This crockpot sweet Hawaiian chicken is sweet, tangy, and savory full of vegetables and pineapple for a colorful meal the whole family will love! A simple 10-ingredient meal for any night of the week--let's get slow cookin'!
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You'll Love Sweet Hawaiian Chicken in the Crockpot
10 Ingredients. I've said it a million times: any recipe that I can whip together in 10 ingredients or less is always a win! This recipe is unique by using chicken, pineapple juice, pineapple pieces, bell peppers, carrots, onion, BBQ sauce, brown sugar, and soy sauce.
Colorful and Flavorful! Classic Hawaiian flavors include sweetness from the pineapple and brown sugar, savory from the BBQ sauce and soy sauce, and colorful from all the veggies! I love the combination of flavors in this dish, and is so different than most crockpot meals.
New Family Favorite. We love this recipe served over rice, lettuce boats, or on sandwiches with extra BBQ sauce! Serve over rice the first night, and then save the leftovers and make sandwiches the next night for two totally different meals.
Hawaiian Slow Cooker Chicken Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to make this crockpot Hawaiian chicken:
- Pineapple Juice: use the juice reserved from the canned pineapple chunks.
- Cornstarch:
- BBQ Sauce: we used a hickory-smoked brown sugar BBQ sauce, but you could also use a Hawaiian-style BBQ sauce.
- Soy Sauce: use regular, low sodium, or a substitute such as coconut aminos or tamari if preferred.
- Brown Sugar: use regular brown sugar or a brown sugar substitute.
- Red Onion
- Baby Cut Carrots: reduce prep time by using baby-cut carrots, or you can peel whole carrots and cut to size.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
- Bell Peppers: in this recipe, we used green bell peppers and red bell peppers. You can use other colors if desired.
- Canned Pineapple Chunks: reserve the pineapple juice.
For exact ingredient quantities, please see the recipe card below!
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Substitutions and Variations
- Make it spicy by adding hot sauce, red pepper flakes, and cayenne pepper or using a spicy barbecue sauce.
- Hawaiian BBQ sauce can be used instead of hickory-smoked brown sugar BBQ.
- Use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of thighs.
- Use orange or yellow bell peppers instead of red or green bell peppers if preferred.
- Use white, yellow, or sweet onions instead of red if desired.
- Adjust any seasonings to taste.
- Add other aromatics, such as minced garlic or ginger, to add additional depth of flavor.
- Season with lemon pepper to add acidity; which is often used in Hawaiian dishes.
How To Make Slow Cooker Hawaiian Chicken
Here's how to make this easy sweet Hawaiian crockpot chicken:
- Grease your crockpot. Whisk together the pineapple juice and cornstarch. Add BBQ sauce, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Combine.
2. Layer onions, then add carrots, chicken thighs, bell peppers, and then pineapple chunks.
3. Pour the sauce over the top. Cover and cook on low until done.
Hint: Layering the items in the slow cooker, starting with onions, carrots, and then the chicken, places the longer cooking vegetables on the bottom where it's hotest so they can cook faster. Then topping with the quickest-cooking peppers and pineapple is the most efficient way to cook this dish.
How to Serve Sweet Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken
Adjust seasoning with additional soy sauce, BBQ sauce, salt, or pepper.
Serve the chicken and vegetables hot over freshly cooked rice.
Garnish with fresh chopped chives or sliced green onion and chopped parsley.
Serve with warm Hawaiian sweet rolls!
Meal idea! Make Hawaiian shredded chicken sandwiches! Replace the chunked pineapple with an 8 oz can of drained crushed pineapple. Chop your vegetables finer and cook your chicken until it shreds easily with a fork. Add the sauce to the chicken and season with salt and pepper or soy sauce. Serve slider style on Hawaiian sweet rolls with extra BBQ sauce!
Tips
- Determine the chicken's doneness by using a meat thermometer. Chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
- Marinate your chicken 24 hours ahead of time in Hawaiian BBQ sauce to help tenderize and add extra flavor to the chicken.
- This recipe is easy to double if needed to serve a party!
Crockpot Chicken Hawaiian FAQ's
Allow to cool, and once it has cooled, transfer to an air-tight container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat in the microwave on a microwave-safe dish in 30-second increments until your desired temperature is reached.
You could serve this Hawaiian chicken with many different things! You could serve it over white rice, coconut rice, steamed vegetables, rolls, or even macaroni salad!
Typically slow cooking meats do assist in retaining moisture and keeping it tender and juicy! You can also marinate your chicken up to 24 hours ahead of time to aid in flavor and tenderness.
The easiest way to prevent overcooking and drying out your chicken is by watching the internal temperature by using an instant-read thermometer. Cook your chicken on low and check after it has been cooking on low for 2 hours for your internal temperature. Once it has reached 165 degrees F, it is done!
📖 Recipe
Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup pineapple juice (reserved from the canned pineapple chunks)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup barbecue sauce (we used a hickory smoked brown sugar BBQ sauce but Hawaiian BBQ sauce may be used.)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 small red onion (chopped)
- 2 cups baby cut carrots
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 each green and red bell peppers (seeds removed and cut into 1" pieces)
- 20 ounces canned pineapple chunks (drain but reserve ½ cup of the pineapple juice)
Instructions
- Grease the inside of a 4 to 6-quart crockpot. In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch with the pineapple juice. Add barbecue sauce, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Stir to combine.
- In the following order, layer the onions, then carrots, chicken thighs, bell peppers, and pineapple chunks.
- Pour the sauce over the top. Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F. Adjust seasoning with additional soy sauce, barbecue sauce, salt, or pepper.
Notes
- Don't miss all of our helpful hints, substitution ideas, cooking tips, and other delicious recipes that can be found in our post. Check it out!
- VARIATIONS:
- Make this more of a Hawaiian-style pulled chicken recipe for sandwiches (try it on Hawaiian sweet rolls with a little extra BBQ sauce) by using an 8 ounce can of crushed (and drained) pineapple instead of chunks and chop the vegetables finer. Cook chicken until it easily shreds with a fork. Add sauce to the shredded chicken and season with salt and pepper or soy sauce.
- Add spice by adding red pepper flakes or hot sauce.
- Hawaiian BBQ sauce may be used instead of hickory brown sugar BBQ.
- TIPS: Determine doneness with a meat thermometer, chicken is done when it reaches 165 degrees F.
- SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Serve chicken and vegetables over hot rice with sauce.
Nutrition
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