’d recipe reviewers.
I intentionally make recipes exactly as is the first time so I can find out what I might need to change for the next time around.
Same! LOL! Why do people do this?!
HAHA! One of my pet peeves, also!
Lol
Don’t comment if you’re not going to review the recipe as is. Start your own blog with your own recipes if this is what you plan to do on other peoples blogs. It’s ridiculous.
EXACTLY !! Start your own blog… we don’t want to hear about your own personal amazing recipe
Well, I thought your comment was helpful Tesy Clark. She/he did state this recipe makes a really good “base” and then went on to share her own tweaks on it. Not sure why people are being so rude about it! PS – I have made this recipe as-is and it’s great. Now I’ll try a few of Tesy’s suggestions because – why not?!
I love to start with this
basic recipe and change it up a bit… why not.
SO YOU GAVE YOUR RECIPE 5 STARS, HOW INTERESTING. THE OBJECT OF A REVIEW IS TO REVIEW THE POSTED RECIPE, NOT A NEW ONE CREATED BY YOU.
“I made this last night but I removed the honey, oregano, soy, and garlic and added the following: 3 crushed up shells from blue crabs, 6 oz. carrot tops, 1 cup lake water, 3 corn cobs (corn removed), 14 oz Kippered Snacks, 1/2 head of kale, substituted chicken with potted meat, and one box of corn muffin mix…. It was excellent! Next time I will cook it in the sun for 4 days though so it dries out a little more. The added crunch of the crock pot was delicious! plus I don’t even have dishes to wash.
Oh Pshaw, how depressing.
LMAO
That’s funny. Lol
This is the hardest I have laughed in a long time!!!!
Love your comment—and bet you’re a good cook!
What degree and how long did you cook it in the oven?
Can you please confirm the serving size in the nutrition facts? (It looks like it says one gram??)
What is the serving size?
Can I put frozen chicken thighs on the crockpot for this recipe or do they need to be thawed?
Did you try frozen? Wondering if I can use frozen chicken breasts since I don’t have thighs on hand?
I rarely thaw my chicken breasts before cooking in crockpot. 8 believe by using frozen it keeps the chicken really moist. I am making this tonight for dinner super excited to try it and am pairing it with homemade fried jasmine rice. Hubby kiddo and I like a thicker sauce so I think from reading comments I will add a tbs of cornstarch with some water to the sauce just to thicken it. Will update with taste review after its made.
Frozen meat isn’t a good idea on a crock pot because the meat stays at an unsafe temperature for a long time as it thaws.
Just wondering if anyone has pan seared the thighs before putting them in the crock pot.